It has been a successful season for both the Saint Louis University men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams this year.

Freshman Michael Dahle has been a big part of the men’s team’s success.

Dahle, from Lindbergh High School in St. Louis, was named Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week after winning two events at the Butler Quad in Indianapolis last weekend.

“It’s a real big honor, and he deserved it,” SLU Head Swimming and Diving Coach Jim Halliburton said. “He has swam a lot of events for us and has done a lot of hard combinations. I don’t think there is anyone in the Atlantic 10 Conference with a faster 1,000 [yd.] freestyle time.”

Halliburton said that sometimes, as a coach, it’s difficult to see talented swimmers not get recognized for his hard work, but he was pleased that Michael was chosen for the award.

“It’s cool; I am proud of it,” Dahle said.

Dahle received the honor after winning the 1,000-yd. freestyle race in a time of 9:48.22, the third fastest time in SLU’s history. Dahle dominates SLU’s record books in the 1,000-yd. freestyle race, as he boasts three of the top 10 times in that race.

“I hope he can break the school record in 1,000-[yd.] free at the Xavier meet,” Halliburton said.

Dahle also won the 200-yd. backstroke in a time of 1:56.62. The two victories give the freshman a total of seven individual victories this year.

“While [Dahle] is doing really well, he is still learning how to swim at the collegiate level,” Halliburton said. “Once he learns to develop his other events, he will be even more of an asset to the team.”

For Dahle, the transition to college swimming has been fun.

“It is more team-oriented, which makes it more fun than high school,” Dahle said. “It’s more of a team sport rather than doing your own thing. Also, the intensity has increased, which has made it tougher. Those have been the two biggest differences [between college and high school].”

SLU is 3-1 in dual meets thus far this season, with its only loss to Washington University. The women’s team recently had its 61-meet winning streak snapped in a loss to Western Illinois University.

“We’ve been doing really well this season,” Dahle said. “Based on what I can see, everyone is excited about how the season is going.”

Dahle had simple goals coming into the season.

“I wanted to bond with the team and enjoy the team,” Dahle said. “Also, I wanted to continue to get quicker throughout the season. By the time we get to the Conference Championships, I want to drop my time.”

Halliburton said he wants Michael to pick which three events he feels most comfortable with and will do at the A-10 Conference meet.

“He has a shot at the 1650-yd. record and possibly the 500-[yd.] free[style],” Halliburton said. “I think he can place top three at Atlantic 10 in the mile and that he can be one of the best swimmers in the conference.”

Dahle said that he hopes the team unity will carry him and the team throughout the season. He also said that the team’s success out of the pool could translate into success during races that mean the most.

The Billikens have three dual meets coming up in the next month, all of which will take place at home. They will host rival Xavier on the third, Eastern Illinois University on Nov. 15 and Illinois-Chicago on Nov. 17.

“The season has been going real well, and we are off to a good start,” Halliburton said. “The men lost one to Wash. U, which is a real good team. The women have one loss to Western Illinois, which was disappointing. But we see them again in January, so we hope to beat them then.”