Concordia swim & dive marked the midpoint of their season as they wrapped up three days of competition on Nov. 22, 23 and 24 at the La Verne Winter Invitational. Bringing plenty of stellar finishes to the nest, the Golden Eagles returned with third place finishes out of 16 schools on the women’s side and 13 schools on the men’s side. The Concordia squad recorded 51 personal bests and 33 All-Time Top-10 finishes in the three day competition alone.

Junior Aubrie Carver helped the Golden Eagles toward success in the record books, setting new all-time records in the 200 freestyle and 400 medley relays. “In each of the events, we have strong returners and some fiery newcomers and I think we all push each other to become the best we can be individually, which helps us become stronger as a team,” said Carver.

Other notable performances over the weekend on the women’s side came from Alice Stainer who clutched a sweeping win in the console final of the 200 free. Her 1:52.87 finish earned her not only a personal best, but an NCAA DII ‘B’ qualifying time.

In the men’s races, graduate student Hunter May was a stand out athlete, breaking a five year personal best in the 200 individual medley, recording a 1:52.82 to hold the 9th all-time in the record books.

Freshman stud Jackson Rosol swam alongside May in the 200 IM barely trailing behind by 2/100ths of a second finishing at 1:52.80. Rosol said, “I hope to get on the podium in two or three events at conference and put up some more top times for the school.”

After welcoming a brigade of freshmen this season, this new crew has made their mark on the team. “One thing that stuck out to me in the first half of the season is how well the new freshman class meshed with the team. They are hard working individuals and could possibly be the missing piece to the puzzle that could give us a chance at winning conference again. I really enjoy the energy they bring to practice everyday,” said May.

Jack Harris is another graduate student who after his last three years at Concordia, has been a crucial leader for the team in and out of the pool. Harris said, “This year, the group is the most cohesive I’ve seen during my time in the program. The energy and personality that the younger guys bring have rejuvenated the more experienced bunch.”

With Christmas break peeking around the corner, swim & dive will assure they are well prepared when their season picks back up in January as they fight toward the PCSC Conference Championship in February. “Over the break, we will stay on campus an extra week and a half for winter training. We have doubles every day, and the sets we do are some of the hardest we do all year. It is always a really mentally and physically challenging time, but it helps us get better for Conference in February,” said Carver.

The Golden Eagles are looking to hunt and return to the nest in January better than ever. “The team will continue to focus on staying hungry and unsatisfied with our success at La Verne. We had a great showing as a group, but our end goal is the PCSC Conference Championship in February. If we want success at conference, we must endure some discomfort in training over the next few weeks,” said Harris.

Swim & dive is competing at home tomorrow, Dec. 7, at the William Woollett Jr. Aquatics Center for the Pledge Plunge at 1 p.m. The Golden Eagles will then push through winter training and return to regular season competition in January with their sights set on the PCSC Championship.

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