Swim teams travel east for meet against Virginia, Penn State

For the first time since October, the men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams will be competing against the same opponents in the same weekend. For the first time this season, the swimmers will be swimming somewhere other than Bloomington.

The Hoosiers travel to Charlottesville, Va. to face Virginia and Penn State.

Virginia, a traditional powerhouse, is ranked in the top 12 in the national men’s and women’s polls. Penn State, meanwhile, offers an in-conference challenge.

Following a double dual meet loss to both Michigan and Texas on Oct. 29 and 30, the women are looking to prove themselves as a title contender.

After a tie against Michigan in a similar meet, the male swimmers have been thinking about and working on winning close races.

“I know the women have a lot to prove,” IU coach Ray Looze said. “They just took two losses, and I know they want to get back in the win column. The men want to prove they’re not just a one-meet wonder.”

The Hoosiers are well aware that a critical part of the season is just beginning. As the holiday season begins, so does the season of hard work and mental toughness for the Hoosiers.

“We’re entering a really critical part in the season right now, so just staying motivated every day in practice is important,” junior Katelyn Ishee said. “I think the captains and the coaches have done a really good job keeping specific goals for each day to help us work on that.”

One key for the men is translating successful practices into successful meets.

“The times we’ve been going in practice are looking pretty good,” sophomore Eric Ress said. “I think that we’ll be pretty well prepared for our first meet on the road.”

— Alex McCarthy