Midway through the season, the Men’s Swimming & Diving team is still in contention for the MIAC Conference title.

“The team’s goal is always to win conference. On the men’s side, we are still in the fight for the conference title,” Junior Billy Schultze said.

In order to take the title, team members feel that they need to continue to improve as a group. “We need to have people step up and dig down to improve in the latter part of the season,” Schultze said.

Regardless of whether or not the team wins the MIAC title, the swimmers feel a strong connection to their teammates. “We do well as a team. We are known around campus for being one of the closest teams. We have swimmers who [may not be top performers, but they] show up and cheer us on to get people excited,” Schultze said.

Team members are serious about swimming, but they also try to have fun while doing it. “Some teams are so serious when it comes to swimming. We emphasize having as much fun as possible,” Senior Paul Kirihara said.

At the most recent Falcon Invite, held at the University of Minnesota, team scores were not kept, but several individuals placed well. Schultze, Kirihara and Senior Whitaker Davis were the top three finishers for Gustavus.

Davis was the top Gustavus finisher, winning four individual events: the 200, 500 and 1650 freestyle, as well as the 400 IM.

Schultze won two events, the 100 and 200 breaststroke, and he came in second in the 200 IM and third in the 100 freestyle.

Kirihara also had several good swims, winning the 100 and 200 backstroke.

In addition, the Gustavus 200 medley relay team, made up of Kirihara, Schultze, Junior Matt Van Fossen and Senior Sam DeFranco, won the event.

Up next for the team is a training trip to Puerto Rico during Christmas Break, from Dec. 26 to Jan. 2, 2011. “The training trip is always a good time. Generally, the most dedicated people go on the trip, and we do a ton of crucial training and team bonding,” Davis said.

After the trip comes several difficult meets in a row for the team. “The January meets are usually really tough, since we’re dead tired from practices. If you have good times during those meets, it’s an accomplishment,” Kirihara said.

The first meet in January will be against St. Thomas and Hamline on Jan. 8, 2011 in the Lund Natatorium. “The St. Thomas meet should be good, and people should come to that one,” Schultze said.