USC teams sweep Wingate, CofC, Queens
After wins against Wingate (269-59), College of Charleston (281-53) and Queens (221-107) in the final home event of the season for the South Carolina men’s swim team, coach McGee Moody said he was pleased with the team’s overall performance.
“This week we were probably as fast as we’ve been all year,” Moody said. “What we should start to see now, given where we are with our training, is every meet from Christmas forward should be a little faster than the week before. And we’ve done that.”
The women’s team likewise swept the visitors, beating College of Charleston 283.5–49.5, Wingate 277–55 and Queens 282–46. Moody explained that this weekend’s performance was a confidence booster for the women.
“The last three weeks have been good for our women,” Moody said. “They had a good win over Duke, swam strong against Arkansas and FSU and had three good wins this weekend.”
Moody believes the confidence has translated into faster times. Senior Whitney Avers of Arnold, Md., also felt that the attitude of the women’s side was much improved.
“It’s the most that I’ve seen everybody cheer this entire season, and everybody was so supportive,” Avers said. “I think we just had a lot of fun today.”
The women’s swim team experienced a challenging start to the season, falling to Texas A&M, North Carolina, Florida and Virginia in the opening month. However, the team has gradually improved as the season has progressed. Avers attributes part of that success to a collective focus on the details.
Moody also pointed out that several young freshmen have provided a boost to the Gamecocks this season. Ellen Johnson from Suwanee, Ga., had a big weekend, cutting her 100-yard breaststroke time by almost two full seconds. Jesse Bridgham, another freshman, dropped five seconds from her time in the 200-yard backstroke.
“If you look at our freshmen, they’re the ones progressing the quickest,” Moody said.
The Gamecocks will count on a strong performance from the women in their upcoming meet on Feb. 2 against Georgia and Alabama in Tuscaloosa. Georgia’s women’s team is currently ranked in the top five nationally. Friday’s test is the last meet until the SEC Championship later in February.
“We’re going to go in and race as hard as we can go,” Moody said. “They definitely have a lot more confidence than they did before; they’re swimming faster than they were first semester, so that’s going to do good things for us.”
Moody pointed out that the Gamecocks have improved not just physically but also mentally. Moody organized a long team meeting on the Saturday prior to the meet to address some “internal stuff” and “things we needed to talk about.” He believes he saw the results of that in this weekend’s meet.
“We were much more focused,” Moody said. “Everything we did from the time we got here to our last event was much more detailed, much more disciplined. I think mentally, men and women, we’re dead on. We’re right where we need to be.”