Men's swim team drops one, rallies against BW

The Yeomen opened up their season with a loss to Denison University 138-93, last year's Conference Champs, on Saturday and a victory over Baldwin-Wallace College 134-88, on Wednesday.

The results of the dual-meets were expected and for the team a lot less important than the number of yards the team is logging in at practice. This will add to seconds lost at their big shave meets on Dec. 4-6 at the Miami University of Ohio and at the conference championships in February. The team's primary goals for the season are to send as many people to Nationals as possible and to take the highest ranking possible in the Conference Championships.

As far as the team's progress this season, Head Coach Dick Michaels said, "We've never worked this hard before. This group is the best group we've had in terms of upper-level people in a long time." As a coach in his 28th season, Michaels is one to know.

"We are establishing new world records for yards logged in at practice," Michaels said.

Because of the rigorous training required to swim well in the big meets, the teams don't get their fastest swims in dual-meets.

"We are working really hard in practice," senior Wayne Miller said. "We are too beat up to swim fast in meets."

Against Denison, the runner-up at the NCAA Division III championships last March, Oberlin managed to earn two victories in individual events.

Junior Matt Soellner raced to a 2:05.43 finish in the 200-yard individual medley and first-year John Limouze swam a 1:59.10 200-yard butterfly to earn the victories.

In the 200-yard butterfly, Soellner placed a disappointing third in the butterfly with the time of 2:06.08.

"I had a very bad race," Soellner said. "Limouze schooled me in that event."

"In all of Soellner's events he is dying in the last 50 yards," Michaels said. His split for the last 50 yards of the race was 2.5 seconds slower than his previous 50-yard split.

Soellner also touched the wall second in the Denison-exhibited 200-yard breaststroke with a time of 2:22.36.

Other high placers for the Yeomen in the meet included co-captain senior Josh Davis, who placed second in 100-yard freestyle with a time of 51.0, and junior Jeremy Steinhauer, who touched the wall third in the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 1:51.53.

First-year Aaron Hillyear placed second in the one-meter diving with 203.60, and third off the three-meter board, in only his second meet off the higher board.

Before the meet Miller said, "Baldwin-Wallace is a pretty terrible team. If we don't beat them, we are lame." Fortunately for the team's morale they had no problem beating BW.

The Yeomen dominated Baldwin-Wallace just as much as they were dominated by Denison. Oberlin demonstrated to BW the same mercy which Denison showed them, swimming the last two events, the breaststroke and the freestyle relay as exhibitions.

The Yeomen won all the swimming events in their meet with Baldwin-Wallace.

The 200-yard medley team of Limouze, sophomore Paul Pitcher, co-captain Clayton Woodson, and Soellner started the meet off with a victory, finishing with a time of 1:45.53.

The Yeomen swept two events on the day, the 500-yard freestyle and the 100-yard butterfly. The butterfly sweep was led by Woodson placing first, at 56.56, Davis placing second at 56.92, and Miller placing third, with 57.43.

Soellner, senior Eric Grasha and junior Scott Remley swept the 500-yard freestyle. Soellner finished in 5:03.69, Grasha took second, with 5:15.42 and Remley wound up third in 5:30.84.

"5:03 is a good start towards where I'd like to be," Soellner said.

Soellner, Limouze and Davis all won two events in the meet. Soellner swam the 200-yard freestyle in 1:50.51 for his first win followed his victory in the 500-yard swim.

Limouze won the 200-yard individual medley with a time of 2:08.35 and the 100-yard backstroke with a time of 58.93.

"It was a solid swim and it's a good place to build," Limouze said.

Davis sprinted to a 23.36 in the 50-yard freestyle and then in exhibition touched the wall first in the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 1:04.77.

Limouze and Soellner have already develop a rivalry of sorts, as they both excel in the same events, the 200-yard butterfly and the 400-yard individual medley.

"Matt[Soellner] likes to talk a lot of trash, I just like to beat him," Limouze said.

First-year Ivan DeJesus placed first in the 1000-yard freestyle with a time of 11:02.06. Remley finished second in 11:17.38.

DeJesus wasn't too pleased with his time, but it has been two years since he has swam the event.

"I didn't swim the event smart," DeJesus said. "I got into a comfort zone. I could've gone faster." Steinhauer edged DeJesus by .08 seconds in the 100-yard freestyle, finishing with a time of 52.66.

Steinhauer also placed second in the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 1:57.07.

Against Ohio Wesleyan University on Saturday the Yeomen will have their first test of the season.

The meet could go either way, though the addition of Hillyear, Oberlin's first male diver since 1994, who placed second in the one-meter diving at BW, could make all the difference at the meet.

(TOP) Look, up in the sky...: First-year Aaron Hillyear bouncing, bouncing before the dive.
This swimmer is about to touch wall, and take one lap off of his grueling total; another swimmer goes sleek and speedy underwater.