With the Virginia women's swimming team nabbing the ACC title, the Virginia men have the opportunity Feb. 27 to 29 to complete the swimming and diving teams' sweep of the ACC Championships.
The No. 15 Cavaliers have performed impressively this season but face challenges against the talented squads of Florida State, last year's ACC champion, and North Carolina. Virginia will have an opportunity to exact revenge against the No. 14 Tar Heels, who edged the Cavaliers 151-149 Jan. 20. Virginia and North Carolina are the only two ACC schools whose men's team is ranked in the top 25.
Senior Bryan Stahl, who holds one of the team's top three times in the 50 free, 100 back and 200 back, said the mid-season loss to North Carolina has not been a major concern of the team as it has prepared for this week's meet.
"It is something we keep in the back of our minds, but the dual meet season is definitely not a focus for us," Stahl said. "Winning a dual meet is great, but winning a championship is 10 times better."
Though the Cavaliers have trained hard all season, Stahl said the team has been particularly diligent while preparing for the ACC Championships.
"I think it comes down to being more focused, making sure you do the little things right," Stahl said. "You just have to make sure your head is where it needs to be."
Virginia coach Mark Bernardino, who has been selected as ACC Coach of the Year an astonishing 22 times in his 29 full seasons as head coach, agreed that the team is well-prepared for the championships.
"We have done everything we can from a training perspective," Bernardino said. "The hardest part of the season is getting to this point and having the opportunity to race."
Stahl said that the women's team's dominant performance in the ACC Championships bodes well for the men's team, as both teams' seasons have been successful.
"Their season worked out really well for them," Stahl said. "Knowing that they had a great season, we are confident that we are going to have a great end to our season."
The meet provides Virginia seniors their last opportunity to win the ACC title. Last season marked the first time since 1998 that the Cavaliers men team did not take home ACC Champion honors. Stahl admits there is a sense of nostalgia and finality surrounding the tournament.
"Ten years down the road, I think we will all look back and see this team as ... the greatest thing we have been a part of," Stahl said. "It being the last one, you have to go with the mentality, there are no regrets ... Give it all right now so you don't have to look back and feel like you should have done more."
Despite the team's thorough preparation and heightened confidence from the women team's success, Bernardino said the team still feels pressure to perform well.
"You just hope that they are confident in their training and in their preparation," Bernardino said. "If they are healthy and ready to go ... they just have to go on instinct and race strictly on that."
Bernardino was quick to point out, however, that every sports team with high expectations faces some self-inflicted pressure. When asked how he planned to prevent the team from being affected by expectations, he noted the inevitability of the pressure's influence on the team's performance.
"Honestly, if I had the answer to that, I'd probably be able to make millions of dollars [in] every sport," Bernardino said.
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