Sept. 27, 2006
NORMAL, Ill. -
The Illinois State swimmers and divers will start their season by making a splash at home. The traditional Red/White Scrimmage is scheduled to be held Saturday at Horton Pool. The scrimmage allows the new members of the team to become initiated with the collegiate level of competition, while also allowing the returning members to reintroduce themselves to competition.
This particular meet is especially important to the coaching staff according to head coach Steve Paska.
"The Red/White Scrimmage is extremely meaningful to our coaching staff," said Paska. "While we try to make the meet fun, we also expect the ladies to treat this meet like any other competition. The scrimmage allows the coaches to evaluate each individual and see where they stand at this point in the season."
Paska is extremely happy with the work ethic of this year's swimmers and divers.
"As coaches, we are very happy with how the girls have been training," Paska said. "Their work ethic has been fantastic. In our opinion, they need this day for themselves to see where they stand in their training and own personal goals."
The inter-squad scrimmage not only allows the coaches to see where the team is at during this particular point, but also begins the preparation for defending their team title at the Akron Invitational.
"This is the first step as we approach the Akron Invitational in December," said Paska. "This scrimmage will be the first step in a long journey to see where we stand in our training scheme as we prepare for the Akron Invite."
The Red/White scrimmage takes place Saturday, Sep. 30 at 10:00 a.m., where the `Birds will make the first splash of the season in Horton Pool on the campus of Illinois State University.
