The freshmen and sophomores of the Utah swimming and diving team got an early taste of what it’s like to compete against rival BYU.
The Utes hosted a meet just for the underclassmen on Friday. For the majority of the competitors, it was their first time competing against the Cougars. Only eight of Utah’s 26 participants were sophomores, and the other 18 were incoming freshmen, the largest freshman class in years.
“This has been a big preview of what’s to come in this rivalry, not necessarily for the season, but for the next four years,” said head coach Greg Winslow.
Although the meet was not officially scored, the Utah team would have won, finishing first in 14 of the 24 events.
Even though Utah put up good times, Winslow said the younger members of the team still have a lot to work on before they officially begin the season at the end of the month.
“When you swim this early in the year, there are a lot of technique and endurance issues, but those get figured out as the season progresses,” Winslow said. “What I was really impressed with was how the team raced. You can see a lot of the character of the team during a meet and I was impressed with what they showed today.”
Top performances for the Utah women came from freshmen Chardonnay Biter-Mundt and Ellis Walters.
Biter-Mundt finished second in the 50 free and first in the 100 free, and Walters took the top spot in the 1-meter dive.
The men’s team was highlighted by freshmen Karson Applin and Bjorn Gunnarsson. Applin finished first in both the 100 fly and the 100 breaststroke.
Gunnarsson also finished first in both of his events, taking the top spot in the 50 and 100 free.
The team has been focusing on building chemistry, something Gunnarsson said he hasn’t experienced before. Despite the closeness of the team, building endurance and getting used to swimming multiple events in a short amount of time is something the younger team members will have to adjust to.
“The team spirit here in my first meet on the team was something I love,” Gunnarsson said. “I’m not used to that. Other teams I have been on, like the Swedish national team, have never been that close. When you are in the water, though, it’s very similar. One big change for me is swimming in so many events. I’m not used to that. It’s very tiring.”
Winslow mentioned in an interview earlier this week that he believes it is important to introduce the underclassmen to the rivalry sooner rather than later because it is an important and memorable part of being an athlete at Utah.
The underclassmen said they definitely felt the added pressure of swimming against a big rival, even though the meet was not scored and will not be counted toward the team’s record on the season.
“This meet has been different than what I have usually competed in,” Walters said. “The atmosphere is different and there is a lot more pressure due to the rivalry.”
The Utes will resume practices for the next three weeks before traveling to the University of Denver for their first meet of the season Oct. 24.