On Saturday, the smell of chlorine filled the air of Alumni Natatorium.
Both the men's and women's swimming and diving teams got their seasons underway at the Western New York (WNY) Invite, with schools such as Niagara, Canisius, Binghamton and St. Bonaventure competing.
Even though there wasn't any team scoring, the women recorded wins in 13 of 15 events, while the men won six events.
The swim meet debuted nine of the 14 student-athletes that Buffalo head coach Andy Bashor recruited over the off-season. He felt that the WNY Invite was a great way to evaluate how the newcomers would compete on the collegiate level.
Leading the way for freshmen was Brynn Marecki, who took first place in the women's 200-yard individual medley (IM). Marecki finished with a time of 2:09.53. She also finished first in the 100-yard breaststroke, the 200-yard breaststroke and the 400-yard IM. Alie Schirmers had a second place finish in the 500-yard freestyle.
For the men, Chris Berloth finished first in the 200-meter IM with a time of 2:00.39
It wasn't a shock for Bashor to see his freshmen do so well. He knew they had the potential to be great when he recruited them.
"They're good," Bashor said. "I knew by the way they've been practicing that they would be able to swim some good times... They all have bright futures."
The Bulls' returning players also had strong performances. The women set the bar for the rest of the team as they recorded a one-two finish in the 200-yard medley relay ran by Mareki, junior Jessica Ballard, junior Sam Eckert and sophomore Jessie Koltz.
Sophomore Jordan Deren took first place finishes in both the 500-yard (5:06.73) and the 1000-yard freestyle. Koltz recorded first place finishes in the 50 and 100-yard freestyle, as well as the 100- yard butterfly. Junior Caitlin Reilly added first place victories in the 100 and 200-yard backstroke.
Senior Zach Ruske and junior Scott Woster provided wins for the men's squad. Ruske won the 100-yard backstroke and the 200-yard freestyle. Woster led the way in the 100 and 200- yard freestyle.
"Our returners in this meet are competing a lot better in comparison to last year," Bashor said.
Overall, Bashor was pleased at the way his team swam, especially after not being able to compete in a long time.
"It's been awhile since they've been able to race against other people, and I think they performed really good," he said.
Bashor knows that the Bulls realize that this is only one game and in order to continue on the winning path, they must not be complacent with this win.
"This meet was one of the first stages of our training," he said.
The Bulls hope to continue their success as they travel to Pittsburgh to face Duquesne for their first dual meet of the year. The meet, which takes place on Oct. 24, begins at 4 p.m.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
