Bluffton University Swim & Dive Head Coach Ben Rath. Photo by OIivia Daugherty
Bluffton University made history the winter of 2021 with the introduction of its newest winter sport, swimming & diving. However, as the season progressed, the team was missing one factor—a men’s program.
When the university announced the addition of Swim and Dive in January 2021, the original plan was to have both a men’s and women’s team in the pool for the 2021-2022 season. By the time head coach Ben Rath was hired, however, many prospective swimmers had already made college decisions. This created difficulty when trying to find men swimmers, Rath said.
“Recruitment season for swimming generally happens from about mid- to early October all the way to about January, February,” said Rath. “I was hired around the end of March. There was hope we would be able to snag some lingerers for the 2021, class but pretty much everybody I reached out to had already made up their mind. That kinda derailed those plans a little bit.”
On the women’s side, many of the swimmers were already students at Bluffton, each of whom has a background in swimming. Several are also two-sport athletes. The close-knit group has seen growth and improvement over the course of the season, with many setting and breaking records.
“There just didn’t seem to be a ton of interest on the men’s side for those who were already on campus,” Rath said. “There were a couple emails here or there but for the most part, they kinda just fell through.”
Brooke Barnes photo by Olivia Daugherty
The women are excited for the possibility of having a men’s team next year.
“I think it [having a men’s team next year] will be really cool,” said Brooke Barnes, a sophomore biology major. Barnes also participates in cross country and track. “I think it’s a really good idea. I come from a runner’s perspective, so I think it’s a good idea for people who continue to get injured or are burned out from their sport. Swim is a good way to work literally every muscle that you can think of.”
Despite not having a team for the 2021-2022 season, Rath is already seeing promise for the upcoming season and the men’s program’s future.
“I’d say getting basically a full year of recruiting under my belt for the class of 2022, we’ll definitely have men’s swimmers on the team next year,” said Rath. “It’s only going to continue to grow after that.”
