The Saint Louis University swimming and diving team concluded their season last week at the Conference USA championships in Houston.
The men and women finished fifth and seventh, respectively. More important than the team finish were the individual accomplishments put forth by numerous individuals on both teams.
The women were paced by senior stalwart Megan Capellupo. Capellupo garnered first place in the 200 breaststroke with a time of 2:16.39.
Capellupo's individual win was the first for the Billikens at this year's conference championships. Furthermore, Capellupo's time set a school record for the Bills, and was her second qualifying time for NCAA championships of the season.
Capellupo was proud of her accomplishment, although it was not her goal from the onset of the conference championships.
"Winning the 200 breast stroke was great. I really went into the race hoping to finish in the top three. Taking the gold was a perfect way to end my season," Capellupo said.
In the same 200 breast stroke event, junior Kelly Tessar placed fifth among all participants with a time of 2:22.25.
Sophomore Kayla Schleicher, long regarded as a swimmer who provided depth, did just that, finishing seventh in the 200 breaststroke with a time of 2:30.64.
The theme of the week appeared to be breaking school records, as numerous fell during the course of conference.
Sophomore Jenny Valentino posted a school record of 2:09.79 in the preliminaries of the 200 butterfly. Valentino took eighth in in the B-final with a time of 2:13.78. Juniors Alice Altepeter and Maggie Norton, along with Tessar and sophomore Emily Oberjohn, set the school record for the 400 freestyle relay 3:35.41.
Capellupo, Norton, Tessar and Altepeter combined to set the school record in the 200 medley relay with a time of 1:48.96.
That record fell during Friday's portion of the meet.
On Thursday, Capellupo broke the school record in the 200 individual medley, with a time of 2:06.05. The 400 medley relay team of Capellupo, Tessar, Altepeter and Oberjohn, with a time of 3:58.16, also set a school record.
Despite all the individual accomplishments, Capellupo was quick to deflect credit to her teammates for their support throughout the year.
"I'm not sure I could have had the year I did without my teammates. Everyone worked hard and encouraged each other. I think our team draws off of everyone's individual accomplishments, and we each find a way to take that energy and swim our best," Capellupo said.
Capellupo's teammates were just as quick to credit her with her tremendous accomplishments this season.
"As far as Megan's success goes, we are all extremely proud of her and are grateful for the much-needed recognition that she has brought to the swimteam. She is such a dedicated swimmer and a perfect example of hard work paying off," said Tessar, who is co-captain with Capellupo.
The men's team had their fair share of school records fall as well during their stay in Houston.
Junior captain Chris Johansen set a school record in the 1650 freestyle, with a time of 16:10.48. The time was good enough to place him fifth among all participants. Johansen also took fifth in the A-Final of the 500 freestyle in a season-best time of 4:39.02.
Johansen, while proud of his individual accomplishments, gave credit where he felt it was due.
"The school record really means a lot to me. It's a testament to my coach, Jim Halliburton, our strength and conditioning coaches, and the great attitude of our team," Johansen said.
The 400 freestyle relay team of senior Ryan Poss, sophomore Josh Stephens, and freshmen Jimmy Howard and Brad Byars set the school record in 3:06.87.
The Billiken men fared well in the B-Final of the 200 backstroke.
Poss, Stephens, and sophomore B.J. Brungardt finished in fifth, fourth and seventh, respectively.
Freshman Tim Adams won first place in the B-Final of the 200 breaststroke in 2:12.41.
Sophomore Steve Sash took third in the same event.
Senior Bobby Wolf won second place in the platform competition with a score of 331.30. This was Wolf's first medal in conference tournament competition. In the three-meter competition, Wolf set the school record on Friday, with a tally of 429.10.
As a captain, Johansen was proud of the accomplishments of his teammates throughout the year, especially in the conference championships.
"We also had a much smaller team to work with than in previous seasons," Johansen said.
"To have such a small roster but to still produce a winning dual-meet record, have school-record performances at conference and only lose two seniors is a great accomplishment. I'm really proud of our team's performance this year," Johansen added.
Despite losing two seniors on both teams, Wolf and Poss for the men, Capellupo and Kristin Misfeldt for the women, both teams have a positive outlook toward next year's season.
For the men, Johansen believes the success of this year's team will only propel them to greater achievements in the Atlantic 10 in the coming year.
"Our sprinters are the fastest we've had in years. Our distance group gets stronger ever year. I'm more than confident that the rest of the team will step up and fill those roles. Next year should be really exciting and I expect a lot more school records to fall," Johansen said.
For the women, Tessar feels as though watching Capellupo's success this season be an incentive for the women who will return to the team.
"As far as next year, I think that her success this season will serve as a motivation for all of us to work even harder and swim even faster without her here. As a team next year, I have no doubt that we will continue to work hard, win meets, and swim our very fastest," Tessar said.
Capellupo imparted some final thoughts of encouragement for the girls she has trained with so hard over the past few years.
"As far as the team goes, I wish them the best in the Atlantic 10. There is some great talent on the team and I believe they will continue to do well,"Capellupo said.
The season is not over for everyone, however. Capellupo, Wolf, and Lasinski have all qualified for NCAA's in some manner, and will wait to hear on their futures.
