By Andrew Collinsworth
The first season for swimming and diving at Bluffton is underway. The women’s team is off and running, competing in three events so far with times improving in each event.
Bluffton University Swim & Dive Head Coach Ben Rath. Photo by OIivia Daugherty
Head Coach Ben Rath understands the measure of success for the team won’t be by wins but by setting a foundation.
“My expectations are about growth of the team personally and athletically,” Rath said. “Getting them more and more acclimated to early morning practices and being in the water. The first half of the year we really focused on technique and getting everybody caught up to speed on that end and now in the back half of the year, we’re focused on getting faster in the water in preparation for hopefully a really successful conference week.”
Leading the way for the Beavers is senior Brooke Kleman who competes in the 100-yard individual medley and the 100-yard breaststroke. Kleman placed first in both races in the last event the Beavers attended at Anderson University.
Kleman said she knew from the moment she heard there would be a swimming and diving team at Bluffton, that she would tryout for the team.
“I had no hesitation,” Kleman said. “I knew I was going to do it right away. From when I started practices to now, I can see huge improvements from everyone on the team. It’s pretty rewarding and from what coach has told us, we still have the chance to catch one team in the conference.”
Also making contributions to the team are sophomore Mackenzie Martin, who competes in the 50- and 100-yard backstroke, and senior Stacey Chirewa who competes in the 50- and 100-yard freestyle.
Rath is happy with his team so far, despite the ups and downs of the season.
“They show up everyday and work pretty hard,” Rath said. “They improve when they really put their mind to it. As a coach you really like to see that. When they show up and they put the work in and have success in the water, I’m not truly surprised by that, but from a competitive standpoint I have been pleasantly surprised by our results.”
