Until Next Season!

As the 2014-2015 season officially wraps up, we are off to prepare for the next season! We are sad to say our blog will be postponed until September 2015, when we start again. For now, please enjoy our video here of everything we've accomplished in the past seasons!

Meet you at the pool in September!

-Emily, Krystal, Ashley :)

Katie vanBeek

Katie vanBeek is a second year breaststroke swim team member. She currently is FIT's 2nd fastest time record holder in both the 100 Breaststroke (1:20.25) and the 200 Breaststroke (2:56.90). She is also apart of the all time record breaking 400 Medley Relay (4:33.10).

 

 Here's her thoughts on the team.

Swimming Rituals

Just like any other sport, swimming requires a lot of hard work and dedication. Rituals are a part of swimming that can be similar from swimmer to swimmer, or be extremely unique. The FIT swim team has some of their own ways to prepare for their big meets and we want to share a few with you!

The night before:

Normally the team will eat some kind of food that contains many carbs such as Italian food. This is because overnight the carbs turn into sugar that gives the swimmer energy to get through their race.

Shaving is also done the night before a race. Many swimmers will shave their whole body including arms and backs, which multiple of the FIT swimmers participated in.

The team also gets together for a nightly meeting with the coach to go over the next day's races and talk about goals they want to accomplish both individually and as a team.

The morning of:

Together the team meets to eat breakfast. Apples, eggs, bagels and plenty of water are just a few favorites of the team.

On the bus over to the meet the coach goes over each event for the day and prepares the swimmers mentally by providing encouragement and helpful tips.

During:

While the competition is going on, many of the swimmers have specific rituals they follow. 

Katie Hogan always listens to upbeat music and stays focused all the way up until she has to swim. This gets her excited for her race and in rhythm to swim.

Emily Mance, one of the writers of this blog, always stretches her whole body before she swims. She always stretches her neck and shakes out her muscles right before she is about to step on the block.

Jeff Sutera makes sure that he is constantly hydrated by drinking Gatorade, and well nourished by eating fruits and protein bars.

At the start of the meet the team always does a cheer together to make sure that FIT is well represented and empowered.

See what Michael Phelps pre-swim ritual is!

Swimmer highlight: Emily Mance

Emily isn't only one of the contributors of this blog. While getting to know her, she is a passionate swimmer, friend, student and accomplishes anything she puts her mind to.

After attending FIT for over a year now, Emily didn't just inform that FIT had a swim she taught me the minute details of being a member of the swim-team. From the meal preps before a meet to the unbreakable bond she has with her fellow teammates.

While being a full time student Emily managed to rank in top spots in FIT's swim-team history.

Emily is ranked in the top-ten all-time at FIT for her split 100 in 2014.

Her split at the 200 missed the school record by only a second and a half and her split at the 100 also places her in the top-10 all-time at FIT.

She became the first swimmer at FIT to earn a spot in the top-8 at Nationals, where she finished 8th.

Emily is also considered the highest standing FIT swimmer in 1650 free category.

Her swimming career at FIT has came to an end for now because of the two year restriction the school has.

"I will continue to swim my whole life even if it's not competitively," said Emily Mance.

During her break of competitive swimming Emily plans to study abroad in London for a semester and swim in waters she never swam in before.

Emily Mance's swimming career

The Strokes of Swimming

In swimming there are four different strokes that can be raced, Freestyle, Backstroke, Breaststroke and Butterfly. Each stroke has a different technique and is uniquely styled.

Freestyle: Positioned with the front of the body facing down, the swimmer circles their arm forward alternating arms. At the same time the swimmer kicks their feet up and down. Breathing is most commonly done by rotating the body and turning the head on the side to get a breath.

       Emily Mance holds the top record for the 1650 freestyle, the longest event in swimming

Backstroke: Positioned with the front of the body facing upwards, the swimmer circles their arms backwards alternating arms. Similar to the freestyle, the swimmer kicks their feet up and down while moving their arms. Breathing is down normally as the face is upwards and out of the water.

                    Katie Hogan holds the top 100 backstroke record with a time of 1:05.37

Breaststroke: Positioned with the front of the body facing down, the swimmer moves their arms at the same time in an inwards circle motion toward their chest and then moves them forward. The kick is similar to a frog jump with the legs opening synchronized outwards and then circled back to being straight together. Breathing is down every stroke by raising the head out of the water.

   Both Katie vanBeek and Ian Lowe, key Breaststrokers this year, both set new personal records

 

Butterfly: Positioned with the front of the body facing down, the swimmer raise both arms simultaneously out of the water over their head and stretch them to fall back into the water and then pull. The kick is similar to a dolphin kick that is made in a wave like motion. Breathing is done by lifting the head out of the water.

           Anna Pacult swam butterfly in the medley relays to help break new team records

NATIONAL JUNIOR COLLEGE ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION

Hello, readers! For those that don't know, my name is Emily Mance, a swimmer on FIT's swim team for about two years now. 

The team only began in 2008, but has since grown into a family and together we have concurred multiple records and continue to succeed as a team.

FIT is part of the, The National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA), which gives the opportunity to community college and junior colleges to compete with each other within different divisions. 

Founded in 1938 the NJCAA is divided into three different divisions and crosses over twenty-four different regions. Swimming is located in the first division. 

The Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT)has been competing in the NJCAA since 2008 and made an impressive impact within this national competition. 

2008-2009  During FIT's first year of hosting a swim-team, eight of their participates qualified from the NJCAA National Championships.

Above is a picture of the first FIT swim team during their 2008-2009 season.

In the top row second from the right is Hannelore Schaffner, who was the star swimmer for the team of the 2008-2009 season. She swam the butterfly and won the SUNY Chancellor's Student Athlete Award.

2009-2010   The following season nine swimmers qualified for the 2010 NJCAA National Championships in Fort Pierce, Florida. The team finished 7th in the nation during this meet.

Above is a picture of the 2009-2010 team during their National's competition.

2010-2011  This year the team returned with three participating swim-team members and broke the most records since 2008.

 

 FIT finished 9^th overall at the North East District Championship Meet.

2011-2012  This season eight swimmers qualified for the 2011 NJCAA National Championships in Buffalo, NY.

This season eight swimmers qualified for the 2011 NJCAA National Championships in Buffalo, NY. This was the first year that the team got into the top 8 at the nationals meet with the girls 400 yard medley relay. 

2012-2013 During this season all seven swimmers competed in NJCAA championship. 

The Women’s Team finished 9^th place overall, and 3^rd place for Non-Scholarship schools with 255 points! The Men’s Team, in their first Nationals appearance finished 7^th place for Non-Scholarship schools with 149.5 points.

Above is a picture of the girls 800 freestyle relay that came in 8th place!

2013-2014 Being only a team of two, myself and my fellow swim-mate, Katie vanBeek,  competed at the NJCAA Swimming and Diving National Championship in Florida this season.

This year I became the first FIT swimmer to ever get top-8 at the National meet in an individual event. Katie also broke her own personal record in both the 100 and 200 breaststroke.

The 2014-2015 season is now finished for the Tigers.  Training for the 2015-2016 season will begin in September.

  

Tigers Make A Splash At Nationals

Last Tuesday March 3, 2015, the FIT swim team traveled to Buffalo, New York to compete in their final meet of their 2014-2015 season. The NJCAA National Championship lasted four days including seven sessions. The team broke four individual and two relay school records. Many of the swimmers also earned themselves a spot in the top-ten records for the FIT tigers.

Each day had two sessions called prelims and finals. Only the top 24 swimmers with the fastest times had the chance to swim at finals. The FIT swimmers earned their spot in the finals every night and moved up in their ranks numerous times swimming with personal best records. In addition, FIT had two individual top eight finishes and four top eight relay finishes.

The team finished in 7th place overall with 389 points. For more information on how the team did click here and for more news about NJCAA swimming click here.

Meet FIT's Swim Team!

Top Row (Left to Right): Assistant Coach Victoria Adams, Katie vanBeek, Emily Mance, Jin S., Anna Pacult, Lauren Gorgano, Julia Manning, Gemma Rudd, Lindsay Richardson, Katie Hogan, Coach David Hildebrand

Bottom Row (Left to Right): Jeff Sutera, Nick Paganelli, Michael Yavid, Juan Novoa, David Burkel, Ian Lowe.   

Katie vanBeek, top row second from the left, is a returning sophmore who is the second all time fastest 200 Breaststroker.

Lindsay Richardson, top row third to the right, holds the record for fastest time in the 100 freestyle.

To learn more about the members Click Here. 

Mission Statement

Our mission is to help people understand that the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) isn't just a fashion school but is home to an record breaking and award receiving swim team.  

 Take a dive into FIT's swimteam