2009 GNAC Champs!

Simmons Swimming & Diving:

Congratulations on winning the GNAC Championships for the sixth season in a row! The weekend was a blast. It was so fun to see everyone swim fast and dive well. I am so proud of everyone for rising to the occasion and responding to (and perhaps creating) the atmosphere and energy of the meet. Thank you for swimming and diving with such passion. Once again, you defended your title as GNAC Champs! The team finished with a commanding 305 points, more points than the second and third place teams combined! The list of accomplishments from the weekend is extensive: 6 athletes named All-GNAC, 8 first place finishes, 13 second place finishes, 42 "top-8" finishes (including at least one finalist in every event!), 3 GNAC Records, 1 Pool Record, 1 School Record. And finally... 45 season-best performances (...a list which includes EVERY SINGLE Simmons athlete that competed!). Needless to say, your coaches are pleased. We am equally as proud of the sportsmanship and camaraderie that we saw from our team as we are of the athletic achievement. Congratulations to all. I hope you can feel your hard work paying off.

Here are some impressive stats from the weekend:

ALL-CONFERENCE (AS NAMED BY THE GNAC)
Alyssa Musket
Brittany Torelli
Virginia Bette
Nellie Jackson
Heather O'Connell
Kaira King

FIRST PLACE FINISHES
200 Free Relay (Nellie, Virginia, Alyssa, Brittany)
Alyssa Musket - 50 Free
Nellie Jackson - 100 Fly
400 Medley Relay (Virginia, Brittany, Nellie, Alyssa)
Kaira King - 1 Meter Diving
Virginia Bette - 100 Back
Alyssa Musket - 50 Back
Heather O'Connell - 3 Meter Diving

SECOND PLACE FINISHES
Caitlin - 500 Free
Brittany - 200 IM (beating the GNAC record!)
Molly - 100 Fly
Brittany - 100 Breast
Alyssa - 50 Fly (beating the GNAC record!)
Steph - 200 Back
Heather - 1 Meter
200 Medley Relay (Anastasia, Liz, Nellie, Alyssa)
Caitlin - 1000 Free
Brittany - 100 Free
Brittany - 200 Breast
Caitlin - 200 Fly
Meredith - 3 Meter

TOP EIGHT FINALISTS
500 Free - Caitlin (2nd), Anne (5th)
200 IM - Brittany (2nd), Molly (5th)
50 Free - Alyssa (1st), Virginia (4th)
100 Fly - Nellie (1st), Molly (2nd)
200 Free - Caitlin (4th), Anne (8th)
100 Breast - Brittany (2nd), Liz (4th)
50 Fly - Alyssa (2nd), Nellie (4th)
200 Back - Steph (2nd), Anastasia (4th)
1-Meter Diving - Kaira(1st), Heather(2nd), Amanda(3rd), Alyssa(4th), Meredith(5th), Michaela(6th) - typical Simmons Diving Fashion!
1000 Free - Caitlin (2nd), Anne (5th)
50 Breast - Liz (6th)
100 Back - Virginia (1st), Steph (5th), Anastasia (7th)
100 Free - Brittany (2nd), Virginia (4th)
100 IM - Nellie (7th)
200 Breast - Brittany (2nd), Liz (3rd)
200 Fly - Caitlin (2nd), Molly (3rd)
50 Back - Alyssa (1st), Virginia (3rd), Anastasia (4th), Steph (5th)
3-Meter Diving - Heather (1st), Meredith (2nd), Kaira (3rd)

TOP 5 POINT SCORERS (Individual Events):
Brittany Torelli - 28 Points
Caitlin Urciuoli - 26 Points
Alyssa Musket - 25 Points
Virginia Bette - 25 Points
Molly Bohannon - 17 Points

GNAC RECORDS
200 Free Relay (Nellie, Virginia, Alyssa, Brittany)
Virginia Bette - 100 Back
Alyssa Musket - 50 Free

SCHOOL RECORDS
200 Free Relay (Nellie, Virginia, Alyssa, Brittany)

POOL RECORDS:
200 Free Relay (Nellie, Virginia, Alyssa, Brittany)

Thanksgiving Workouts

Hey Team,

Here are a few workouts that you can do on Friday and Saturday if you're needing some inspiration during Thanksgiving Break. I hope that everyone had a great holiday and has enjoyed some time with family and friends.

Workout #1:

Warm-up:
400 Swim, 300 Pull, 200 Kick
10 x 50 @ R:10 (odd = Drill, even = Build)

Rev Set:
3 x
50 EZ
100 Free (Build Each 25)
100 Free (Build entire 100)
50 Hard

Main Set:
6 x 200 (#1, 3, 5 = Specialty @ 80% - good technique)
4 x 150 (#1, 3 = Specialty @ 90%)
2 x 100 (#1 = Specialty @ 100%)

Cool Down:
150 EZ Cool Down....................4450 Yards


Workout #2:

Warm-up:
300 Swim, 300 Pull, 300 Drill
8 x 50 Kick @ 1:10

Rev Set:
75 Build Free
3 x 25 Descend Stroke #1 (your choice)
75 Build Free
3 x 25 Descend Stroke #2 (your choice)
75 Build Free
3 x 25 Descend Stroke #3 (your choice)

Main Set:
3 x
100 IM
200 Stroke
300 Free (Extended Streamlines!)

Cool Down:
150 EZ Cool Down....................3700 Yards


See you Sunday evening at 4:00pm for practice!

The Team's New MASCOT!

On Friday, November 6th, the Simmons Swimming & Diving Team received a gift from Simmons Alum Ellie Blanton '59. "Every team needs a mascot!"

Oh boy, will we have fun with this remote control robotic SHARK!

Thanks Ellie!

First Meet - Under Our Belt!

Team,

Congratulations on a great season-opener this past Saturday against Westfield State. While it was disappointing to lose to Westfield, I think we gave them a good run for their money. Rarely are four strong divers matched up against another four strong divers in a dual meet. Congratulations to those athletes that made New England cuts in the first meet: Nellie, Kaira, Amanda, Virginia, Alyssa M., Anastasia & Brittany. Also, huge props to Alyssa Musket for taking down the pool and school record in the 50 Freestyle, setting a new standard of 25.09. Not too shabby for the first meet! There were a number of races in which Simmons fought to the end. That is the type of swimming that I'm looking for. Way to go, team!

Can you find the real Michael Phelps and Garrett Weber-Gale?

Blue and Gold Meet - A Success!

Gold's cheer

...But Blue is NOT impressed

...Blue's cheer

Gold team in Beijing 400 Free Relay Celebration

Alyssa and Amanda... (Are they talking smack?)

Nellie in the Shark Team Challenge

Team: Thank you for the enthusiasm with which you participated in the Blue and Gold Intrasquad meet this past weekend. It was a ton of fun for the coaches, and hopefully for the athletes as well. I particularly enjoyed my role as diving judge.

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Props to Alyssa for taking the Push-Up Competition for the second year in a row (I guess we call that undefeated). Brittany defended her title in the Underwater Competition with another 65 yards. And Amanda made her way to the podium with the Somersault Competition... was is 12??? Congrats to Lissa for an impressive showing in the Ugly Suit Competition, though Isabel was a close second! The Blue team had a stellar showing in the Beijing 2008 Men's 400 Freestyle Relay Celebration Impersonation Contest (Suzie's impression of Phelp's full body flex - see above photo - was definitely the deciding factor), although I do have to commend the Gold team on their attention to detail with Bernard's devastation ("Je parle francais!"). Gold took the Gold in the final "Relay"... The Shark Challenge (and I think I owe Christina 5 bucks because I verbalized my certainty that the inflatable shark would pop!). The Blue team picked up an extra five points in the Team Cheer Competition and I am dying to learn the words - all I remember is "Use. Your hips. Use. Use. Your hips." On a more serious note, the dives look strong and the swims were solid, and above all else, the team seemed unified! We (the coaches) were very pleased to see and hear a constant stream of encouragement.

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And Gold, don't forget that, as the winning team, you are responsible for writing the practice for Friday, November 6th.

WINTER TRAINING TRIP 2009-2010

SARASOTA, FLORIDA

The Simmons Swimming and Diving team, as usual, will be heading South for winter training this January. As you know, this is an integral part of the season. Returning to Boston after a week of heavy training, is always a huge turning point in the season.

Here are some trip details:

* TRAINING: Sarasota YMCA
http://www.sarasota-ymca.org/
Swimmers will train Long Course Meters in the AM and Short Course Yards in the PM. Divers will have access to two 3-meter boards and two 1-meter boards.

* ACCOMMODATIONS: Siesta Key (TBD)
http://www.visitsiestakey.com/
Accommodations will include 4-6 people/room with full kitchens. We will cook all our own meals.

* TRIP DATES: January 7-14, 2009
* TRAVEL PLANS: Boston to Sarasota (group travel: Delta Airlines)
* COST: $400/person (includes airfare, pool rental, hotel, transportation & food)