The University of Denver men’s swimming and diving team hopes to start strong as it travels to Irvine, Calif. Friday for the Big West Shootout.
At the Big West Shootout, the Pioneers will have to face off against teams such as Cal Poly, Hawaii, UC-Irvine and the University of Washington, providing a preview for how the 2003-2004 season will look.
“The upcoming meets are going to be tough this year because we have better competition,” said senior captain John Kolstoe. “The intersquad meet was a good chance to race again. The intersquad meet also gave us a chance to set a benchmark for the season and to see where we need to improve.”
With 13 returning swimmers and six newcomers, new Head Coach Jim Henry plans on taking the team up a level this season.
“I’d like to think we’ve made more of a commitment this year,” said Henry. “Practices have been intensified, and the schedule is a lot harder than last year.”
After last year’s up-and-down season in Denver’s first year as a member of the National Independent Conference (NIC), the Pioneers expect to hit this season stronger than ever.
Henry said the leadership shown by the seniors will make this year more successful than the last, and the incoming freshmen will fill in the gaps that the Pioneers need to compete among the best.
“I want to be able to help the team better our final position at our championship meet,” said Kolstoe.
With a combination of veterans and newcomers, the Pioneers are ready to impress other teams. The addition of Craig Jollands of Hillcrest, South Africa and Milos Marjanovic of Toronto can help to make the Backstroke event one of the strongest combinations of swimmers that Denver has ever seen.
Chris Seibert of El Paso, Texas, looks to turn heads in the breaststroke competition.
After winning the 100 breaststroke in a meet against the Air Force Academy in his freshman year, he is ready to step up to an even higher level.
Senior captain Greg Dontchos of Littleton returns to lead the Pioneers after recovering from shoulder surgery. He plans on showing people what he is made of in the butterfly event.
He will also lead the sprint events along with senior Will Price of Houston.
The distance should be filled with intensity and remain the backbone of the team this year, as senior captain John Kolstoe of Fort Collins is expected to be the leader in the freestyle events.
Kolstoe has broken three school records in the 500, 1000 and 1650 freestyle. Complimenting Kolstoe in distance events will be sophmore Brian Flaherty who was a finalist last year at th conference championchips.
Senior diver John Conyers expects to provide Denver with another stellar diving season. After drastically improving his junior year, recording two first-place finishes in the 1-meter, three first-place finishes in the 3-meter and scoring at the conference meet, he continues to improve and will be a necessity to Denver’s diving program.
“I’m hoping for surprises as well,” said Henry. And the team is more than ready to provide these surprises.
“I think this year’s first two meets will be a great preview to our conference meets,” said Henry. “We will be able to see what other teams in our conference have and it will also be a chance for us to finally come together as a group.”
With the addition of swimmers who are expected to make a difference and former swimmers who are ready to show them everything they’ve got, the Pioneers can go nowhere but up.
“Swimming on a college level is a team sport, and I think that if each individual improves on his goals and applies that as a team, this year is going to be awesome,” said Henry.
Denver made history as the men’s team was named the NCAA Division 1 National Champions for grade point average.
Among all D1 institutions, their combined average of 3.48 for the 2002-2003 season ranked them in first place. Besides Duke, Denver is the only school to have both a men’s and women’s swim team in the academic top-12.
“I would love to hold onto the academic records we have set,” said Henry. “Above all else, academics come first and I am glad our team understands that.”
This year’s men’s team will have to get through the challenges of coming together as a team, but with the addition of a talented freshman class and the seniors’ leadership, Denver hopes to have one of the most successful seasons in Pioneer history.
