VOL. XXVIII, NO. 2
OCTOBER 31, 1986
Hardships present challenge
for girls' swim team
for girls' swim team
by Sue Murphy
Halfway through a strange and eventful season, Coach John Carle notes that despite losing six out of eight meets, the girls are ".500 in conference."
The team has only had two conference meets and they have won one of them. "If we can beat Niles West, we'll be 2-1 in conference," states Coach Carle.
The swim team has faced two rather unusual problems this year. The first problem arose when assistant coach Mickey Phillips was unable to attend practices or meets until the last three weeks for health reasons. A student PE teacher, Ms. Cathy Giseler, has been helping Coach Carle and JV Coach Osborne run the practices.
The second problem occurred due to the flood. Coach Carle, like many Des Flames residents, found his life disrupted by water in his house. Preoccupied with saving his home, he missed two weeks of practice and a meet against Deerfield. "Those two weeks I missed were very difficult."
Mr. Carle continued, "I didn't have time for swimming, I was concerned with something else. It was frustrating, especially missing the Deerfield meet. If it hadn't been for the irony of it - here I am a swimming coach, and I couldn't come to the meet because of the water - I could have cried."
Halfway through a strange and eventful season, Coach John Carle notes that despite losing six out of eight meets, the girls are ".500 in conference."
The team has only had two conference meets and they have won one of them. "If we can beat Niles West, we'll be 2-1 in conference," states Coach Carle.
The swim team has faced two rather unusual problems this year. The first problem arose when assistant coach Mickey Phillips was unable to attend practices or meets until the last three weeks for health reasons. A student PE teacher, Ms. Cathy Giseler, has been helping Coach Carle and JV Coach Osborne run the practices.
The second problem occurred due to the flood. Coach Carle, like many Des Flames residents, found his life disrupted by water in his house. Preoccupied with saving his home, he missed two weeks of practice and a meet against Deerfield. "Those two weeks I missed were very difficult."
Mr. Carle continued, "I didn't have time for swimming, I was concerned with something else. It was frustrating, especially missing the Deerfield meet. If it hadn't been for the irony of it - here I am a swimming coach, and I couldn't come to the meet because of the water - I could have cried."
Coach Carle wasn't the only one affected by the flood. Swimmer Dawn Gardner '87 suggested having a beach party at her house.
We've got the sand and we've got the water," she told her teammates. Other swimmers also had problems with the river; however, the season continued. No meets were cancelled because of the flood.
Coach Carle is gratified to note the improvements in the swimmers' times but the changes are not occurring the way he expected them to. "Times are dropping," he told the Westerner, "but erratically: My preconceived notions of how they should be dropping are way off. Maybe it has to do with the practices missed, and with the quality of practices."
The diving team of Vicki Genz '89 and Jenny Perik '90 has likewise had its problems and its good points. Vicki, who swam on the JV team last year, has suffered a leg injury which caused her to miss several practices.
On the other hand, Mr. Carle says that "Jenny has turned out to be a real surprise. She has real talent; but she must learn to control that talent."
Coach Osborne's JV team, meanwhile has posted a 2-6 record so far. All of last year's JV swimmers have been promoted to varsity.
We've got the sand and we've got the water," she told her teammates. Other swimmers also had problems with the river; however, the season continued. No meets were cancelled because of the flood.
Coach Carle is gratified to note the improvements in the swimmers' times but the changes are not occurring the way he expected them to. "Times are dropping," he told the Westerner, "but erratically: My preconceived notions of how they should be dropping are way off. Maybe it has to do with the practices missed, and with the quality of practices."
The diving team of Vicki Genz '89 and Jenny Perik '90 has likewise had its problems and its good points. Vicki, who swam on the JV team last year, has suffered a leg injury which caused her to miss several practices.
On the other hand, Mr. Carle says that "Jenny has turned out to be a real surprise. She has real talent; but she must learn to control that talent."
Coach Osborne's JV team, meanwhile has posted a 2-6 record so far. All of last year's JV swimmers have been promoted to varsity.
