The Vanderbilt swim and dive team is half the size of other Southeastern Conference programs and has more than twice as many freshmen than it has upperclassmen.
No biggie. The team has embraced the adversity any program brought back to life has to deal with, and the Commodores have done it the hard way.
Vanderbilt looks to maintain the momentum from last season where the Commodores won their first dual meet since the early ‘90s and broke numerous school records.
Head coach Jeremy Organ has been there every step of the way since the team came back from a 14-year absence in December of 2006 and has marveled at the progress made during the period.
“We’ve made huge strides from that first year,” Organ said. “Not only in our ability to compete in all the events, but team cohesiveness and also the approach that the team has taken to the season. It seems to be much more focused on day-to-day training and getting ready and being prepared totally for our meets.”
A team consisting of eight freshmen, six sophomores, two juniors and one senior will compete in its first meet of the 2009-10 season this weekend traveling to Tuscaloosa for a dual meet with Centenary and fellow SEC school Alabama.
“It’s the first college dual meet for half our team, so it should be exciting,” said junior freestyler Jennifer Molchan.
Organ has noted the chemistry the team has enjoyed since training began the first week of September, despite considerable turnover since last season.
“The team’s meshing very well. Probably the most cohesive unit we’ve had since the four years,” Organ said. “Everyone’s really close. They’re all getting along very well.”
Fellow junior freestyler Anna Fargo is loving the enthusiasm demonstrated by the younger swimmers, both in their training and in their sheer excitement about collegiate competition.
“It’s really nice to have a new group of freshmen who are ready to go, and they’re really pumped about the season so that helps us upperclassmen doing it,” Fargo said.
The path to a program reaching that level of team cohesion has been a long one. Through the first two seasons, the Commodores did not win a single meet, but they finally broke through with a victory over Centre and Rhodes in Nashville on Oct. 11, 2008.
Also, Molchan broke a 19-year old record in the 100-yard freestyle with a 52.21, sophomore Allie Voss (1:04.11) set a record in the 100-yard breastroke, and sophomore Laura Dillon broke the Vanderbilt record in the 200-yard breaststroke with a 2:19.56. Dillon will likely also swim butterfly events for Vanderbilt this season.
Also, sophomore diver Nicole Woodworth returns after a freshman campaign that saw her get a school record score in the one-meter dive.
With the signing of freshman backstroke specialists Chelsea Morey and Rose Cornelson, Organ has never had a team this deep during his tenure.
The team is just as young as usual, but the difference in attitude, and expectations, for this group is palpable as they approach the meet at Alabama.
“It’s a very good group,” Organ said. “Everybody’s pretty excited. There’s some nervous energy out there, but once you put on your cap and goggles, (you) get ready to go.”
