The Virginia men's and women's swimming and diving teams have opened the 2007-2008 season with a bang, compiling a 2-1 record. After losing their first meet with Florida in early October, both the men's and women's teams bested ACC rivals Virginia Tech and Clemson?.
Last year, the men's second--place finish at the ACC Championships broke an eight--year streak of consecutive titles. The Cavaliers have bounced back, however, and ranked 12th and 19th respectively, the men and women are off to a great start after last season's disappointing conclusion.
"I don't think you can improve unless you swim [against] people who are your equals or better than you," Virginia coach Mark Bernardino said. "They were pretty fearless in terms of how they approached the Florida meet and their races; and they just decided to race and be as successful as they could be and I think they did a great job of that."
Seniors Ryan Hurley and Pat Mellors are redshirting the season after both were named to the United States National Team. As Virginia's top veterans spend the year training for the Olympic Trials of the 2008 Summer Games, less seasoned Cavaliers will have to fill the void the tandem leaves on the men's side.
Fielding an all-around young team, Bernardino has already recognized that for Virginia to succeed this season, his freshman and sophomore swimmers will have to step up and make a considerable contribution.
"I am concerned with the youth of our team," Bernardino said." I am concerned with how well they will handle the challenges of training and the degree of difficulty of our schedule. But thus far they have done a marvelous job of standing up to the pressure of some very, very talented opponents. They have been able to swim their races, not get rattled and maintain a very high level of enthusiasm and energy during the meet."
Freshman Taylor Smith has already proven himself in the water. Living up to the preseason hype surrounding his high school records, he won his first collegiate event, the 1000 free, in his first collegiate meet. In a repeat performance he helped lead the Virginia men to a 176-116 victory over Clemson. For his efforts in the 1000 free and 500 free last Friday, Smith was named the National Collegiate Swimmer of the Week for Division I men.
"I was hoping to improve from high school, but it is nice that I have improved this much," Smith said. "It's a change in coaching style and the fact that I have people to race here -- it's nice that every practice I have somebody to race, and I think that's why I have been doing so well."
Three other Cavaliers have also been recognized by the conference. In late October sophomore John Azar was given the title of ACC Performer of the Week. With a 200 breaststroke time of 2:05.47, Azar ranks first in the event in the conference.
On the women's team the senior leadership has come out strong. Both Stephanie Glover and Jess Lewis have garnered the title of ACC Performer of the Week. Glover's time in the 100 butterfly ranks first in the conference, and her time in the 200 butterfly ranks second. Lewis was recognized for capturing first place in two individual events, the 100 and 200 freestyle, with times that were not only better than Clemson's but also the best in the league.
Indeed, as the Cavaliers begin their long march to the ACC and NCAA Championships, such outstanding performances early in the season are both reassuring and inspiring.
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