Like the ethereal dancing pairs of Vettriano’s paintings,
the UCLA swim team seemed to thrive in the rain. Poised over the
edge, rain pouring from the sky and then rippling through the pool,
the swimmers nonetheless had the grace of dancers in
Saturday’s competition.
For many of the Bruins, the meet was their second of the season,
with the rain adding an extra element that did not deter the
swimmers.
“It was my first time swimming in the rain,” junior
Taylor Spivey said. “But everyone was in a good mood, and
swam their best.”
The enthusiasm compelled the Bruins to defeat the Toreros of the
University of San Diego, 194-146; the meet concluding with the
individual medleys and the highly anticipated relays.
While many of the swimmers found themselves placed in different
events from their usual forte, the Bruins seemed to take it as an
opportunity in exploring their stroke work and distance.
“Our focus this meet was not to control the
uncontrollables,” coach Cyndi Gallagher said, referring to
the downcast sky and the pelting rain. “It was just to get up
and race. Every time we got up into the pool, we were trying new
things. There was a lot of effort and enthusiasm.”
As a team, the Bruins won 12 events throughout the day. Junior
Sarah Platzer was victorious in the 50- and 100-meter freestyle.
Junior Leslie Hovsepian and sophomore Lindsey Smart also swept
their events in the 100 breaststroke and the 200 freestyle,
respectively.
“It was an experience to be sure, and we had a lot of fun.
We’ve been working on stroke work, springing, and speed.
It’s encouraging to actually see the results of all of our
hard work in the meets,” Hovsepian said.
The diving team also competed against the Toreros, with freshman
diver Paige Thompson sweeping the one- and three-meter springboard
events.
The victory this weekend improved UCLA’s Pac-10 record to
3-0, and built up the anticipation for competitions the next two
weeks against Arizona and Arizona State.
While still on a high from their last performance, the UCLA team
intends to stay focused on the next test of speed and
composure.
“Next Friday and Saturday will be a real test of talent,
but we want to beat them, and it might just be the case of who
wants to win more badly,” Hovsepian concluded.