The leaves are beginning to change, the temperature is starting to drop, and Ohio Northern sports are in full swing as the campus community says goodbye to the summer warmth and transitions into the Fall season. This past Friday, to open their Fall season, the Ohio Northern swim and dive team hosted their annual Intrasquad swim meet, formerly known as the “midnight meet” Consisting of an orange team, white team, and black team, an event that all swimmers look forward to every year. Head coach Austin Veltman was able to dive into a little bit of the history of what makes the event so unique. “The “midnight meet” was started some fifteen years ago by the previous coaching staff. The event was never actually held at midnight, but rather around 10:30 at night. This meet also introduced the three different teams that compete in different challenges throughout the season”. For fifteen years, the Intrasquad meet has always been the season opener and first team challenge for the swimmers. “The meet is a great way for all newcomers to get familiarized with the team, work together, have fun, and is also a way for visiting recruits to get a glimpse of what Polar Bear swimming is all about,” said sophomore swimmer Noah Shaw. “It’s not purely about competition, but it serves as an entertaining way for everyone to just have fun”.
While the meet is about having fun with team members, it also provides a glimpse of what coaches and swimmers hope to accomplish throughout the season. “This meet also shows how hard the swimmers work in the summer. Some people went their best times, but there were also a lot of people who were extremely tired, which is normal since we are all getting back into shape”. Regarding team outlook, Veltman stated, “We would love to be the regular undefeated in-season champions this year, and we would especially love to beat John Carroll again; that would be great.” Veltman further exclaimed, “Of course, you have competition that may be much larger, like Kenyon, for example, but in terms of our conference, we are excited to compete for the title of in-season champions and the title of OAC champions again”.
This year’s Intrasquad meet had another strong turnout from the crowd. Spectators got to watch 100-yard relays, swimmers attempt to compete in a diving competition and witness the return of former team alums who battled it out in the water. The contention was close between everyone who raced, and in the end, the white team took the victory, followed by the orange and black teams. “We believe that all of this hard work will pay off,” says Veltman, “we have a great program here with awesome morale and work ethic, and we are all looking forward to the success and accomplishment that this season will bring.” The Intrasquad meet has always been a favorite among all swimmers, and this year’s meet certainly did not disappoint. The competitive nature of this meet has every swimmer fired up, and it also shows that Ohio Northern Swimming and Diving is ready for a fantastic and successful season. As swimmer Noah Shaw quotes, “It’s a great day to be a Polar Bear!”.
The leaves are beginning to change, the temperature is starting to drop, and Ohio Northern sports are in full swing as the campus community says goodbye to the summer warmth and transitions into the Fall season. This past Friday, to open their Fall season, the Ohio Northern swim and dive team hosted their annual Intrasquad swim meet, formerly known as the “midnight meet” Consisting of an orange team, white team, and black team, an event that all swimmers look forward to every year. Head coach Austin Veltman was able to dive into a little bit of the history of what makes the event so unique. “The “midnight meet” was started some fifteen years ago by the previous coaching staff. The event was never actually held at midnight, but rather around 10:30 at night. This meet also introduced the three different teams that compete in different challenges throughout the season”. For fifteen years, the Intrasquad meet has always been the season opener and first team challenge for the swimmers. “The meet is a great way for all newcomers to get familiarized with the team, work together, have fun, and is also a way for visiting recruits to get a glimpse of what Polar Bear swimming is all about,” said sophomore swimmer Noah Shaw. “It’s not purely about competition, but it serves as an entertaining way for everyone to just have fun”.
While the meet is about having fun with team members, it also provides a glimpse of what coaches and swimmers hope to accomplish throughout the season. “This meet also shows how hard the swimmers work in the summer. Some people went their best times, but there were also a lot of people who were extremely tired, which is normal since we are all getting back into shape”. Regarding team outlook, Veltman stated, “We would love to be the regular undefeated in-season champions this year, and we would especially love to beat John Carroll again; that would be great.” Veltman further exclaimed, “Of course, you have competition that may be much larger, like Kenyon, for example, but in terms of our conference, we are excited to compete for the title of in-season champions and the title of OAC champions again”.
This year’s Intrasquad meet had another strong turnout from the crowd. Spectators got to watch 100-yard relays, swimmers attempt to compete in a diving competition and witness the return of former team alums who battled it out in the water. The contention was close between everyone who raced, and in the end, the white team took the victory, followed by the orange and black teams. “We believe that all of this hard work will pay off,” says Veltman, “we have a great program here with awesome morale and work ethic, and we are all looking forward to the success and accomplishment that this season will bring.” The Intrasquad meet has always been a favorite among all swimmers, and this year’s meet certainly did not disappoint. The competitive nature of this meet has every swimmer fired up, and it also shows that Ohio Northern Swimming and Diving is ready for a fantastic and successful season. As swimmer Noah Shaw quotes, “It’s a great day to be a Polar Bear!”.