Ball State women’s swimming and diving is back home this weekend as they take on Bowling Green and Tiffin.
They returned from Akron this past weekend with a loss. Even though they didn’t get the win, three swimmers set personal records. Head coach Kristy Patterson said she is very proud of the girls and their hard work.
“I know those three girls trained really hard over summer,” Patterson said. “But definitely the training they are doing now is reflective of their hard work, and they are staying away from injuries.”
The Cardinals are swimming faster at the beginning of the season than in past years. Patterson said she hopes to keep it up this weekend.
Patterson said some swimmers might compete in one event Nov. 4 and a different one Nov. 5. Some races Ball State's swimmers participate in are the 200 individual medley, 400 IM and 1,000 freestyle.
“Everyone will be swimming both days, which is a good way to practice conference meets,” Patterson said. “They have to be used to swimming fast one day, going to bed and waking up and doing it all again.”
Senior captain Courtney Mudd believes her teammates are coming in with a more positive attitude this season.
“We got a lot of new swimmers this year, which has helped us out a lot,” Mudd said. “If we go in with a good attitude and know we can swim fast, then we will.”
Mudd said the Cardinals are used to swimming tired and won’t go light until it’s time for the mid-season meet and the Mid-American Conference Championships.
“Yeah, we can have great meets and bad meets,” Mudd said. “It’s more of what you’ve done all season to get to MAC.”
The meet on Friday will have different races than Saturday. Mudd said they do this in order to see how times compare to the night before. They want to stay as consistent as they can.
Ball State hasn’t swam against Tiffin before. Tiffin is a Division II school out of Ohio, but Patterson said they are preparing for the meet just like they would any other one.
“It’s always good going against teams you haven’t gone against because you don’t know what they’re like,” Patterson said. “You just have to hope the best team shows up on race day.”
Patterson says the Cardinals are in control of themselves. No one else is in control of them. They have to show up and be the best for their team.
The meet on Friday will start at 6 p.m. and on Saturday at 1 p.m.
