After a long season of weight training in the mornings and tough swim practices at night, the Rhodes Swim team traveled to Louisville, KY for the Conference Championship meet. The meet was faster than ever, but the hard work and dedication the Rhodes swimmers had shown this year in training paid off. It was a weekend full of record- breaking swims which ended with the Women's team placing 5^th and the Men's team in 6^th. With more rest than the team had going into the Depauw Invitational, both teams were powerful competitors and had swimmers place in the top 16 in almost every event.

 

The team was excited and full of confidence. Some highlights of the meet include Erik Campbell who broke two individual records and swam on three record breaking relays. He finished second in the 200 fly with a “B” nationals cut with a time of 1:54.49, won 4^th place in the 200 free with a record breaking time of 1:43.33. As the first leg of the 400 freestyle relay, Erik also broke the 100 yard free record with a time of 47.48.  Other incredible times and races for the Men's team included Drew Wagstaff who placed 2^nd in the 100 backstroke with a time of 53.16 and Joel Berger who placed top 8 in both the 100 Backstroke and Butterfly events. Senior, Pieter Smith finished his swimming career with fantastic swims in the 400 IM placing 7^th with a time of 4:21.64 and 6^th in the 200 back.

 

The Men's team broke four relay records including the 200 free with Erik Campbell, Joel Berger, Farkas Patay and Tyler Shultz with a time of 1:28.09. The next day, both the 200 and 400 medley records were broken with the 200 yard relay team of Drew Wagstaff, Pieter Smith, Joel Berger and Tyler Shultz and the 400 medley relay team of Drew Wagstaff, Pieter Smith, Joel Berger and Erik Campbell with times of 1:40.11 and 3:38.41 respectively. In the final event of the 400 free relay, Erik Campbell, Joel Berger, Farkas Patay, and Tyler Shultz broke the record with a time of 3:16.10. Junior, Jason Weise, finished the year with a season best of 57.84 in the 100 Backstroke, placing 14^th in the event.

Freshman Ryan Berger also scored major points for Rhodes by participating in the diving competition at SCAC on the first day of the meet. He placed 7^th in the one meter diving competition and is the first diver Rhodes has had in over 4 years.

 

The women's team had some incredible races and smashed records over the three day meet. On the second day, Susanna Kirby swam an amazing meet, breaking the 400 IM record with a 4:37.77 which gained her 2^nd place in the race and a “B” Nationals cut. Kirby also won 6^th place in both the 200 IM and 200 breaststoke.  Sophomore, Gianna Salavucci, broke the record for the 500 yard freestyle with a time of 5:13.46 and won fourth place. Kristen Griffin broke her 100 Back record with a 1:00.46, and she placed 7^th in the race; she also had a lifetime best in the 50 free placing 5^th with a time of 24.98. Griffin also went a 2:14.13, winning 8^th place in the 200 back. Sophomore Hannah Emery finaled with a season best of 4:48 in the 400 IM, and she finished in 8^th place in the 200 fly with a 2:15.43.

 

The senior girls had a strong finish of their swimming careers in Kentucky. Laura Hofto swam in the consolation finals in every event (100 breaststroke, 200 breaststroke, and 400 IM) with a seasonal best in the 100 breaststroke and a lightning fast split on the 200 free relay with a 26.8 for her 50 free. Monica Gaudioso consoled with a best time of 5:01.77 in the 400 IM and swam on all five relays. Kelly Helvenston swam the 100 backstroke with a seasonal best time on the 400 medley relay. Jackie Ward also had a fantastic meet, swimming seasonal bests in the 100 backstroke and 500 free, and she faithfully cheered her team on to victory every step of the way. The Women's 400 Medley relay also broke the school record with a 4:12.32. The relay consisted of Kristen Griffin, Susanna Kirby, Hannah Emery, and Mae Gillespie.  Overall, the Men and Women of the Lynx Swim team had a phenomenal few days in Kentucky. They finished out the season with a bang and proudly represented Rhodes College at SCAC.