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Only Gauchos Beat Gauchos
A blog by the UCSB swimming and diving teams
DECEMBER 21, 2011
Tim's Videos
Hello Gauchos,
I know it's been a while since we posted anything. So if you've been wondering what we Gauchos are up to during winter training, you'll be happy to hear it's not all grueling sets and deathly workouts. Tim took half of a practice to take videos of his mid-d and distance groups during the first day of holiday training. These videos have allowed both us and the coaches to see our technique as a means of improving our strokes and helping us go faster at meets!
We first swam our strongest stroke, and then the stroke we feel is our weak link. These two videos are of the women and men in Tim's group. Enjoy!
"Action is the foundational key to all success," Pablo Picasso
DECEMBER 7, 2011
The divers are the yin to our yang in the pool. Caila, Erich,
Nic, Noelle, Ryan, and Sarah are first year divers on our team and
I have loved getting to know them this year. They give their all at
every practice, mastering new dives and showing off when we're
taking a break on the wall! I know whenever I kick I use a board so
I don't miss an awesome flip or twister and I get to see all the
crazy stuff they do on the boards!
For those of us that are returners and haven't had much of a dive
program, this year has been incredible. Our divers are a huge part
of our team and make our gaucho family complete. As a part of the
team our divers have helped bring crucial points to dual meets,
improving each weekend and I can't wait to see how they shine at
conference!
I hope that you enjoy this video and cheer all of them on at our upcoming
meets because they rock!
NOVEMBER 16, 2011
Arena Invitational
We are getting geared up to go fast. Everyone is focused on putting their best foot forward this week. We will be swimming all of our events, and plan on making finals in each event, and going best times to boot.
I am extremely excited for the freshmen, who have never been to a collegiate championship meet. For all of them, Arena will be far different than any meet they have been to. For starters, we will be competing against only college teams, no more age groupers. This means that all of the heats will go by fast, and we will get to race some of the fastest people in the country to vie for finals positions. In addition to some great competition, we will have the support of both teams behind our blocks! We have the best support system at this meet; everyone is excited to swim fast and ecstatic when our teammates go best times. I am so excited to be on the ground cheering on all of my Gauchos, and, to make the moment better, this is the one time where everyone will be able to watch both teams compete!
This weekend is approaching fast! We leave on a bus for Long Beach tonight, and we're competing tomorrow. So, Gauchos, get your pom poms and Gaucho gear ready and let's go watch some amazing athletes RACE!
Only Gauchos Beat Gauchos!
NOVEMBER 5, 2011
Cal Poly Meet Ends in Split
After having some phenomenal swims yesterday, the Gauchos were ready to race again this morning against Cal Poly! We all know that the second dual meet in one weekend is exhausting. However, it's a great chance for everyone to get mentally prepared for what is to come at our big meets like the upcoming Arena and Texas meets. While the Cal Poly men were defeated 167-121, their women's side defeated our Gauchos 177.5-117.5.
Unfortunately, the women got started on unstable footing and had to catch-up from the get-go, after getting second in the 200 medley relay and in the 1000 free. Even with this disadvantage, all the women were motivated to push forward and have some great swims. Emma Hunt won the 200 free. Sophia Yamauchi won all three of her individual events, the 100 breaststroke, 200 breaststroke (with a very close finish), and the 400 individual medley. We had a tough Saturday meet, and the Cal Poly women had some amazing swims, but we’re using this loss as an opportunity to motivate us. Our next meet against them will have a different outcome!
Our men had an amazing meet! There were too many great events to count, but I must highlight all of our first place finishes. Our men started the meet strong by winning the 200 medley relay, and kept this positive momentum throughout the meet. Our first individual win was by Chris Peterson, in the 200 freestyle, a new event to add to his repertoire of sprints! The normally butterfly-oriented sprinter, Max Horrell, showed his versatility by getting 1st in the 100 backstroke. Senior Evan Simoni won the 100 breaststroke. Wilfred "Tank" Garcia won the 200 butterfly, his one swim today; and after his amazing 200 backstroke yesterday he is on FIRE!! Kevin Ferguson won the 50 free and was followed by Garrett Thompson and Wade Allen, giving our men their first 1-2-3 finish! Peterson won his second event of the day the 100 free. Randy Aakhus won the 200 backstroke. Horrell won the 100 butterfly and our Gaucho men took their second 1-2-3 finish. Aakhus then won his second event, the 400 IM, giving the men some great momentum for their 400 freestyle relay which was won by freshmen: Chase Lemley, Wade Allen, Chris Dotson, and Steven Ewoldt! We had an amazing meet!
Go Gauchos!
Complete meet recap here.
NOVEMBER 4, 2011
Gauchos Prevail Against UCSD
The women won 12 out of our 14 events today, going 1st in three events, 1-2 in 8 events and 1-2-3 in one event. Our Gaucho women did a great job today and we're going to keep it up for an amazing meet tomorrow! For a slightly unexciting recap, here we go:
Monica Garcia started the meet off strong, winning the 1000 free. Andrea Ward then got first in the 200 free with a solid in-season time of 1:51. Sophia Yamauchi won the 100 backstroke with a great swim. In the 100 breaststroke, newcomer Katie Records got first. The next event was the 200 butterfly and swimming her off-event Allie Knight got first (followed by two more Gauchos, check out the complete results link at the end of the post.) Kendall Neely got first in the 50 freestyle. Andrea won another event in the 100 free. The next event we won was the 500 freestyle, which was the third win for Andrea! We finished off the individual events with a second win for Sophia in the 100 fly. And we had a strong finish taking first in the final relay (with Sophia going a 16.97 according to the official results, I nominate her for swimmer of the millennium with that swim.) The women won 173-127.
The men didn't have it quite so easy. At the beginning of the meet we had some swimmers try their off-events but we soon realized that this strategy would not cut it against this level of competition. By the middle of the meet, the men were struggling: down by forty points to a vicious UCSD onslaught. But the men, being Gauchos, stepped it up and had an amazing second half. With many people reverting to their area of expertise, the Gaucho men started pulling out some amazing times and out-touching their competition.
The highlight of the men's side would no doubt have to be the 400 IM. After the breaststroke 100, it was clear that we had first and second place clinched with veterans Randy Aakhus and Evan Simoni respectively. Our third place man, Andrew Barmann, was trailing the UCSD swimmer ahead of him by over six seconds. Somehow, through shear determination and a great deal of chutzpah, Barmann started closing the gap. Reading this narative does no justice to the energy and anxiety that was felt by both teams watching the unlikely battle for third... so I'm going to give up at this point and just let you know that Barmann ended up out-touching the UCSD swimmer for third place. And shame on you for not being there to witness the glorious sight, one of the few truly exciting moments in swimming. Anyways, by this point the men had recovered from their earlier deficit and went on to destroy in the final relay, winning the meet 154-140.
Complete meet recap here.
Kevin Kuhn and Laurel Ferguson
NOVEMBER 1, 2011
Looking Forward to an Exciting Weekend
This is going to be an exciting week for the Gaucho swim and dive
team. As we host UC San Diego here at Campus Pool on Friday and
then travel up north to battle Cal Poly on Saturday, while our
divers are going down to Los Angeles to compete in the two-day USC
Diving Invitational.
UC San Diego's goal for the year is to become NCAA Division II
National Champions, so you know they'll bring some great
competition our way. And Cal Poly has always been a valuable
sounding board for our races. On the diving side, the USC Diving
Invitational plays host to the best diving programs on the West
Coast, and will give our divers some experience going toe-to-toe
with some of the best divers in America.
Pack your cars full of Gaucho gear, paint your face, grab your
pom-pom's and come to our meets! For those of you who haven't
been to Cal Poly's pool, make sure to bring some snacks for your
swimmers and be prepared to crunch in your seats, because the
stands are limited, and it looks like the weather is going to be
breezy.
On another note, we've updated the meet schedule on the site to
reflect the changes that were made earlier in the year. The
schedule is still tentative, but it is now more accurate.
Kevin Kuhn and Laurel Ferguson
OCTOBER 30, 2011
Denver Dual Meet
This was the first collegiate meet for the men divers, who were excited to perform. Ryan Gerard and Erich Brodbeck both dove exceptionally well; Ryan grabbing second on the one-meter and third on the three, while Erich took third on the one and second on the three, netting some early points for the Gauchos. The women also dove well this week, with Sarah increasing her point score from last week and Caila earning the most points on the womens' Gaucho side.
Both the men and women started it off strong with wins in the 200 medley relay. The men then went on a winning streak, punctuated with great performances by Andrew Barmann in the 1000 free, Garrett Thompson in the 200 free, Kevin Ferguson in the 100 back, Evan Simoni in the 100 breast, Max Horrell in the 200 butterfly, and Chris Peterson in the 50 free and 100 free. Denver's first win on the men's side was the 200 back and from there on out Denver rallied and gave us a run for our money. But in the end, it was too little too late, as we came in first and second in the final relay and won on the men's side 168-132.
It was a different story for the women. After winning the first relay, the women went on to wins in the 1000 free (Heren Alanis) and 200 free (Andrea Ward.) Denver then responded in the 100 back by out-touching Allie Knight by .03 seconds. We then showed our depth by capturing first through third in the 100 breast (Sophie Yamauchi, Carrisa Metcalf, and Katie Records respectively.) The Denver women then went on a winning streak until the 200 back where Sophie won her second individual event, showing what an all-around swimmer she is. The next win for the Gauchos came in the 500 free where Andrea showed off her distance training. And that performance was followed by a first place finish by Emma Hunt in the 100 fly. Going into the final relay, the women knew they had to place first and third to win. Our "A" relay ended up winning, but our "B" squad fell short and placed fourth. So in the end the Gaucho women were defeated in a 151-149 heartbreaker.
All of the Gauchos have been putting their all in at practice and performing to their peak at our meets. I believe that this is the moment where we all stand up and say we will not be defeated. The men plan on having an unstoppable season, a goal which I believe they will accomplish. And the women are putting their feet down and saying "no more." We will use this loss as fuel to make us train harder and get more prepared for all our upcoming meets. We are a family; everyone is important and our depth is what will lead to future wins. Go Gauchos!
Complete meet recap here.
Laurel Ferguson
OCTOBER 23, 2011
Gaucho Women Split Oregon/UCLA Double Meet
Saturday was our first swim meet of the season and we had some tough competition. Both Oregon State and UCLA are Pac-12 teams. This was a good opportunity to swim against competition we won't see at conference but will compete against at NCAA's this spring. And we had fun swimming some new events and returning to our specialties. In the end, we defeated the Beavers 158-104 and lost to the Bruins 168-130.
The meet started out with the 1-meter and 3-meter events where our new women divers got to show off what they've been working on in their first intercollegiate competition. This is the first time we have had diving at this meet in over 15 years. Caila Baltas was our top performer in both events, getting fourth in the 1-meter and third in the 3-meter. This was a really good learning experience for them against some top level competition, and I can't wait to see how they perform next Friday!
I was really impressed by the freshmen, who pushed themselves and stood up to some tough competition. And thanks to all of our outstanding athletes, we started our season off well. There were a few great swims by our freshmen who really pushed themselves. Heren had a good race, getting first in her 500 freestyle. The gauchos came in 1st and 2nd in the 100 and 200 breaststroke with Carissa Metcalf and Katie Records stepping up behind sophomore Sophia Yamauchi. In addition to some outstanding freshmen, we had some great swims by our sophomores, who have really stepped it up thus far. Andrea Ward started our meet off strong with a win in her 1000 freestyle and also won the 100 butterfly. Allie Knight had a great 200 backstroke winning that event. And, as previously mentioned, Sophia Yamauchi won the 100 and 200 breaststroke and finished off with another win in the 200 IM.
Thanks for everyone who came out and supported our Gaucho women!
OCTOBER 19, 2011
UCLA and Oregon State
Let's go Lady Gauchos!
Laurel Ferguson
OCTOBER 10, 2011
Intra-Squad and Alumni
There are two colors that make up the UCSB Swim and Dive team, and
those colors are BLUE and GOLD. A few weekends ago was where we put
the colors to the test.
We divided up our men's and women's teams onto Blue and Gold
Gauchos to see which would prevail. On the Boards, Divers' Ryan,
Caila, and Sarah were on the Gold team and Noelle, Nick and Erich
made up the blue team. They started off the meet with some
excellent dives! We had some amazing talent on the boards; here
Gold won hands down and started the Gold team off with some big
numbers. Unfortunately, after Golds women team won the medley relay
there was no stopping the onslaught of the Blue team. They would
not (and in fact, could not) be beaten. Sunshine had no competition
in his 50 and 100 free as he blew past his competition winning both
events by a full body-length. In the 200 fly, freshman Bob Hwang
won with a few seconds to spare, crushing upperclassmen Max; and
they had a rematch in the 100 fly where Bob out-touched Max by less
than a tenth of a second. Another outstanding freshmen performance
was Andrew Barman who dusted his competition in his 1000 free. Some
phenominal women event's were Allie Knight's amazing 200
backstroke, the women's 200 Medley Relay and 400 Freestyle Relay.
This was a fun first meet and some new athletes definitely
made a splash.
After our interquad meet was over all of the alumni got ready for
our annual alumni vs. freshmen meet. This gives all of the old
talent the opportunity to see how we're doing and show us that some
people only get better with age. Some of the Alumni present in the
pool were Robert Dame, Joe Plume, Kristof Igloi, Travis Jepson,
Courtney Jenkins, and two recent graduates Brittany Borowitz and
Astrid Amsallem. The dual in the pool was a hair-biter and many
people were on their toes to see how the freshmen would fare
against the alumni. But age before beauty and the alumni took home
gold in every event, except for the men's last relay, where diver
Nic swam a butterfly leg. Overall, the freshmen and alumni had fun
competing and getting to know each other in the pool.
After all of the swimming shenanigans were over, it
was time for our lunchtime social. All of the parents, athletes,
alumni and friends chatted while eating some delicious deli
sandwiches.
We even had some very special and honored alumni come to our meet
and hang arround to chat. Alumni Bruce Stahl achieved the first
world record in 50 meter freestyle in 1980 with a 22.83. He
actually talked with me about how at the time, his time was thought
to be close to the limits of the human body. This just shows how we
as athletes are always changing and improving, and it makes me
wonder what times people will be going 20 years from now. In
addition, we were graced by the presence of Richard Schroeder who
is a two-time Olympic gold medalist. He and his wife are a huge
presence on our Swim and Dive team. Last but not least, Lynn Cox
also made a brief appearance on the pool deck. She is a writer,
open-water long-distace swimmer, and motivational speaker.
Having amazing alumni come to campus pool is so much fun for all
of us swimmers. I love hearing about how UCSB used to be and
showing all of them how much this program means to us. I hope that
everyone had an enjoyable alumni and intra-squad meet and I hope to
see all of you and many more new faces next year!
Laurel Ferguson
SEPTEMBER 27, 2011
The Beginning of School
School is a wonderful time of the year. We get to learn stuff! Like, such as, grammar... and such. Some of us have a killer 20 units, while others (myself include) get to breeze by with 12 per quarter. For the latter group, good job, you have chosen well; and to the former, good luck, you'll need it (unless you're taking Film Studies 42 - "The Art of Watching Movies and Then Saying Stuff About Them" and Art History 102 - "The History of Sub-Saharan Finger-Painting in the 21st Century" or similar courses).
Another benefit of school starting is that we have cut down from two practices a day five times a week to two practices a day three times a week; which gives us just enough energy to stumble to class and promptly fall asleep. We have also seen the advent of the dreaded test set. Today marked our first of many wonderful experiences with near death. 10 x 100s on the 2 minutes might sound easy at first. Then you realize you must sprint all of them, building up dangerous amounts of lactic acid in your muscles. Nothing quite compares to the mental distress you feel when you realize you still have five left when you thought you only had three. Fortunately, all painful things come to an end eventually, and we all stumbled away from the set alive.
On a different note, today was also highlighted by a birthday swim from Chase Lemley. Birthday swims are something of a tradition here; they involve the entire team grabbing a kickboard and lining up on both sides of a lane in the shallow end. We then get to hamper the progress of the birthday swimmer as they attempt to make it down and back swimming butterfly. Anything goes, except for touching the swimmer. We pretty much try to drown one of our teammates, it's really fun. (Laurel's note: that's a joke)
Looking forward to seeing many of you this coming weekend for our Intra-squad and Alumni Meets!
Kevin Kuhn
SEPTEMBER 26, 2011
Stallion
Each year, much to the dismay of the coaches, during training camp
there will be an opportunity for two young gauchos to
show what they are made of. It will be a practice like any other;
warm up, preset, set, etc. During this practice, however, as Gregg
says the main set, and tells us when to leave, an upperclassman
will yell at the top of his lungs, "STALLION!"
It takes some time for Gregg to appoint the Stallions, as he is continually interrupted by over-excited screams of "STALLION!" and the following oscillations up and down the pool deck. Stallion #1: Chase Lemley. Stallion # 2: Emily Stucky.
Chase's assignment was 100 free in under 48.00 sec. Emily Stucky's event was the 100 Fly. She had to go 59.00 sec.
Chase went a 47.5, making the cut, and Emily went a 59.5, missing it by inches. The men's team were allowed to get out of the set, and the women were to continue on to the set. Luckily, after one of the prescribed 5x800's, the coaches were kind enough to allow the freshmen women another chance. Heren Alanis was their second chance, and she managed to hit under her time for the 200 free, going a 1:54.7, 1.3 seconds faster than her needed Stallion time.
I'm looking forward to all the home-meet-stallions!
Go Gauchos
Kevin Kuhn
SEPTEMBER 22, 2011
The Great Race
Go Gauchos!
Kendall Neely and Miranda Schneider
SEPTEMBER 18, 2011
Reflections on Training Camp
Training camp is meaningful for a few reasons. This is everyone’s first chance to meet the newcomers and welcome them into the gaucho family. New friendships are formed and the team establishes a new dynamic. Additionally, as we cohere over the next few weeks, team members will learn what is expected of them.
The swimmers and divers will come to understand the
importance of team loyalty and support (the will and aptitude to
put other team members on their back, so to speak). Moreover,
they will come to appreciate the fact that they are part of
something greater. Everyone is contributing to the gaucho legacy
and newcomers will come to do so with pride. Nonetheless, it takes
a lot of hard work and commitment, in and out of the pool. We
expect that everyone’s ambition will be reflected in their
scholarly and athletic endeavors.
This post just mentions a few of the experiences that swimmers and
divers will come to associate with training camp. While this time
of the year is perhaps the most tiresome, it is also the most
eventful and fun. I know that, although some newcomers may be
struggling at the moment, they will eventually reflect on this time
with a positive outlook, as I still do.
Remember to stay determined and put the team on your back,
though.
Evan Simoni
SEPTEMBER 15, 2011
Beach Day
Beach Flags was the opportunity that the upperclassmen had been waiting for, we all got to wrestle and race to reach the flags (cut up pieces of hose) that are hidden in the sand. The freshmen were not prepared for the onslaught of aggression from the junior and senior men, who tackled them to the ground, and many got out in the first round. But those who survived were quick and cunning as they ducked and dove around senior men to reach the flags. There was one stand out freshmen Ryan Gerard, who used his agility to get through to the fourth round. The semifinal round was Alex Campbell, Max Horrell and Dylan Templeton, and instead of battling in the sand they sprinted for the last flag, and in the end upperclassmen Max Horrell, a junior, prevailed as the men’s team winner. The women’s competition is never as aggressive, but this year the upperclassmen were vicious. There were some great tackles by upperclassmen, and even a little blood shed by sophomore Allie Knight, as consolation for keeping freshmen Emily Stucky from getting a flag. The competition got intense as the final three women, two Sophomores: Anne Peanasky and Taylor Munk, challenged Senior Laurel Ferguson. In the end class teamwork succeeded and the final flag was captured by sophomore, Taylor Munk.
The beach flags competition was over, and the men and women donned their suits for the run-swim-run. The conditions were great with blue skies, cold water, and the only hurdle was the seaweed, which we swam around, or swam through if your name is Ryan Hanni. The run-swim-run was a preview of our real Ocean Swim, revealing our fastest ocean swimmers, and our two winners: Juniors Emma Hunt and Ryan Hanni!
Laurel Ferguson
SEPTEMBER 9, 2011
Mike London in Swimming World Magazine
SEPTEMBER 3, 2011
Summer's End
AUGUST 28, 2011
Preparing for Training Camp
We only have a few more days before our summer “break” is over and we go back to COLLEGE! For all of the new freshmen this will be an overwhelming, exhilarating, and amazing experience. But before we even sit in a classroom we will have the trials and tribulations that is Training Camp. This ominous task is closing in on our future, the thought of which scares many of us. For the returners, we’re well aware of the feeling of training to the point of not being able to move due to our cramped, sore, and protesting muscles. We know that if you’re not in shape for training camp, you need to be scared. We will have doubles almost every day and many new workouts outside of the pool that we have never done before.
But training camp is also my favorite time of the year. I love how it feels seeing everyone for the first time in months, and practicing with a team that has become my second family. And another bonus of training camp is that we get to welcome the addition of 10 new women and 17 new men. I hope that I don’t get anyone’s names mixed up (but I’m sure I will).
Now that we have all taken a well deserved break after the completion of our long course season, it’s time to get pumped for everyone’s favorite time of the year, college swim season!
Laurel Ferguson
AUGUST 24, 2011
Summer Highlights
With summer drawing to a close, we’d like to reflect on all the achievements of our swimmers this long-course season. For those that chose to stay in Santa Barbara, the training with UCSB Head Coach Gregg Wilson and Assistant Coach Tim Siciliano was instrumental. After a few meets in the beginning of the summer starting from Irvine, then up to Santa Clara and back down to L.A., the team trekked back to the north for their two championship meets: Sectionals in Clovis and Nationals in Palo Alto.
One good example of hard work and training paying off this summer was Evan Simoni’s High Point award at Clovis Sectionals; in addition to making his 100 and 200 breast winter national cuts and 200 IM summer nationals cut, he scored more points than any other male swimmer at the meet. Another great example was Andrea Ward; she led her lane during every practice and used her distance training to excel in the 100 fly, obtaining her first Olympic Trials cut. In addition to being hard workers in the pool, both Evan and Andrea were taking summer school classes at UCSB.
However, summing up our summer with two swimmers would be an insult to the breadth of our program. UCSB Swimming took huge steps toward our goal of sending the most Gauchos in history to the Olympic Trials. Before this summer we had 4 Olympic Trial Qualifiers (including Lezak) and after, 12, with a total of 19 events qualified for. There were also many swimmers who made Summer and Winter National Cuts. The following lists the cuts that were made during the summer long-course season:
Olympic Trials cuts: Kevin Ferguson (100 free and 100 breast), Timothy Freeman (100 breast and 200 breast), Ryan Hanni (50 free and 100 free), Kevin Kuhn (50 free and 100 free), Chris Peterson (50 free and 100 free), Garrett Thompson (50 free), Katie Tomkinson (100 free), Sophia Yamauchi (100 breast), Andrea Ward (100 fly), incoming freshman Bob Hwang (200 fly), and alumni Katy Freeman (100 breast and 200 breast) and Jason Lezak (50 free and 100 free)
Summer Nationals cuts: Randy Aakhus (400 IM), Ryan Hanni (200 free), Evan Simoni (200 IM and 400 IM), Garrett Thompson (100 free and 200 free)
Winter Nationals cuts: Paige Bradley (200 breast), Kevin Ferguson (50 free), Max Horrell (100 fly), Emma Hunt (200 free), Evan Simoni (100 breast and 200 breast), Katie Tomkinson (200 free), Sophia Yamauchi (200 breast), Andrea Ward (400 free and 200 fly)
We’d like to make a shout-out to the host families this summer for their generosity: the Normans, the Campbells, the Garcias, the Hannis, and the Lemleys. Thank you!
It was a great summer, filled with fast swimming and the Santa Barbara ocean breeze! We’re all looking forward to the coming school year.
Kevin Kuhn
AUGUST 23, 2011
Welcome!
Welcome to the new blog of UCSB Swimming! This is our opportunity to share what it is to be Gauchos.
The UCSB swim team is more than a collection of exceptional athletes, we are a family. This blog will note the highlights of our season as well as the challenges we overcome throughout the year. Each success will bring us closer to our goals, both collectively and as individuals. We will report on phenomenal swims, update you with forthcoming events, and get everyone excited about what is to come.
The Authors
Laurel Ferguson is a fourth-year Environmental Studies Major and Anthropology Minor. She competes in the 100 and 200 butterfly as well as the 200 and 400 IM. She is looking forward to a challenging school year and incredible swim season. She will be completing her classes at UCSB in the winter and participating in a Wildlands Studies program in Australia for her final spring quarter.
Kevin Kuhn is a fifth-year Business Economics with an Emphasis in Accounting Major and Exercise and Health Science Minor. He competes in the 50 and 100 freestyle.
