By Mikael DeSanto
Staff Writer
There are only two dual meets remaining in the 2015-16 men’s swimming and diving season. For the seniors, like swimmer Gregg Byrne and diver Alex Marra, this means there are only two dual meets left in their collegiate swimming careers. Soon they will go to the Atlantic 10 Championships for one final chance at a conference title.
Before the conference tournament, both seniors have things they want to accomplish. Marra said he is set on being as focused as he can be.
“Having a good mentality will help me have an edge when I get to our conference meet,” Marra said.
Byrne also said he wants to reach his best before the meets are over.
“I hope to start feeling better and better in the water as we start to rest more as we get closer to A-10’s,” Byrne said.
Marra also knows what he must do to prepare for his meets, including the conference championship meet, saying that, “meditating and visualizing on what I have to do in order to dive well,” is important to him.
Looking beyond the dual meets, both Marra and Byrne have their own plans to prepare for their final conference championship meet. Marra and Byrne said they are focused on the mental side of their preparation.
“If I can envision myself on what I have to do, I stay more relaxed and comfortable with preparing for the meet,” Marra said.
Byrne sees being positive and not getting down on himself as a key to performing well at the end of the season, he said.
“I try and stay as mentally positive as I can,” Byrne said. “It gets hard when you aren’t swimming as well as you like, so close to the meet, but I always try and remind myself of all the hard work I put in leading up to it.”
But both also see the need to take a step back and appreciate what they have done, with Marra saying that he knows that “this is a once-in-a-lifetime thing I’ll get to experience.”
Byrne also knows how hard the Bonnies all have worked and why it is important, saying “I think it is important to remember all the early mornings and doubles we put in since September.”
Byrne looked back at the season “both Akron and Pitt helped prepare us because we got to race fast teams and practice the trials/finals setup,” when asked which meets he thought best prepared them for the A-10 Championships.
Upon reflecting on what he has learned from diving and being a part of the team, Marra shared some wisdom with his teammates who will be taking part in their first conference championship meet this year.
“It’s a learning experience, that’s for sure,” Marra said. “The young swimmers can’t let emotions get the best of them and (should) just have fun with what they love to do.”
Overall, both Marra and Byrne said they have positive feelings about how their final season has gone so far. Marra said he sees how the team has prepared and knows that they are ready for what the challenges to come.
“We’ve been working our tails off and can’t wait for late February,” Marra said.
Byrne feels prepared for his final Atlantic 10 Championships, recognizing the significance of that being his final meet.
“I am really happy with how my season is going,” Byrne said. “Being my last couple weeks as a swimmer, it is hard to not be excited for A-10’s.”
The brown and white’s next meet will be away this Saturday against the Niagara Purple Eagles at 1 p.m. Their final meet before the Atlantic 10 Championships will be a home meet against the State University of New York at Buffalo Bulls on Feb. 5.
desantmj13@bonaventure.edu
