2009-10 Men's & Women's Swimming Preview
Pacific
swimming has come to expect themselves to do more with less.
Last year, the Boxers were able to make the most of a pair of small but talented rosters, posting the best performances in the six-year history of the resurrected Pacific program. The Pacific women finished with the best dual meet record in program history at 5-4 and finished fifth in the conference standings.
The Pacific men, meanwhile, used a roster of just seven swimmers to win a pair of dual meets and finish sixth at the Northwest Conference Championships out of eight teams. Combined, Pacific swimmers managed to break 12 individual event records and nine of 10 relay disciplines.
This year, the Boxers will once again be looking to do more with less. The teams continue to be small in stature with 14 swimmers on the women’s team and just eight on the men’s side. While the lack of numbers certainly hinders the Boxers’ chance to compete for conference championships, Head Coach Alec Webster isn’t too worried about his teams’ chances for success.
“With the new talent that we have, we have been able to do some things training wise that we weren’t able to do at this point last year,” Webster said. “My worry right now is that I am afraid that I am not training some of our people as hard as I should.”
The addition of new talent complements an experienced core of swimmers on both teams, led by two of the conference’s best in Eileen Bringman (Jr., Cleveland, Ohio) and Brandan Mantei (Jr., Canby, Ore.). The pair, along with the rest of the returners, has been pushed by the intensity that the new swimmers have brought to the program.
“We’re very pleased with the class we got in,” Webster said. “It has brought our numbers up and it has brought the talent level of the team up.”
WOMEN
Bringman leads a talented corps of returners who raised the competitive
level of the Pacific women’s team last year. Despite a number of ailments,
including a broken rib, Bringman set five school records, including two
backstroke marks. She also finished just short of a qualifying mark for
the NCAA Championships in the 50-yard and 100-yard backstroke events.
“Eileen was in bad shape healthwise and she still managed to do really well for us,” Webster said of the transfer from Division I Cleveland State. “If we can keep her healthy, the fact that we have some other training partners for her could make things really exciting.”
Becky Hattersley (So., Clancy, Mont.) and Kristin Favillo (So., Caldwell, Idaho) also turned into immediate impact swimmers in their freshmen seasons. Hattersley dueled Bringman for the 50-yard freestyle record and set a new record mark in the 100-yard freestyle. Hattersley also earned a spot in the 200-yard freestyle “A” final at the conference meet, finishing eighth.
“Becky is carrying a hard academic load, so getting her into the pool and keeping her motivated and excited is our major goal,” Webster said. “By the end of the year, she will definitely be one of out top two of three sprinters.”
Favillo, meanwhile, filled some needed holes for the Boxers in the breaststroke and individual medley events. A talented swimmer in any discipline, Favillo set school records in the 100-yard butterfly and the 400-yard individual medley. The talents of the team’s newcomers will likely allow her to move into the sprint freestyle events, which would be a more natural fit.
“She is going to be fun to watch,” Webster said. “She is an all-around good swimmer. We can pretty much put her in anything and she will be good.”
Cherice Cochrane (So., Beaverton, Ore.) was perhaps the Boxers’ most improved swimmer last year, dropping five seconds in her 100-yard freestyle times from start to finish and will continue to play an important role in the freestyle relay teams. Julie Garner (Jr., Burns, Ore.) will continue to be a go-to swimmer in the breaststroke and distance freestyle events. Garner had the Boxers’ top time last year in the 100-yard breaststroke.
Among the newcomers, Allison Clark (Fr., Keizer, Ore.) has the best chance on paper to make an immediate impact. A solid breaststroke and individual medley swimmer, Clark enters Pacific with times that are close to provisional qualifying marks for the NCAA Championships. “Depending on what the other schools got in, she should be one of the best medley swimmers in the conference,” Webster said.
Nicole Koch (Fr., Longmont, Colo.) also comes to Pacific with a strong high school background, competing in four Colorado state meets during her career. Koch will specialize in the butterfly and individual medley events, with bests of 1:02.4 in the 100-yard butterfly and 2:19.3 in the 200-yard individual medley. “Nicole is already swimming those events faster than Kristin was last year,” Webster said.
A trio of newcomers will be expected to contribute once they work through injury difficulties. Sarah Tomscha (Fr., Salem, Ore.) provides strength in the backstroke and breaststroke events while Kathryn Bullock (So., Juneau, Alaska) could have scoring potential in the breaststroke once she gets back to full strength.
Taylor Lee (Fr., Las Vegas, Nev.) will contribute in the distance freestyle event events while Edith Tornel (Fr., Keizer, Ore.) will add depth in the shorter freestyle disciplines. Freestyler Addie Schulz (Fr., Ketchikan, Alaska) and backstroke specialist Katherine Ward (Fr., Santa Cruz, Calif.) round out the roster.
MEN
The story for Pacific men’s swimming is much the same as last year: What
the Boxers do not have in numbers they expect to make up in talent.
Mantei tops the list of five returners to the program and may be on the cusp of punching his ticket to the national meet. Mantei just missed a nationals qualifying mark last year with his school record time in the 200-yard individual medley. Thanks to the addition of a couple of new training partners, Webster thinks that this year could bring Mantei’s opportunity to break through.
“In the past Brandan hasn’t been challenged training-wise, and this year with our newcomers in there he is being challenged,” Webster said. “That will make all of our guys that much better.”
Scott Kimura (Jr., McMinnville, Ore.) became the Boxers’ most relied upon swimmer, coming through with some big races in both the freestyle and butterfly events to lift Pacific to dual meet wins. Kimura had the Boxers’ top times in both the 100-yard and 200-yard butterfly disciplines. “Scott is already swimming better than he did last year at this point,” Webster said. “One of his talents is that he never gets phased, no matter what the competition is. He is willing to get in there and go for it.”
The lone senior on either the men’s or women’s teams, Kai Seixas (Sr., San Pedro, Calif.) will continue to be a steady performer in whatever event the team needs them in. Seixas provided some needed experience in both the breaststroke and individual medley events, but also found some success in the distance freestyle events. He owned the Boxers’ top time in the 1,000-yard freestyle.
“Kai will be the same old Kai,” Webster said. “We will need him again for the breaststroke and the IM and we will put him in the distance events as well. We can always count on him to do his part.”
Both Luke Fuller (Jr., Lake Oswego, Ore.) and Ben Griffin (Jr., Tacoma, Wash.) return to the program with newfound levels of motivation. Fuller is looking to improve on a pair of 17th place finishes at the NWC Championships. Griffin returns stronger after a good off-season of training and will provide depth in the freestyle and butterfly events.
Dylan Cramer (Fr., Caldwell, Idaho) has succeeded in pushing Mantei in training and has the potential to become a great swimmer in his four years. Cramer is expected to be a go-to swimmer for the Boxers in the backstroke and freestyle events. “Dylan has a long way to go experience-wise, but he has the potential to be one of the best swimmers in the conference,” Webster said. “He will be fun to watch.”
James Owen (Fr., Astoria, Ore.) and Adam Burger (Fr., Keizer, Ore.) round out the roster. Owen will provide depth for the Boxers in the butterfly and the individual medley events while Burger will specialize in the sprint freestyle events once he finishes the cross country season.