Members of the Iowa State swim and dive team are calling themselves the “road dogs” this season.The team is traveling to eight schools throughout the 11 regular season meets and is hosting three home competitions this year. After extending its all-time winning streak against the University of Nebraska-Omaha to 15-0 two weekends ago, the Cyclones are looking to extend this season’s undefeated road record against conference rival TCU.Head Coach Duane Sorenson loved competing against UNO because it gave him a chance to switch up the lineups. It gave the swimmers a chance to see their times in events they would not normally swim in.”Any racing experience is good, just to get the cobwebs off,” said junior Harper Emswiler. “It was nice to do other events because sometimes you get kind of stale in [your usual events] and it helps.”While switching lineups can help swimmers with their regular strokes, gaining a win is also a boost to the team.“I think it just makes everybody that much more confident, now that we have that one win under our belt,” Emswiler said.A regular swim season is lengthy, starting in September and ending in mid-March, which can tire out an athlete. Luckily, the team has had a small break since its last meet, and junior Danica Delaquis believes it can help deter fatigue.Delaquis got a few pointers about her races at UNO from the coaching staff and has been working on improving ever since. She believes having multiple practices between meets allows her more time to work on suggested pointers, making her a better swimmer in the long run.The Cyclones have defeated the Horned Frogs the last two years, and Iowa State is looking to stretch that streak to three this weekend.“We know we’re good,” Delaquis said. “The last two times we’ve swam TCU we’ve beat them. So I just think going on the road again and being undefeated on the road this year so far is just a motivator to keep that streak going.”Last year was a close 169-130 matchup, and Sorenson said it was very exciting.“It came down to the last swimmer, last length and last stroke, and we were lucky enough to pull it off,” Sorenson said.The Cyclones are looking forward to the same type of meet this year because TCU is very strong at home, Sorenson said. Although traveling to different pools may not seem like a big deal, Iowa State loves how fast TCU’s pool is.A fast pool has many qualities: the depth of the water, the lighting, the lane lines and the starting blocks. Sorenson said waves come off all around a swimmer’s body, especially off the bottom.When a wave hits the bottom, it bounces back up, which causes a lot of turbulence, bouncing a swimmer around. Having a deeper pool reduces the turbulence, allowing a swimmer to compete in calm waters and making it easier to swim. TCU’s pool also has glass paneling all around the pool, allowing a lot of sunlight in and adding visibility for a swimmer.
Members of the Iowa State swim and dive team are calling themselves the “road dogs” this season.The team is traveling to eight schools throughout the 11 regular season meets and is hosting three home competitions this year. After extending its all-time winning streak against the University of Nebraska-Omaha to 15-0 two weekends ago, the Cyclones are looking to extend this season’s undefeated road record against conference rival TCU.Head Coach Duane Sorenson loved competing against UNO because it gave him a chance to switch up the lineups. It gave the swimmers a chance to see their times in events they would not normally swim in.”Any racing experience is good, just to get the cobwebs off,” said junior Harper Emswiler. “It was nice to do other events because sometimes you get kind of stale in [your usual events] and it helps.”While switching lineups can help swimmers with their regular strokes, gaining a win is also a boost to the team.“I think it just makes everybody that much more confident, now that we have that one win under our belt,” Emswiler said.A regular swim season is lengthy, starting in September and ending in mid-March, which can tire out an athlete. Luckily, the team has had a small break since its last meet, and junior Danica Delaquis believes it can help deter fatigue.Delaquis got a few pointers about her races at UNO from the coaching staff and has been working on improving ever since. She believes having multiple practices between meets allows her more time to work on suggested pointers, making her a better swimmer in the long run.The Cyclones have defeated the Horned Frogs the last two years, and Iowa State is looking to stretch that streak to three this weekend.“We know we’re good,” Delaquis said. “The last two times we’ve swam TCU we’ve beat them. So I just think going on the road again and being undefeated on the road this year so far is just a motivator to keep that streak going.”Last year was a close 169-130 matchup, and Sorenson said it was very exciting.“It came down to the last swimmer, last length and last stroke, and we were lucky enough to pull it off,” Sorenson said.The Cyclones are looking forward to the same type of meet this year because TCU is very strong at home, Sorenson said. Although traveling to different pools may not seem like a big deal, Iowa State loves how fast TCU’s pool is.A fast pool has many qualities: the depth of the water, the lighting, the lane lines and the starting blocks. Sorenson said waves come off all around a swimmer’s body, especially off the bottom.When a wave hits the bottom, it bounces back up, which causes a lot of turbulence, bouncing a swimmer around. Having a deeper pool reduces the turbulence, allowing a swimmer to compete in calm waters and making it easier to swim. TCU’s pool also has glass paneling all around the pool, allowing a lot of sunlight in and adding visibility for a swimmer.
