Swimmers prep for provinicials      
Written by Laura Grant     
Thursday, 08 February 2007  

With 26 Raven swimmers heading to the Ontario University Athletic (OUA) 
championships Feb. 9-11, head coach Lynn Marshall said she is expecting some 
good races.

"I think based on how everyone's been looking in workout, we're looking 
forward to some very, very good swims," she said. 

Marshall said the training the swimmers received in Florida during the winter 
break will help their performance.

"A lot of people were looking much better after Christmas than they did before 
Christmas. For those who went to Florida, definitely getting in all the extra 
training down there was a big help, and we should see the results of that 
even more at the OUA championships," she said.

With the championships just around the corner, Marshall said the team is 
focusing on smaller details that will help them win their races.

"At this point we're mainly just fine-tuning [...] good starts, good turns, 
racing into the finish, trying to finish ahead of the person next to you [...] 
so nothing unexpected happens during your race."

Although six of her veteran swimmers graduated last year, Marshall said she 
has high hopes for her team. "As an overall team we want as many people to 
get through to the finals, which is the top 16 [in each event]," she said.

Marshall said rather than pushing swimmers too hard in the pool, the most 
important thing to focus on is keeping everyone healthy. 

"Eat well, sleep well, drink lots of water," she said. "There's been a few 
people with colds and that sort of thing, but with any luck all of that will 
be under control by the weekend."

Despite juggling some bouts of illness with school and swim practice, she 
said excitement is starting to appear in her charges, and each swimmer has 
personal goals for the meet.

"I'm looking forward to some exciting racing, and I think it should be a 
really fun weekend for everybody," she said.

The championships will be hosted by Guelph University.