On Saturday, Jan. 11, Grand Valley State University’s swim and dive team competed against the Wayne State University Warriors at home. The Lakers came out on top, with leading scores in both the men’s and women’s divisions. The final score for the women was 215 to the Warriors’ 84, in addition to the men’s lead of 207 to 93.
The Lakers had standout performances across the board. Sophomore diver Macy Polasek displayed skill in the 1-meter and 3-meter diving events. In the 1-meter, Polasek came in first, which awarded nine points to the Lakers’ final score. During the 3-meter event, Polasek attempted a new dive, securing her third place in the event.
“Macy Polasek’s forward 3 ½ somersault is a new dive and she performed it very well,” said Steve Burciaga, both the men’s and women’s diving head coach.
In addition to strong diving performances, the women had other notable accomplishments in the pool– the 200-yard medley relay and 200-yard freestyle relay. The Lakers triumphed in both events, securing a combined 22 points toward the team’s final score.
The 200-yard freestyle relay was a fight to the finish, and the Lakers won with a narrow lead. The team was made up of Kierstan Harmon, Linda Frick, Alysa Wager and Lucy Hedley. At the finish, both teams were neck and neck; however, the Lakers clinched the finish, reaching the wall at 1:38.11 and beating the Warriors by hundredths of a second. The Warriors made it to the wall at 1:38.95.
Contrary to the 200-yard freestyle’s tight race, the Lakers managed to beat the Warriors by seconds in the medley relay. Swimmers Vittoria Proietti, Sara Alvarez, Wager and Harmon put the burners on the Warriors, reaching the wall at 1:47.32, which was followed by the Warriors’ time of 1:50.46.
The men’s team also showed out with a dominant performance across various events. One of these events was the 200-yard freestyle relay. Not only did the Lakers blast through the competition, but they also shattered a pool record with a time of 1:22.82. Swimmers Evan Scotto DiVetta, Aaron Dies, Carsyn Christoffel and Matt Bosch cruised to victory, leaving the Warriors scrambling to catch up.
Another show-stopping race by the Lakers was the 100-yard freestyle. The Lakers claimed the top three times in the event, further solidifying their skill as competitors. The fastest time was taken by Bosch at 45.11, followed closely by Scotto DiVetta at 45.89 and Christoffel at 48.16.
This meet served to not only showcase the Lakers’ skill and athleticism, but also presented a chance for the student-athletes to prepare for the upcoming Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Championship meet next month.
“We are trying to get ready for our GLIAC meet next month, and today was a good meet to try some newer dives our divers have been working on,” said Burciaga. “It was very nice to compete against another team with very good divers, and see how our divers reacted to the challenge.”
Swimming head coach Andrew Boyce emphasized the importance of developing a routine heading into this semester.
“We are excited to get into a good routine of class and practices as we start off the second semester,” said Boyce.
The swim and dive teams’ next meet will be away on Jan. 18, and against Davenport University.
