Ellie Heyerdahl-

This past Saturday our well-loved Gustie swimmers faced off in a triple dual against UW-Stevens Point and MSU Mankato. The women beat Stevens Point 185-133 yet lost against the Mavericks 240-78. The Men put up a great fight but ended up falling to Stevens Point 189-130. Coach Jon Carlson was pleased with what he saw from his swimmers. He stated, “Overall, we took a big step forward today as a group. We started doing some of the small things better, which will definitely pay off in the long run as we move forward. Today’s race certainly will help us get ready for the rest of the year, and I’m excited about where we’re at for the rest of the season as we look toward St. Olaf next weekend.”

The men started strong, placing second in the 200 medley relay with great swims from Peyton Richardson, Nyden Hill, Jonathan Cordano, and Kieran Ripken with a time of 1:36.74. The fast times continued with First-year Logan Cyr in his 1000 freestyle, placing third overall at a time of 10:28.28. Senior Matt Strom made a splash with his 200 freestyle placing first and causing a boost in morale among the team.  Another first-place spot was taken by Ripken in his 100 breaststroke ending with a final time of 59.40. Just when the meet was almost over, the men’s A relay in the 400 freestyle relay brought back all the excitement. Fans were standing from their seats as they watched Cyr, Aiden Shermak, Braden Ripken, and Strom race fin to fin with the Pointers A relay. Just when things started to look fishy, Strom got a length ahead of Stevens Point on the final flip turn of his 100 allowing him to bring it home for the Gusties, sending the home crowd into a frenzy and ending the meet on a high note.

The women had amazing swims all around with spectacular swims from first-year Stella Anderson Moye who swam individual events of the 1000 freestyle, 100 freestyle, and 500 freestyle. These events are all uniquely difficult in their own ways, however, Moye owned each one. Moye swam an 11:25.07 in her 1000 coming in second place, a 55.67 in her 100, and a 5:33.49 in her 500. Lucy Peterson also showed her water skills by placing first overall in the 50 and 100 freestyle. “For my 50 free, I was the only Gustie in the heat. My lane on the other side of the pool was packed with swimmers ready to cheer for me! Seeing all of my teammates supporting me was all the motivation I needed before my race!” Peterson commented. Overall the women swam hard against both teams and it paid off with their win against Stevens Point.

For the swimmers, it is more than just a sport. The community they have built together makes each meet worthwhile, win or lose. “A fun team bonding activity we do at almost every meet is at least once during our warm up, the majority of the team gets out of the pool and dances to one of our favorite songs! It always gets us ready to have fun, which in turn gets us ready to swim fast” Peterson said.

We wish our Gustie swimmers luck on their next meet against our rivals St. Olaf. Swim hard and remember to leave it all in the water!