2003-04 Men's Swimming and Diving Outlook

01/01/00

- After finishing sixth at last year’s conference championships, the William and Mary men’s swimming and diving team looks to improve in the 2003-04 season and finish higher in the Colonial Athletic Association. With a strong nucleus returning for the season, the Tribe will rely on its experience, cohesiveness and resilience to move up in the conference rankings.

At the head of the William and Mary swimming and diving program is Gregg Sarbak, who is in his second year as the Director of Swimming and Diving at the College of William and Mary. Sarbak, who was the assistant coach at the College for the two years prior to his tenure as the Director, is expecting the Tribe to vastly improve this season.

Senior co-captains Noah Laurence and Clark Noble will lead the Tribe throughout the season. Fronting a strong corps of seven seniors, the duo will headline an impressive count of returning veterans. A strong freshman class will provide added depth in several events.

Freestyle
The distance freestyle events are anchored by two aces: Noble and junior Scott Rhodes. Noble has finished in the top-10 in the conference in the mile and the 500 freestyle in each of his three years at W&M, while Rhodes has accomplished the same feat his freshman year and just missed repeating it last season. Rhodes took 9th in the 500 free but just missed the top-10 with his 11th place showing in the mile. Senior Alex Seamon, whose junior season was highlighted by an eighth place in the mile at the competitive Terrapin Invitational, looks to end his collegiate career with personal-best times.

Rhodes and Noble will also appear in some sprint freestyle events, but the bulk of the action will be seen by sophomore Jacob Albright. Albright is looking to build upon a freshman year that saw him just miss making the finals in the 50 free at the CAAs and also swim the team’s fastest time in the event. Albright was the second-best Tribe finisher in the 100 free at conference and also had two runner-up finishes in dual meets.

Freshman Nick Duda, an All-American and school record holder in sprint freestyle events, is expected to make a quick impact for the squad.

Backstroke
Two sophomores, Evan Elsaesser and Matt Wolff will anchor the backstroke contingent for the Tribe. Elsaesser claimed eighth in the 100 back at conferences as rookie and also swam into the Tribe record books with the sixth fastest time in the 100 back and 10th best pace in the 200 back. Wolff also had a strong freshman season, winning the consolation race at CAAs in the 200 back and setting the fifth-best time in school history in the event.

Senior David Shoulders will add further depth in the backstroke events. Shoulders placed 12th in both the 100 and 200 back at CAAs and moved to seventh in the record books in the 200 back and eighth in the 100 back. Newcomer Peter Kogut, a school record holder in the 50 back, figures to find early success competing for the Tribe.

Butterfly
Laurence, junior Eric Druker and sophomore Peter King will head the team’s assault in the butterfly. Laurence snared seventh in the 200 fly at CAAs and captured fifth in the event at the Terrapin Invitational. Laurence also recorded the sixth-best time in school history in the 200 fly last season. Druker set the school record in the 100 fly last year in his runner-up effort at the Terrapin Invitational and also took second in the 200 fly at the competitive meet. He also won the 200 fly in the James Madison dual meet in addition to posting numerous second place finishes. King is aiming to better his solid freshman performances which included 10th at the CAAs in the 200 fly and 16th in the 100 fly.

Breaststroke
Senior Gaetan Sgro and sophomore Jeff Clark will anchor the team’s breaststroke contingent. Sgro is looking to cap an already stellar career in his final season and comes into the year with great momentum. Last year at conferences Sgro claimed sixth-place in the 200 breast while winning the consolation race in the 100 breast. Sgro also set the third fastest time in Tribe history in both breast events. Meanwhile, Clark is looking to take the next step in his young career, which saw him swim to strong finishes against an elite field at the Terrapin Invitational. Clark snared sixth in the 100 breast and 10th in the 200 breast at the meet while boasting the second-best team time in the 200 breast last year. Freshman Andrew Carberry, a school record holder and seventh-place finisher at states in the 100 breast, will further augment the Tribe’s depth in the event

Individual Medley
Noble and Laurence will combine for a one-two punch in the individual medleys, perhaps the squad’s strongest and deepest events. Noble captured third at the CAAs in the 400 IM, an event in which he posted the team’s best time last year. Laurence swam to 10th in the 400 IM at CAAs last year while placing 16th in the 100 IM while moving up the fourth in the 400 IM and ninth in the 200 IM in the Tribe record books. Seamon and Shoulders will add even greater experience and talent to the team’s effort, while freshman Joey Peterson, school record holder in the 200 IM, looks to make a quick impact for the Tribe.

Diving
Senior Tom De Mattia will be the mainstay of the squad’s diving program and is joined this season by freshman Billy Janela. Despite battling injuries, De Mattia notched seven top-three finishes throughout the year on the one-meter board and recorded a season-best score of 193.05 in the dual meet against Duke for a runner-up honors. Janela joins the Tribe as a three-time team MVP and all-metro selection his senior year.