TEN QUESTIONS WITH...

Your team’s last meet was on February 9th versus Eastern Michigan and Miami. You have two weeks off before the Mid-American Conference Championships. How will you team stay sharp over that span?
It is actually very important for us to rest right now. For most of the season, we work on swimming fast while being tired. We will use the next two weeks to cut down on our training and get back to working on technique. By the time we get to MAC Championships we should have more energy than we are used to, and should be able to swim faster times.

Individually, you swim a number of different strokes. Is it common for a swimmer to participate in various events during a meet?
Most swimmers compete in more than one stroke. I swim sprint, butterfly and freestyle. At the MAC Championships we can swim three individual events and four relays. We usually swim the events that are our specialty, where as during regular season meets we may experiment with different strokes and distances.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of swimming different types of strokes in competition?
It is to the advantage of a swimmer to be able to compete in different strokes because he or she can be moved around in the roster to the events in which they are needed. It helps the team to have more depth in all of the events. It also makes it easier to decide which three events to swim when it comes time for the championship meet. There really aren't any disadvantages to swimming more than one stroke.

Do you take a different approach to swimming an event such as the 50 free than you would in the 100 free?
For me, swimming the 50 free is very different than the 100 free. It may be only two pool lengths longer, but it is an entirely different event. The 50 free is an all out sprint where everything you do has to be technically perfect. If you slip on your start or push off wrong on your turn, your race is basically over. The 100 free is more of an endurance sprint. It is more about pushing yourself to go as fast as you can for four lengths of the pool.

What is the difference between the 100 fly and the 100 free?
The 100 fly is my favorite event. That probably makes it easier for me to swim than the 100 free. The difference is that in freestyle you can do anything you need to get to the end as fast as you can. Butterfly is more technical and if you do anything wrong while you are racing you can get disqualified. You have to work on making your stroke perfect before your race so you can just swim with out worrying about the details.

What does it mean for you to hold the all-time UB best time in the 100 fly?
Breaking the record in the 100 fly is one of the most memorable events in my swimming career. I had always just wanted to swim in college and I never thought I would have a record of my own. Now it’s something that I have accomplished, and it makes me extremely proud. I hope that someday my record is broken because that is what it’s there for. It will also mean that the team is growing and getting faster. I had my chance and now it’s someone else’s.

How much teamwork is needed to make a relay team successful?
It is extremely important for there to be a strong sense of teamwork on a relay team. It is technically important because you need to know how everyone else on the relay swims in order to ensure perfect exchanges. It is also important because you have to want to win, not only for yourself, but for the other members of the relay and the rest of the team that is cheering you on.

Aside from within the MAC, have rivalries developed with other area schools such as Cornell and St. Bonaventure?
Those two schools – Cornell and St. Bonaventure – are two of our biggest rivals. I think it’s that way because the teams are so close to one another and are also close in the amount of talent they have. We are competing to see who is the best in the area. Meets with those two teams are never a sure thing and could always go either way.

Describe the recruiting process that brought you to UB. What would you tell perspective recruits that are currently considering Buffalo as an option?
Recruiting for swimming is different than most sports. There are really only a few big meets where swimmers could even get noticed by recruiters. It is important for people who are interested in being recruited to somehow get in touch with the school’s coach and let them know their best times and accomplishments. It was easier for me because I am from Buffalo and my brother was already swimming on the UB men’s swimming team.

Talk about what your coach, Dorsi Raynolds, has meant to you during your four years at UB.
Dorsi has taught me a lot in the last four years, not just about swimming, but about life. Even if I wasn’t always open to what she said at the time, she didn’t give up on me and I realized that she always had both my, and the team’s best interests at heart. Your coach can make or break your career if you let them. You always take a risk when you sign at a school, but my experience at UB with Dorsi has been truly rewarding.

-The ’10 Questions with…’ feature is compiled by Geoff Nason.