With the 2016 GLIAC championship just around the corner, the men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams are preparing for their return to the pool on Feb. 11-14 in Jenison, Mich.

With no more regular season meets, the Wildcats turn their attention to making sure they are fully prepared for the GLIAC championships. As the time draws nearer, the team starts the process of tapering, which means gradually reducing the intensity and distance of exercise, as well as making sure their starts and finishes are up to par and their pace is precise.

“You start feeling faster,” freshman Renars Bundzis  said about tapering. “It’s hard to explain,  but there’s a feeling of water, and you start to feel like you can actually pull the water much stronger than you usually do.”

Although this upcoming week’s practice will be focusing on polishing their performance, head coach Heidi Voigt stresses the fact that the entire season is preparing for the GLIAC championships.

“I have a saying that spring training is day one preparation for GLIACs next year,”  Voigt  said. “They have been working so hard all year, and it all comes down to these four days.”

The team will be taking on top competitors such as Grand Valley State University and Wayne State University. Despite this,  Voigt seems confident and excited
to compete.

“Grand Valley is always good. I think right now they are in the top five, so they will be very strong,” Voigt  said. “We are looking pretty good. We are definitely in the top third of the conference.”

The confidence from the coaching staff radiates to the rest of the team as they prepare, fearless in the face of competition and ready to leave it all in the pool come the
GLIAC Championships.

“We have really good team spirit,” Bundzis said. “We are still doing a really good job this season, and I think we will be on top.”