Oct. 8, 2005
Nortre Dame, Ind. -
The Illinois State swimming and diving team finished up their first meet at the Dennis Stark Relays at Rolfs Aquatic Center in Notre Dame, Ind. The `Birds had outstanding individual performances for it being this early in the season contributing to the teams solid third place finish with 154 points.
"This was a great way to start the season," head coach Steve Paska said. "I am pleased with the effort and focus from the girls and they accomplished a lot of positive things. This is a good sign with the majority of the team being sophomores and freshmen. It was a very significant part in tonight's meet to see them come together."
A few Individual swimmers that contributed to the overall success of team were; Valerie Zaleskie, who swam a straight 25:00 in the 500 yard crescendo relay helping the relay team place second, and Jamie Haseman, who swam in a number of relays contributing to the team's solid finish. Other fellow teammates that stood out were; Monique Witkowski, Becky Layman, Allison Fishbein, and Katie Borkovec.
"The hard work shows," Paska said. "For Valerie (Zaleskie) to swim this fast this early shows that she trained intensely these past 30 days and over the summer. This was Katie's (Borkovec) first Redbird meet, and she swam solid in all of her events. She is transitioning well."
Every individual girl played a role in the team success and now they will move forward to challenge their next opponent.
"This was impressive how we began," Paska said. "The team is going to have to work hard and stay consistent, especially for the next month, it will be vital for the season to go as planned. All of the coaches and I are still evaluating the girls for every single meet."
The Redbirds season is underway and will continue to charge forward. The team will travel next to St. Peters, Mo for the Lindenwood meet on October 22.
