The women’s swim team was prepared for the University of Nevada Las Vegas First Chance Invitational at the Jim Reitz pool in Las Vegas Feb. 14, where we saw their hard work put into action.
In preparation for the event, the team went into what’s called a taper. This means they were slowly reducing the intensity of training so the athletes could recover as the big event approached.
In Northern Arizona Dual Day that took place Jan. 24, the team competed in six relay races with Utah Tech University winning four of them as well as setting five different school records. The team came out victorious over the Lumberjacks with a 48-46 count. On the second day, the team claimed six event wins.
With the Western Athletic Conference Men’s and Women’s Swimming and Diving Championship coming up at the end of this month, this was a great opportunity for the athletes to show what they got.
The WAC swimming championship will take place later this month Feb. 26-March 1 in Houston. They will be one of 10 colleges that will compete in the event.
Sorina Rom, a sophomore psychology major from St. George, has been swimming with the team for two years. She competes in the sprint freestyle and breaststroke categories. When she first started she wasn’t sure about swimming, but as she gained more experience, she grew more determined to improve and now sees the competitions as a challenge that she can work toward.
“Once I started setting goals and trying to get to the big meets, that’s when I started racing,” Rom said.
Alyssa Gordon, a freshman biomedical science major from Kansas City, Missouri, competes in the breaststroke and the individual medley categories. The highlight of the season for her has been spending time with her teammates.
“It’s a lot of fun,” Gordon said. “Especially with the new team. Our meets are really fun. We have found ways to… find the best out of things.”
Grace Benson, a sophomore marketing major from Bend, Oregon, has been swimming with the team for two years. She competes in sprint freestyle, breaststroke and IM categories. She is determined to do her best in Las Vegas to prepare for the WAC competition later this month.
Benson said, ”With it being like a week out from WAC, it’s a great opportunity to get up and race… It’ll be good.”
In the UNLV Invitational, Benson took first in the 200 yard IM, which is a team season best as well as the sixth fastest time in program history. She also placed second in the 100 yard freestyle with a season best. Additionally, Rom took runner-up honors in the 100 yard breaststroke.
The women’s swim team competed in the UNLV First Chance Invitational in Las Vegas with some season bests. This was a good way to prepare for the upcoming WAC competition.
