Following third-place finishes for both the men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams at the Georgia Tech Invitational, N.C. State will come off a 12-day break and return to action on Saturday against ACC-powerhouse Virginia Tech.
Coach Brooks Teal said performances at Georgia Tech proved both motivating and exciting for the team, but said the team has to get refocused after the holiday with exams bearing down now.
“The season is divided into three phases, and we are entering the middle phase, which is really challenging with the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays and exams,” he said.
“We are in a transition boat and we will see how the team reacts. Right now it’s more of a mental challenge than anything else.”
Freshman Greg Baskwell said the break shouldn’t affect the team.
“About 10 people stayed in Raleigh and trained over the break, and the majority of the people that went home for Thanksgiving swam with their club teams or lifted weights,” he said. “We never really took a break.”
Both Teal and assistant coach Jacqui McLaughlin said they have been pleased with the team’s hard work, but they said there’s always room for improvement.
For the men and women, sprint events continue to be a major weakness, which could prove detrimental in the Virginia Tech meet.
“We definitely need for our sprinters to come in and step up. A lot of points come from sprints, and that is an area that we really need to improve,” Teal said.
“Virginia Tech is very strong in their sprints, so we need to make sure we come through this weekend.”
Baskwell said that to be competitive, individuals must swim their hardest at every meet.
“We haven’t had a perfect meet yet,” he said. “The whole meet starts with one good event, and if one person starts it off, it will trickle down to the rest of us. A lifetime best for one person could pump the rest of the team up.”
The team had several breakout performances in the Georgia Tech Invitational including a new school record in the 200 IM by redshirt junior Stephen Mellor. Sophomore Anna Linkenauger and junior Erica Smith barely missed school records and impressed Teal.
“Stephen Mellor had a great meet, and he continues to pick up where he left off from last year,” Teal said. “[Junior] Andrew Lester and [sophomore] Mason McGee did solid jobs at Georgia Tech. Erica Smith had an amazing meet. Anna and [freshman] Jen Kopenitz continue to lead the women.”
Linkenauger credits the entire team for its success thus far.
“The freshmen stepped it up, but so did the sophomores, the juniors and the seniors. It’s going to be an all-group effort to really excel and get where we need to be,” she said. “Virginia Tech is a tough team. They are going to be one of the top teams in the conference. We will go in there and do our best, and they will definitely be a goal to beat for years to come.”
