The Southern Indiana men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams faced off against the University of Evansville Saturday in their return to action since their last competition in early November against Southern Illinois in Carbondale, IL. This event was, for all intents and purposes, an exhibition match, but the performances on display were all but. This contest featured a series of awe-inspiring somersaults, flips, twists and absolutely breathtaking showcases of athletic prowess.
In the men’s 1M competition, USI’s Lane Pollock, sophomore finance major, Donnevun Banks, senior individualized studies major, Nathan Deputy, freshman sports management major, and George Blake, freshman undecided, finished with scores of 251.63, 246.98, 221.18 and 188.70. In the women’s 1M Competition, USI’s Maranda Uttke, freshman pre-dental hygiene major, and Autumn Turley, sophomore management major, finished with scores of 225.90 (school record) and 157.65.
In the men’s 3M competition, Deputy, Pollock and Banks finished with scores of 271.88, (a school record) 256.05 and 231.53. In the women’s 3M competition, Uttke and Turley finished with scores of 220.05 (school record) and 155.18.
Big Picture Takeaways:
Uttke broke two school records, while Deputy set a career-high and school record. These individuals are ones to watch as the season continues, and considering they’re both freshmen, I could see them being stalwarts of Southern Indiana athletics going forward.
One thing that stood out at this event was the camaraderie and team chemistry on display from Southern Indiana. The entire swim team arrived at the event in Hawaiian attire, which I found delightful.
Chemistry is one of the most overlooked aspects of team building. You can have all the DI five-star recruits in the world, but if they don’t truly like each other, I can almost guarantee there will be a serious collapse at some point in their journey. If you have a team that goes to war together, a band of brothers and sisters, I can promise that with the ups and downs, they will be there for each other.
This group of athletes has something special. They have what is referred to as “The Secret.” Isaiah Thomas, NBA hall-of-fame guard, once told basketball columnist Bill Simmons about “The Secret” to winning and team success. While I highly recommend Simmon’s 2009 book, “Book of Basketball,” I’ll condense this secret for your convenience.
To me, “The Secret” is a team of eight to 12 individuals who can be successful on any given night but are also unselfish to the point where they are content with sacrificing and giving away opportunities for the betterment of the team. There are no stats or analytics to this philosophy. A team either has it, or they don’t. I believe that these teams have it. These are teams of young and inspiring athletes who seem to pull for each other. Once the development and talent aspect kicks in, these teams could become competitive for years to come.