Will Hoogendyk IV, Campus Carrier sports editor

During the holiday festivities of the last month, many Berry student athletes have been diligently practicing in preparation for spring competitions. While the last four weeks might have been considered vacation for Berry students, for athletes on the swim and dive team, this didn’t mean a rest from typical training involved with their sport. The Swim and Dive teams have been competing since October and their training carried over into the new year. For Sam Tate, a senior from Maryville, Tenn. this time of at-home training served as a good break from his regular schedule. 

“It’s a lot more individual training when you’re at home,” Tate said. “I swam with my club team the whole winter break. It was nice to be able to go back and have a bunch of [my] college friends that come back too and train with them again.

Tate normally competes in the individual-medley and breaststroke events for the Vikings but has transitioned to more freestyle events because of a back injury from this summer. While his training has looked a little different from some of his teammates because of this injury, he was still able to travel with the team this winter break when they flew down to Puerto Rico.

The swim and dive teams took a trip down to San Juan, Puerto Rico where they trained rigorously for one week. The Vikings had access to Olympic size pools which made long distance training sessions much easier than in the Cage. This long-distance training marked the pinnacle of the swimmer’s training this year as they look towards the Southern Athletic Association and National Collegiate Athletic Association championships approaching in the coming weeks. Head Coach Astrid Escobar curates each practice session with upcoming competitions in mind.

“Once we come back [from break], we decrease in volume, [but] intensity stays pretty high,” Escobar said. “We’re going to be doing more recovery style swims. We want their body to start understanding [that] it is time to rest, and we are getting close to the time where it’s time to swim fast.”

Escobar trains the team using a progression system that strengthens the team week by week as their bodies adjust to the endurance and stamina required of the long swim season.

Only a handful of sports here at Berry compete both in the fall and in the spring. Maintaining this level of competition over two semesters can be a difficult task, and one that requires extreme amounts of hard work, grit and motivation. Escobar cites her own experience as a collegiate swimmer contributing to her coaching philosophy.

“I think about that version of myself, and I want to provide them with everything that I would have wanted,” Escobar said. “I want to provide them with a program that is going to deliver results, [and] not just results, but a program that’s going to teach them things in life that they’re going to need to be successful.”

Since Escobar has been at the helm of the teams, there have been plenty of team and individual accolades to show for. Last year Nick Fonzo earned SAA Newcomer and Swimmer of the Year. In the 2022-23 season, Escobar won a coach of the year award and led the team to a fourth-place finish at the SAA championships in her first year coaching.

Escobar tries to lead the team in a way that doesn’t just help them become better athletes, but also better people. Her goal is to strengthen her swimmers in both level of competition and quality of character.

“I have so much respect for the sport because it’s so neat as a vehicle for teaching life lessons,” Astrid said.

With the SAA championships still a couple weeks away, the team’s focus is on the Viking Invitational this Saturday. This is the only home meet of the semester, and it will mean a lot to Tate and his other senior teammates. This weekend marks their last time competing in front of a home crowd. Tate is excited for one more opportunity to perform for his peers despite the bittersweet feeling.

“[I want to be] able to cherish the last home meet because we haven’t had very many home meets this year,” Tate said. “The home meets are nice because a lot more of the parents show up and people’s friends show up and it’s a lot more of a homey feeling.”

The Pack the House event starts 10:30 a.m. with senior recognition happening at 10:45 a.m. and events starting at 11 a.m. If the Vikings continue to have success both individually and collectively, they can earn themselves spots to compete in the NCAA championships, which are set to take place from March 19-22 in Greensboro, N.C.