The men’s swim season is underway, and expectations for the team are high. After kicking off the season with a victory against Dartmouth and a narrow defeat at defending champion Harvard’s home pool, the Red feels confident and ready to compete with every team it faces throughout the year.
“We’re feeling really good right now,” said senior Nick Cochran. “Everybody is really starting to get into shape. The peak of our season is fast approaching; everybody is feeling good and getting ready to swim some fast times.”
The Red decided to tweak its training regimen this offseason, which appears to be paying off. The team has consistently improved as many members of the team have turned in noticeably faster times.
“This preseason we focused a lot more on kicking,” said senior co-captain Wes Newman. “We changed our routine to dedicating two practices a week solely to kicking because we really wanted to build up strength in our legs. Everything starts with your leg muscles, if you get them strong, your whole body will get stronger. We’re hoping it pays off in the future — so far it has.”
After posting a .500 record last season, one of the Red’s main goals is to have a winning season. After coming within seconds of defeating Harvard at its first meet of the year, the Red knows that it has the ability to compete against anybody.
“We’re really aiming to have a winning season,” Newman said. “We just want to have as many personal best times as we can and improve on last year.”
Although several of the Red’s top contributors from last year have since graduated, numerous people have stepped in to fill the void of graduates. Sophomores and juniors have come through with stellar performances; junior Sasha Dobrolioubov and sophomore Dean Holcomb, in particular, have shown significant improvement from last season.
“Sasha Dobrolioubov has been having a breakout year so far this season,” Newman said. “Our sophomore class has stepped up big too. Dean Holcomb has been making huge strides.”
In addition to the returners, the Red boasts a stellar nine-man freshman class. The group is spearheaded by rookie Michael Cai, who placed first in three events at Harvard. The Red will be turning to its freshmen throughout the season.
“We have a really strong freshmen class,” Cochran said. “A lot of guys are stepping up and posting some really impressive times.”
“We have a very strong lineup of guys,” added senior co-captain Phil Baity.
“We have a lot of really talented people. We’re very confident because we know we’re going to be competitive against everybody.”
Overall, the Red has an exceptionally well-rounded team that can look to anybody to step up and produce fast times.
The leadership of the Red’s seniors mixed with the raw talent of the entire team should prove to be a winning formula throughout the season that lies ahead.