Diary

Christian
Groth

Past Entries

February 16, 2004

The theme for last weekend: Domination. Going into the 2004 UAA championships, we had no doubt in our minds that it was our year to shine once again.

As our practices dwindled down to merely our meet warm-ups, the apprehension, and excitement skyrocketed. Wednesday morning we all moved off campus into the hotel, so as not to be distracted by the vices of college life. After a gloriously green lunch at Lettuce Souprise You, we went to see the new Disney movie, "Miracle," decked out in our brand new "Emory Swimming and Diving" hockey jerseys courtesy of our parents.

As a guy from Detroit, Hockeytown, there could not have been a more suitable movie to get my competitive juices flowing. Heading back to the hotel everyone was excited to get on with the afternoon, which consisted of the tried and true tradition of shaving. For most the women, it was the first time shaving since October, and for the men it was a chance to flaunt our beautifully sculpted legs.

We headed out to dinner at Grady's after a quick loosen at the pool, and oh, what a dinner it was. The service was less than up to par, taking 40 minutes to get water, and a wholesome two hours to get a meal that was pre-ordered, yummy. We finally got out of Grady's around 9 o'clock and got back to the hotel to finish our shaving, and relax for the night.

On Thursday we came to win and from the first event (the 200 free relay) we showed that our work throughout the season was going to pay off. The tone was set from the start and continued throughout the session. The divers dove stupendously, taking the top two spots. Notable swims include: Ted Hamilton's 500, Chris Halstead and Ryan Kolynych's 200 I.M., John Sutter's diving, and the notorious 400 medley relay.

Friday was our weakest day on paper; however, that did not mean that we were going to let anybody challenge the lead that we had established on Thursday. Even after someone tried to throw a wrench in our well-lubricated gears, we still came out blazing, and madder than ever. Friday's notables include an amazing 200 medley relay, David Black's unshaved 100 breaststroke, and Chris Halstead's unshaved 100 backstroke.

Saturday was by far our strongest day with the 200s of strokes, and the mile. This far into the meet there was no chance that we could lose, but that did not dampen our will to perform. Having five of the eight people in the final 1650 heat was a great way to start the night, as well as watching Ted Hamilton rocket his way to a UAA record. The rest of the night followed Ted's swim. The night was capped off with Ted Hamilton winning the conference's male Rookie of the Year award, and John Sutter winning the conference Diver of the Year award. And of course, we won our sixth straight UAA title.

This year's UAA meet was the most exciting of my three at Emory. Every person swimming stepped up in their own way and brought their very best to the meet. The unrested NCAA group performed like champions, fueling everyone else in a reciprocating cycle that led to everyone taking on the attitude of champions. Eighteen of our 22 men who swam at the conference meet swam "B" NCAA cuts or better.

This weekend is the Emory Invite, which is great because the whole team swims. I'm looking forward to seeing all those who did not get a chance to swim at the conference meet to tear up the water, hopefully we'll add a few more to the NCAA list too.

Christian Groth is a junior from Bloomfield Hills, Mich. He would love to answer e-mail questions from Emory recruits and fans.