The California Lutheran University Kingsmen and Regals swim and dive team hosted their first Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference home meet against Whittier College on Nov. 9. Both Cal Lutheran teams dominated, with the Kingsmen final score being 175-65 and the Regals at 222-58.
So far, the season has been going great, according to Head Coach Barry Schreifels.
“We’ve been training very hard, and sometimes when you train really hard, your times in races aren’t great. Right now we’re getting hard training and really good races. So it’s right on track where we need to go,” Schreifels said.
Despite the success, Schreifels said, the team’s current challenge is staying in good health.
“It seems like everyone on campus has a cold or a flu and it’s hitting our team too. And so consistent training is what we need to have. And getting sick kind of interferes with that,” Schreifels said.
Senior Noel Partridge beat her personal best for the 500-meter freestyle with a time of 5:17.99, finishing in first place.
First-year McKay Nelms of the Kingsmen also came in first place for the 200-meter backstroke and set a new personal record.
First-year Joli Fong said she prepared for the meet against Whittier by preparing mentally, physically and staying on a balanced diet.
“I’ve been eating well, training well, talking with the strength coach at Cal Lu and then just trying to remain positive and envisioning my swim. So a lot of mental and physical preparing for my races,” Fong said.
Sophomore Valentino Soroor prepared for the meet by relying on Schreifels’ training.
“I mean, really just trusting my coach and focusing on my training. I know if I follow his process, it’ll work out. I mean, fueling myself properly, recovering properly and warming up to make sure everything’s ready to go,” Soroor said.
Fong said that having a good support system around her keeps her motivated for meets like this one.
“I know a lot of us are training every single day for like two hours, four hours a day. So knowing that I have people around me that are going through the same thing really helps,” Fong said. “It’s really important for me especially because watching everyone swim these such hard races like the 4 IM, the mile or even like the 50 free, you just need a lot of support to keep yourself going. And it helps when you have an audience,” Fong said.
Soroor said he would focus on getting more sleep before the next meet and that he is confident in himself and his teammates’ performance.
“I’m definitely going to continue with how hard I’ve been training because we’re still mid-season. I know we’ll rest a little before that meet so we can put down some best times. Probably just improve some sleep. I know it’s hard getting up at five in the morning and trying to get proper sleep, but other than that, I think I’m confident in myself and this team that will perform,” Soroor said.
Schreifels said the swimmers will be training extensively in the weeks prior to their upcoming invitational at Occidental College on Nov. 23, followed by a more relaxed training schedule closer to the meet.
