April 1, 2006

All is well that ends well -- The cliché fit the 2005-06 Richmond women's swimming and diving squad. This season's ending was "well," some might say even better than well. The Spiders, led by first-year coach Matt Barany, silenced a number of doubters by backing up the cliché and then some.

Richmond posted seven new school records, on its way to four new Atlantic 10 marks at season's end. Throw on a second All-American in as many years, and those who were thinking the Spiders would be in jeopardy of not continuing their string of four-straight A-10 titles with only two seniors on the roster, were now wondering if the domination will ever cease.

Richmond endured defeats at Duke, versus UNC-Wilmington, and at nationally-ranked North Carolina in the 2005 portion of its season, but knew in the end all would be well.

"First semester really challenged us," Barany said. "The leadership change triggered expected roster changes, but we also had injuries and illnesses to deal with in November and December. I think we raced at Maryland with 13 swimmers & divers. We swam well but we wanted to be better than that."

After garnering top times at the Terrapin Cup at the end of 2005, the team regrouped on its trip to Florida and set out to continue its string of Atlantic 10 titles. After a tough loss at No. 25 Rutgers, Richmond rebounded with home wins against William & Mary and Navy. It was now A-10 Championship time, and with a win streak in hand, the Spiders were armed with momentum to continue the string.

"The women were awesome during our holiday training," Barany said. "Having not rested for our Maryland meet, we were able to hit some training targets that built confidence. The A-10 meet was our sole focus because this was a year, and we knew that teams could threaten our string of championships. We wanted to defend - it was that simple."

After the first day of the A-10 Championships Richmond was in first with 74 points, but ready to build on its lead over the next three days.

The Spiders improved in day two of the meet, garnering 190 points to extend their lead to 70 points with a total of 264 in two days. Sophomore Jessica Witt set a Spider school record in the 500 free with a 4:52.41, while freshman Lauren Beaudreau broke both the school and Atlantic 10 mark in the 200 IM with a 2:02.41.

Richmond was not done. In day three the Spiders extended their lead to 199 points by garnering what was at that point a total of 509 points overall. Beaudreau continued her path toward the Most Outstanding Rookie award by toppling another Atlantic 10 mark in the 100 breast. Her time of 1:02.20 was two seconds better than the previous Richmond mark and 1.5 seconds faster than the old A-10 mark.

"A characteristic of our training style is the team's ability to be strong on the fourth day of a meet when most teams are exhausted," Barany said. "We were in control of the meet, but we wanted to go faster. The women were motivated to dominate the last day."

Day four of the Atlantic 10 Championships marked the culmination of what Barany noted as a vision. The team had worked towards improvement with each day of the season. As the championships moved from day one to day three, the Spiders swam better and turned in more outstanding times. Day four was no different as the Spiders won their fifth-straight Atlantic 10 title with a total of 747 points, 272 in front of second-place St. Bonaventure

Witt and senior Caitlin Geary both garnered NCAA B-cut times in the 1,650 free, as well as setting school marks in the 1,000 free on the way out. Beaudreau continued her dominance with another school and A-10 mark in the 200 breast in 2:15.62. Senior Anne Kirchner even got in on the dominance with a second-place finish in the 200 fly with a lifetime-best time of 2:04.97, ranking second all-time on Richmond's list.

The Spiders also extended individual honor streaks in the Atlantic 10, Barany earned the A-10 Coach of the Year honor, extending a streak to five seasons. The championship also marked his first-ever as a collegiate coach. Witt was named the Most Outstanding Performer, the fourth-straight time a Spider has earned the honor, and Beaudreau grabbed the Rookie Performer award. The Spider freshmen class now has five-straight Rookie awards to tout.

"Richmond was honored nicely on the last night," Barany said. "The individual awards are reaffirming, but the team trophy exemplifies how this team operates - together."

The season, however, was not over. Witt and Beaudreau's performances throughout the season earned them both berth's in the NCAA Championships, March 16-18. The two invitations marked the third-straight season at least one Spider swimmer had been invited to compete at the NCAA Championships. It was also the second time over the last three seasons, two Richmond swimmers were part of the NCAA Championships field.

Both women had one event each day to take part in. Witt had the 500 free on Thursday, the 400 IM on Friday and the 1,650 free on Saturday. Beaudreau was set to take part in the 200 IM Thursday, 100 breast on Friday and the 200 breast on Saturday.

Each recorded new school records in their events on day one of the NCAA Championships, but did not qualify for the evening session. Beaudreau's 2:00.92 (A-10 record) in the 200 IM was good for 17th, one spot outside of the evening final's Top-16. Witt's 4:52.21 in the 500 free was good for a 12-spot jump from her initial ranking.

Witt made an even bigger jump in her event Friday, the 400 IM. The Fullerton, Calif., native turned in a school-best and A-10 best 4:16.15 in the 400 IM to earn a ninth-place finish overall, nine points in the team standings for Richmond, and the second All-America honor for Richmond swimming in as many years.

"Jess was disappointed by her first swim at NCAA's," Barany said. "She knew that she was capable of swimming on this level, yet she backed away from a great race. In her 400 I.M., I encouraged her to prepare for the pain and race her heat. She didn't back down at all and she moved to 9th. Hopefully, this experience will only inspire her to return to the championship."

Richmond ended the three-day NCAA Championships with nine points, good for 36th-place while equaling Virginia Tech and Nebraska on the scoreboard.

In a season marked by questions and doubters, Richmond swimming answered all the critics. The Spiders had an Honorable Mention All-American in Witt, advanced two swimmers to the NCAA Championships and won their fifth-straight Atlantic 10 Conference crown. Barany was honored as the fifth-straight A-10 Coach of the Year from Richmond. Witt earned the A-10 Performer of Year award, the fourth-straight year by a Spider. Beaudreau garnered the A-10 Most Outstanding Rookie Award, marking the the fifth-straight time a Richmond swimmer earned the award. The team broke four Atlantic 10 records, won the league championship by 272 points, broke seven school records, logged 25 Top-10 marks on Richmond's all-time lists, and silenced the doubters.

One can only imagine what the team will do when the critcs expect them to dominate.