Team Banquet

Thanks to all who made it back for this year's Team Banquet (Mother's Day Edition).  It's always nice to get a chance to see parents without the chaotic frenzy that surrounds a meet.  Additionally, while we like recognizing our team, having it on Mother's Day was also nice because it gave us a chance to recognize the people who help mold our guys into who they are.  There's a reason why I have parents hand out awards if their son wins an event at conference.  After all, they've done a lot more to get them on that podium than I have.

All that said, we present five awards each year.  They embody what is vital to our team - performance in the water and the classroom, hard work, and being a great teammate.  This year's Award Winners are:

• Most Valuable Teammate - Pat Alfes
• Most Valuable Performer - Mike Kozak Kyle Drake
• Scholar Athlete - Isaac Rothenbaum
• Hardest Worker - Eric Ross
• Red Man Award - Doug Schranck

Additionally, you can download a copy of the team booklet here.  Glad to hear people liked it!

CCIW Championships - NCAA Cuts

It doesn't seem possible - not when you graduate a class that includes four NCAA Consideration qualifiers and three All-Americans - but this weekend the Red Men posted the most NCAA 'B' qualifiers in school history.

Time will tell what shakes out and who makes Minneapolis, but here's a rundown of who got cuts:

1. Blake Bendix - 200 & 400 Free Relays
2. Jon Bond - 100 Back, 200 Med Relay
3. Kyle Drake - 100 & 200 Back, 400 IM, 400 Med Relay, 800 Free Relay
4. Mitchell Jackson - 800 Free Relay
5. Dan Jones - 200 Free Relay
6. Mike Moravek - 200 Medley Relay
7. Ryan Ortmann - 200 & 400 Free Relays
8. Bob Pellican - 100 Back, 400 Free Relay
9. Nathan Ripley - 50, 100, 200 Free - 400 Medley, 200, 400, 800 Free Relays
10. Isaac Rothenbaum - 200 Free Relay
11. Doug Schranck - 100 & 200 Fly, 200 & 400 Medley Relays
12. Alex Van Huis - 400 Medley Relay
13. Chris Varner - 100 Back

Final Tune-Up: Wisconsin Private College Meet

The impressive-sounding, but not all that impressive Wisconsin Private College Championships are in the books, and with it, our final races prior to the CCIW and NCAA Championships.

It's funny to think about it now, but nobody on our team can remember a time when we didn't win this meet or every relay as a part of it. Only Rip and Alex are even able to remember this meet being held anyplace but Carthage and nobody wants to remember just how long the meet used to take. That's a far cry from when I got here and the upperclassmen explained that one of their goals was to win back the "Championship".

Today its a meet where we let the guys choose their own events. and let them take a stab at moving up the all-time lists. As coaches, we use it as an evaluation tool - who should be in what event at CCIW's. Who will (and won't) make the conference team?

Some things that stood out this weekend:

• Our medley relays may have some life after all! We split them up and the top two weren't far off our season best. If we pick the right four, I think we can make a run at Wheaton's top-ten ranked medleys.
• Ryan Ortmann is beginning to show why he should be one of the nation's premiere sprinters. He went a lifetime best and broke Edgar Vargas' meet record with a slow start and bad breakout. He's also probably off the hook for the 200 freestyle at conference following his is 54.7 fly.
  
• 200 IM - We don't have a "true" 200 IM'er, but a lot of pretty good ones. We'll be looking for someone to break through here.
• Nathan Ripley - wins his 4th straight 100 free title with a new meet record. He's emerged from our heaviest training and starting to show flashes of what we know he can do.
• Breaststrokes - We've got a logjam in the 1:02-1:04 range. We need a 58.5 and watching these guys improve every week gives us optimism.
• 200 Free Relay - Carroll breaks a seven-year string of relay wins, BUT check out that 22.32 anchor split out of a miler - Eric Ross?
• 100 Butterfly - Everyone loves swimming the 100 fly at this meet. I'm never really sure why, but we learned that we do have some more potential here.

The final evaluation of this weekend's meet is a solid B+. The guys answered a lot of questions, and in a couple of cases even showed enough versatility that we will have several weapons at our disposal come conference time. In fact, putting together this year's CCIW lineup is going to be more challenging than ever before. Take a guy like Isaac Rothenbaum. He's really a 200 freestyler, but he's ranked in the top eight in the 100 breaststroke. If we put him in breaststroke, it leaves him better rested for the 800 free relay at night, but it potentially knocks some of our breaststrokers out of the top eight.

It's an interesting set of questions, and we'll need to get most of them right to defend last year's conference title.

More Press for Isaac

Isaac Wins NCAA Sportsmanship Award

Our guys have earned lots of awards-All-Americans, Academic All-Americans, Carthage Athlete-of-the-Year, and even an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship.  Tuesday, though, we earned another as Isaac Rothenbaum was named the 2008 NCAA Sportsman of the Year.

Considering there's only one male and one female selected each year this is huge.  Isaac modestly shrugged it off when he found out, but it is something to be proud of and in a way, I think its reflective of our team because its something any of them would have done.  As great as our facility, our staff, our campus, and our academic programs are, I'm always telling recruits that the BEST part of Carthage swimming is the team and the guys who make it up. Here's the writeup on Isaac.

For NCAA Division III Sportsman of the Year Isaac Rothenbaum, it’s not always about yourself. Sometimes, it’s not always even about your own team. On Saturday afternoon, Feb. 21, 2009, Rothenbaum showed his teammates and a certain Wheaton College swimmer a generosity of spirit that garnered Rothenbaum the 2008-09 NCAA Division III Sportsmanship Award.

Last February, the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin Swimming Championship was held at the Wheaton College (Ill.) Chrouser Fitness Center Pool in Wheaton, Ill. Carthage was en route to wrapping up its third conference championship in four years and second in a row. In between the preliminaries and the finals, Rothenbaum, who would later be named the “most outstanding participant,” noticed a Wheaton swimmer getting ready to begin a time trial in the 100 breaststroke. The Thunder’s Jonathan Nitz was trying to qualify for a spot in the NCAA Division III Men’s Swimming Championship. Seeing that Nitz had no one in the water with him for the time trial, Rothenbaum told his gathered teammates that they should stop what they were doing up and cheer on their conference competitor.

With the support of Rothenbaum and his fellow Red Men, Nitz proceeded to turn in a national-qualifying time. That beats shaking your opponent’s hand anytime.

Rothenbaum, a double major in computer science and graphic design, has been named to the Carthage dean’s list three times. He finished fourth in the CCIW 200 freestyle, eighth in the 100 freestyle and was part of a conference-championship 800 freestyle relay team. From non-scorer to conference champion in one year.  Not bad.

LCM Records Updated

With championship meets winding down here's a recap of our summer competition - fully a third of the team's top three times went down along with three team records.

50 Free	24.73	Davis, Bryce	8/4/2007	Steve Keller
	24.99	Ripley, Nathan	7/11/2009	Shane Ryan
	25.43	Schranck, Doug	7/24/2009	Dave Stephens
100 Free	54.31	Ripley, Nathan	7/13/2009	Shane Ryan
	54.65	Somers, Henry	7/24/2003	Bill Schalz
	54.70	Davis, Bryce	8/4/2007	Steve Keller
200 Free	2:02.24	Schranck, Stephen	7/19/2006	Dave Stephens
	2:02.66	Somers, Henry	7/24/2003	Bill Schalz
	2:03.83	Ripley, Nathan	7/11/2009	Shane Ryan
400 Free	4:18.08	Ross, Eric	7/22/2009	TJ Day
	4:19.18	Pelka, Bryan	7/20/2006	Greg Lake
	4:19.55	Chapman, Nathaniel	7/23/2004	Jim Sheridan
800 Free	8:53.06	Pelka, Bryan	7/20/2006	Greg Lake
	9:06.21	Ross, Eric	7/23/2009	TJ Day
	9:06.50	Glover, Adam	7/23/2009	Mary Liston
1500 Free	16:58.65	Pelka, Bryan	7/20/2006	Greg Lake
	17:11.12	Ross, Eric	7/20/2009	TJ Day
	18:14.47	Glover, Adam	6/25/2009	Mary Liston
100 Back	1:02.79	Drake, Kyle	7/17/2008	Bill Schalz
	1:02.90	Chapman, Nathaniel	7/24/2003	Jim Sheridan
	1:04.15	Pellican, Bob	6/11/2008	Mary Ruffin
200 Back	2:11.06	Drake, Kyle	7/17/2009	Bill Schalz
	2:15.23	Chapman, Nathaniel	7/24/2003	Jim Sheridan
	2:17.82	Pellican, Bob	7/11/2008	Mary Ruffin
100 Breast	1:07.15	Schranck, Stephen	7/19/2006	Dave Stephens
	1:08.71	Somers, Henry	7/24/2003	Bill Schalz
	1:10.51	Moravek, Mike	7/22/2009	Andy Rose
200 Breast	2:26.29	Schranck, Stephen	7/19/2006	Dave Stephens
	2:32.26	Moravek, Mike	7/22/2009	Andy Rose
	2:41.85	Somers, Henry	7/10/2003	Bill Schalz
100 Fly	58.07	Schranck, Doug	7/23/2009	Dave Stephens
	59.16	Davis, Bryce	8/6/2006	Steve Keller
	1:00.57	Somers, Henry	7/24/2003	Bill Schalz
200 Fly	2:12.01	Pelka, Bryan	7/20/2006	Greg Lake
	2:13.19	Schranck, Doug	7/24/2009	Dave Stephens
	2:16.96	Chapman, Nathaniel	7/24/2003	Jim Sheridan
200 IM	2:16.58	Schranck, Stephen	7/19/2006	Dave Stephens
	2:18.70	Chapman, Nathaniel	7/23/2004	Jim Sheridan
	2:20.12	Drake, Kyle	5/22/2009
400 IM	4:53.88	Schranck, Stephen	7/19/2006	Dave Stephens
	4:54.97	Pelka, Bryan	7/20/2006	Greg lake
	4:57.07	Drake, Kyle	7/17/2009	Bill Schalz

More LC Times Coming Down

Reports from Ohio and Illinois are that times continue to fall.  From Chicago, Isaac Rothenbaum posts lifetime bests in the 50 and 100 freestyles "nothing like back to back best times in one day to boost your spirits" he says.  Moravek and incoming freshman Jon Bond were there as well.  No LTB's from Mike, but he notes, "I got my hands on a [suit] so between that and a full shave bring on Minnesota."

In Oxford, Eric Ross made a run at Bryan Pelka's 1500 record - going 17:11.  He just missed making the top-three list in the 200 backstroke at this morning's prelims.

This week Carthage coaches will be out recruiting at the Sectional Meets.  Coach DeLaRosby will be in Minneapolis while I'll be down in Columbia, Missouri.  Next week, we'll be attending the Wisconsin and Indiana State meets.  If you're a parent or recruit considering Carthage, be sure to introduce yourself!

CCIW - Day II (Continued)

OK - got a power cord.

200 Freestyle - Last year Rip went in as the top seed only to get third. No doubt this year though - Rip led coast to coast along with teammate Kyle Winiecki. For Rip it broke the school record set hours earlier by Stephen. For Kyle it was a new lifetime best - leapfrogging him from the 1:46 range to 1:43 - no need for 1:44 or 1:45. Isaac also established a new lifetime best - knocking a 1/4 second off of his previous best to move into 4th. In the consol heat, Eric Ross established himself as the consol king. After a disappointing morning swim - he stormed back to drop nearly three seconds to go 1:47.50. We used prelims as a tryout for the fourth leg of our 800 Freestyle relay. The guys were impressive across the board. Dan Jones and Ryan Ortmann going 1:52.1 and 1:51.3 were probably the most shocking. Still, there were enough lifetime bests to go around - Adam Glover 1:49.6, Alex Boyer 1:49.3, Alex VanHuis 1:47.4, Pelka 1:47.2, Doug Schranck 1:46.9 and the winner for that fourth relay spot - Derek Schneider 1:45.31

100 Breaststroke - A night after the disappointment of the 200 IM, Stephen took back a little piece of history in the breaststroke. This was an event Wheaton had their eyes on and with good reson - Jon Nitz is fast. He's a sprinter though so when he and Stephen turned at the 50, I knew we had it - sure enough, Stephen came home in 29.79 to break Zach Jole's meet record with a 56.61. Andy slipped a spot - going 1:00.31 and bring an end to his breaststroke experiment. In Consols Adam Van Huis reached down into his sprint reserves to go a LTB 1:02.38. Mike Moravek was just back at 1:03.0 - not what we were aiming for, but good enough for 11th. We were excellent in our morning swims - Buck a 1:09, Alex VanHuis a 1:00.78 and a breakthrough swim for Ben Coder who bypassed the 1:02 zone, cruising in in 1:01.97.

100 Backstroke - After watching Varner go a 52.64 on Thursday's relay - expectations were high in the 100 and he came through again - this time going a 52.75 - a little off but still good enough for a 'B' cut and a nice second-place birthday present. Bob went a little faster at night, but never really look comfortable as we went a LTB 54.03. Pat, who snuck into finals, made it worthwhile - clocking his first sub-56 time! We didn't have anyone in consols - but did enjoy some good swims in the morning. Dan Jones won the latest Jones-Ortmann showdown 59.0 to 1:01.2. Clinton Scheirer also clocked a LTB 58.63 as did Tommy who took over a second off of his lifetime best - 56.64.

800 Freestyle Relay - OK - we're going to save the story of our 'C' relay for a little later. Let's just say we did some re-shuffling and had to go with our 5-8th 200 freestylers for the 'A' and even had to dip down to our 16th fastest guy to complete the 'B' team. That 'B' group didn't disappoint though - as they swam away with their heat - Blake 1:45.4, Glover 1:48.3, Eric a little slower 1:48.6 before Tom Stowe - he of a 1:55.5 lifetime best - splits 1:49.50. When it comes to the 'A' team, they too didn't disappoint as they posted a five-second win over Wheaton. Doug led it with a 1:45.55 while Isaac followed with his first-ever sub-1:46 split. Alex VanHuis continued with a 1:45 of his own before Bryan Pelka anchored in 1:45.18.

The win was especially enjoyable because it was essentially with our 'B' guys, but also because it was the first-ever conference title for Isaac Rothenbaum - a guy who didn't make our scoring team last season, and a relay title for Bryan and Alex - a first for both.

A Parent's Perspective

Having some business this past week in Central Florida, I thought I'd take a trip south to Venice to watch the Carthage and Cincinnati biathlon on the beach. What I didn't realize was that this was not going to be just another ordinary day at the beach.

A swimming race in the Gulf of Mexico, followed by a running race on sand, back to a series of intensive four station dryland workouts - I can only describe as something I would expect to see at a boot camp for the Marines. The intensity put forth by these Carthage men and women was truly something to behold (and marvel at, by this parent). In fact, as I was photographing the day's activities, people on the beach approached me and asked what was going on as the sight of four groups of students working feverishly to accomplish the task at hand was just something one does not see everyday. And every reply, to my explanation, was one of encouragement and awe at the effort being put forth. A four ring circus with Coaches Greg and Beth as the ringmasters and your sons and daughters as the performers was truly a sight to behold. In fact, as I looked around I noticed that there were more people congregating on the beach where the dryland activities were happening than elsewhere.

After three hours of working out they broke for lunch. Isaac and I went out for lunch during which I remember asking "This was pretty much an incredible workout, you must be exhausted". His reply? "This was the easiest day we had so far". All I know is that after just watching, I needed a nap.

The Hump Day

Today marked the first day where we could look back and see more days of training trip than when we look forward. Unfortunately, it seems we are more busy now than before so most of our energy is put towards essential actions like eating, sleeping, and - unless Greg says otherwise - breathing.

This morning practice was bitter sweet. The sprint group caught a much needed break from the wraith of Greg, but every inch we were given was felt ten fold by the distance group. While I was not "privileged" to swim their set I am told it topped well over 7,000 meters in just under two hours. Mid distance and Sprint had a far easier, but still somewhat challenging workout in the morning consisting of sprints, breath control, and an interesting start / mid pool turn relay event that pitted the mid distance group against the sprint group in a battle best suited for the pages of our children's history books! Mid Distance won, but it is not without a considerable handicap from Greg (setting the Sprint groups turn point two yards back) so it is almost impossible to determine who "really" won - I like to think it was me.

The time spent between Morning and Afternoon practice seemed to zip by for me - probably on account of I took a three hour nap. I am told some swimmers went to the beach, others chose the hotel pool, and even others chose the comforts of their rooms. Whatever the means, the six hours each swimmer has between practices seems to always be spent relaxing in one form or another. I suppose if we didn't relax and unwind as often as we do we would surely die, either at the hands of the coaches or frustrated teammates.

Afternoon practice was challenging, but also fun (and SHORT COURSE!). We started out with another "Follow the leader" warm up which I enjoyed - as always. Unlike Pat, I think my "aimless swimming" is worth its weight in gold! I wasn't the only one leading this time - there were four other swim leaders (Bryan, Doug, Ben, and Tom) . We select five bravely lead our teammates down lanes, under lane lines, and over diving boards all in the attempt to warm up for what would become a very difficult practice. After some more warming up we dove into our main set fittingly dubbed "Descent to Hell". We divided into groups and Started off with a 150 yard swim on the 2:00 minute. If we made that we would be faced with a 150 on the 1:55, then a 150 on the 1:50, then another on the 1:45 and so and so forth. If we missed the interval (or did make it with at least 5 seconds to spare) we would drop down and swim 125s on the next step down and continue the process of dropping 5 seconds every time. Eventually we would get down to swimming 25s on the 20 seconds (I don't believe anyone got farther than that). At the end we added up our distance along with the distance of our group members. The winning group won - get this - absolutely nothing! That's ok though, the set in itself was a nice enough change of pace to substitute even the biggest trophy.

After a quick set of 75 and 100 yard sprints, we finished the afternoon practice up with some rather exciting relay races involving the same groups from before. Each person was to swim 5 X 50 yard sprints in relay form in the style listed below:
1) Swim down, grab the medicine ball, and swim it back under water (ouch)
2) Kick down, turn, kick back
3) Swim down, open turn, swim back
4) Dive in, flip mid pool, swim back
5) Dive in with your water bottle between your legs and pull breaststroke down and back.
I don't recall what team won, but I do recall that my team did not take last so that is a victory in my book! All in all it was a very fun practice - challenging, yes, but definitely fun!

After some diner and chatting it has become time to once again head off to bed in preparation for the day to come.

- Isaac Rothenbaum

The Swimmer's Dilemma

Our own Isaac Rothenbaum made his directorial debut in "The Swimmer's Dilemma". It's a touching portrait of the challenges faced by every swimmer when that alarm clock sounds for early morning practice. While Bryan Pelka does an adequate job in the role of me, I really think the role would have been better served by say Matt Damon or John Krasinski.

Seriously - its a fun film (and silent so don't bother turning up the volume.) The nice thing for our guys though is that they get to sleep in (relatively speaking that is). With the pool just a 30 second walk from the dorms I swear I still can see the lines on their faces left by the pillows