The SJU swim team has performed well in its three events this season. The SJU swim season kicked off on Nov. 5 with a meet against Hamline University, during which SJU took first place over Hamline and St. Mary’s University. On Nov. 19, SJU fell short to Gustavus Adolphus College with a final score of 1,549-1,080. On Saturday, Dec. 3, the SJU swim team concluded the Wisconsin-River Falls Invitational at the University of Minnesota Aquatic Center.
The Wisconsin-River Falls Invitational combined D-I, D-II and D-III schools, posing a more challenging environment than normal. Even so, SJU performed well as a team and individually.
“Our team performance was good,” junior Ben Maakestad said. “Despite a tougher environment this year, several guys still made finals and a good chunk of them were freshmen.”
One such first-year was Logan Arnold, who placed third in the 100-yard backstroke (54.35s) among D-III athletes and placed ninth overall.
“Individually I was right where I wanted to be in terms of time for my events,” Arnold said. “It is nice to have a bigger mid-season invitational to compare yourself to other swimmers in the MIAC.”
Other individual performances included senior Josh Seaburg who placed fourth among D-III swimmers and 10th overall in the 400-yard individual medley. Senior Ty Nimens placed 20th overall in the 100-yard freestyle and sixth among D-III participants. Senior Jimmy Foley placed eighth among D-III swimmers and 18th overall in the 1,650-yard freestyle. Sophomores Maakestad and Connor Triggs also swam well.
“Individually, I was pleased with my performance, and it was probably my best meet since freshman year,” said Maakestad. “The times from River Falls will help build momentum throughout the season.”
SJU’s next meet will take place on Dec. 10, hosting the University of St. Thomas (UST) at 1 p.m. at the Warner Palaestra Pool in Collegeville.
“I think it’ll be the freshmen, including other talented swimmers, that’ll put up a good fight,” Triggs said. “It’s hard to compete with big teams such as UST, but it’ll be the relay teams and our distance swimmers that can rack up a lot of points. All in all, it’ll be a fun meet to race, not because of UST’s new pool or for the competition, but also for the sake that we get to wear ugly sweaters.”