MAKING WAVES

By Pete Mollica

Penguins’ swim team has high hopes for season

Thirteen swimmers return from last year’s team, which placed fifth at the league championship meet.

YOUNGSTOWN — A year ago the Youngstown State swimming team earned its best finish in the Horizon League Championship by finishing fifth out of eight teams.

Sixth-year head coach Matt Anderson has 13 swimmers returning from that team and has high hopes that his Penguins can improve on last year’s performance.

The Penguins have jumped out to a quick start this season. In their most recent action, YSU rolled over Horizon League opponent Butler 144-87 at Beeghly Natatorium, while it also won five freestyle events in a meet with Marshall University and had seven top-ten finishes in 10 events at the Tom Stubbs Relays in Bowling Green.

“We’re very optimistic about our chances this season,” said Anderson.

“After the effort that these girls put forth last season and with 13 of them returning we feel really good about this year.”

Three seniors bolster this season’s roster.

They are Olivia Arnold (distance freestyle and individual medley), Natasha Bray (distance freestyle, IM) and Jessica Front (middle distance freestyle).

Arnold, a native of Ruthyerglen, Australia, had a career meet against Butler.

She broke her own school record in the 1,000 yard freestyle in a time of 10:28.53, eclipsing the mark she swam last year in the Horizon championships of 10:33.14 and she also won the 500 freestyle and the 400 individual medley, both with personal best times.

YSU won every event in that meet, including the 200 freestyle by Front.

“I’ve really enjoyed my years here and we’re looking forward to a big season,” said Arnold, who usually trains about 5,000 to 8,000 yards each day

Arnold said it took her a while to get use to the colder weather in Youngstown.

“But other than that and the different foods it’s been pretty easy to adjust here,” she added.

The Penguins broke 20 school records last season, nine of them in the Horizon Championships, and Arnold had two of those.

Bray who is from York, Pa., also swims the medley.

“There are a lot of different strokes and you have to spend time working on each one every day,” she said.

“We feel good about this team, but we need to keep working hard every day like we have been and that includes getting up at 5:30 every morning to workout.”

Front, from Waynesboro, Pa., finished second in the 200 freestyle and third in the 100 at the conference meet last year. She says that the team can take a lot from last year’s performance.

“I think that it gives us a big boost in confidence going into this year’s meet,” she said.

Anderson said the Penguins are lucky to have good facilities.

“We’re probably better than most of the team’s in the conference as far as facilities go,” he said.

“Cleveland State probably has the best and then us and Illinois-Chicago are next. I’m prejudiced, but I think ours is better than Illinois-Chicago.

“It is a great facility to prepare for any meet and it is also a great recruiting tool. We have a lot of recruits who come in here and look at the pool and are really impressed.

The Penguins return to action on Friday when they host a meet with Cleveland State and Niagara at Beeghly beginning at 6 p.m.