The women's swim team was crushed by Denison University last Saturday but improved considerably four days later at their meet against Baldwin-Wallace College, winning 132 to 97.
"We got smoked by Denison, but they came in second or third at the Nationals," said Head Coach Dick Michaels. The Oberlin team was dismantled by a score of 74 compared to Denison's 161.
"Denison is a powerhouse, we could never have that caliber of team at this small school," said co-captain junior Sarah Titus.
"Denison wasn't so good, It was just a long day," said junior Julie Chor. " It was really nice that we got a decent swim in at Balwin-Wallace." Chor explained that there are many new swimmers on the team so there is a whole new dynamic to the team, however they are starting to get more cohesive.
Individual performances were strong. Sophmore Julie Fritz had two lifetime bests. She placed first at Baldwin Wallace with a time of 2:28.22 in the 200-yard individual medley. At Denison she had done even better placing fourth with a time of 2:27.89 in the event.
The team is optimistic about the coming year. "We're improving a lot and practicing harder. We started out poorly as a whole but we're just getting better," said Titus.
The team was very happy that they were second academic All-American last year among All-Division three schools.
The team's next meet is at home this coming Saturday, where they will swim against Ohio Wesleyan University.
A swimmer churns in and out of a flip turn and the backstroke continues to produce pictures of disembodied faces and limbs in the water.
Copyright © 1997, The Oberlin Review.
Volume 126, Number 9, November 14, 1997
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