Heading into the 2014-15 season, the men's swimming and diving program had the opportunity to win four Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association championships in five years, but the team came up just short, placing second behind Calvin College.
2015-16 presents another opportunity for the Hornets, though, and Head Coach Kathy Milliken hopes a large and talented group of underclassmen can bring some extra energy to the team.
"Seventeen of our 22 swimmers are first-years or sophomores so this is an extremely young team," Milliken said. "We brought in some really good talent in the first-year class and the sophomores progressed really nicely as first-years in terms of time drops and improvements so there's still a lot of potential there.
"But I've probably been most impressed with the senior class coming in—they've really stepped up their work ethic and their leadership which is setting a great tone for the team."
The team's roster consists of 10 first-years, seven sophomores and five seniors.
Of the five seniors returning in 2015-16, two were named to the All-MIAA team in 2014-15. Kevin Ewing, notably a four-time MIAA champion, finished third in the 400-meter individual medley at the MIAA Championships last season while Jake Lindquist was a member of the winning 200-meter freestyle relay team.
Sophomore diver Colin Grogan returns as the team's top diver this year after qualifying for Regionals in 2015-16, and Milliken noted he'll look to qualify for Nationals this season as he ups his diving degree of difficulty.
Despite having a young team this season, Milliken feels this year's team has an edge over last year's team in a few different areas.
"I think they're just tougher," she said. "That's something we addressed a little bit last year and that's one of the team's goals this year. They've definitely shown it so far at practice that they're mentally tough.
"Also, just the energy that such a large first-year class provides. When you bring in ten new people—that's half the team—the personality of your team just completely changes, so it's been pretty exciting to see that happen."
Ultimately, the team hopes to win the MIAA championship as it attempts to every year, but Milliken noted sending a relay team back to Nationals and consistently dropping times are surely goals as well.
The team begins the 2015-16 season this Saturday, Oct. 24 when it travels to Calvin College for the MIAA Relays. The meet is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m.