OSU swimming has high aspirations for winter term
Published: Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Updated: Tuesday, January 15, 2013 01:01
The Oregon State women’s swimming season is in full swing.
After a month-long hiatus, the Beavers defeated Northern Arizona, but suffered losses to Arizona and New Mexico back on Jan. 4 in Tucson, Ariz.
The team is ambitious for 2013.
“From a performance standpoint, we are looking to go for lifetime-best times,” said head coach Larry Liebowitz.
“We had a really good meet in early December, and they all swam very well,” he added. “Almost everyone was right on their marks.”
Although the Beavers did lose in points scored to Arizona and New Mexico State, they still managed to swim well.
Led by upperclassmen Ocean Trail and Crystal Kibby, along with freshman Sammy Harrison, Oregon State managed to outscore Northern Arizona 147-146. Despite the lack of wins on the Beavers’ resume, they are still optimists about accomplishing their goals this season.
Many swimmers share those goals.
“Just posting [my] best times,” Kibby said.
“In the mile, I’d like to get top-five in the Pac-12,” Harrison said.
With expectations high, the Beavers hope to keep working and eventually meet their potential.
The team looked unified during practice, those who weren’t in the water cheered on those who swam, and competitors in the pool once again became teammates on dry land.
“The number one goal was to really get us together, learn how to appreciate each other and help each other,” Liebowitz said.
“I think we have made major strides toward accomplishing that; they’re here cheering each other [on] and really supporting each other,” Liebowitz added.
While swimming may seem primarily an individual sport, Liebowitz has clearly established a strong team atmosphere, which he believes the athletes will respond to positively.
“The best part of it is getting used to the team and having the upperclassmen talk [to] me as I transition along like they once did,” Harrison said.
Team chemistry and work ethic are being stressed as the team prepares for its upcoming meets, beginning with a road meet on Friday.
“We have two weekends of dual meets coming up,” Liebowitz said. “And these two weekends we want to get as close to those best times as we can, those are called ‘unrested times.’ Then after that, for the Pac-12 [Championships], we’d like to exceed our best times.”
The schedule picks up pace for the Beavers starting with a visit to BYU and Utah this weekend, then Washington State and Idaho will make the trip to Corvallis the following week, and after that is the Pac-12 Championships on Feb. 26.
Darryl Oliver III, sports reporter
is a member of the 
