Although Oberlin could not break out of their recent losing streak this past weekend at the Cleveland State University Invitational or against Wittenberg University at home, the men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams continue to show their improvement with better times and jumps.

On Friday, Nov. 10, Oberlin traveled to Cleveland State to compete against the Division I hosts and fellow Division III opponents Baldwin-Wallace College, Case Western Reserve University and Gannon University. Both teams dropped all four decisions.

The Yeomen lost to Baldwin-Wallace 52-152, 43-171 to Case Reserve, 26-194 to Cleveland State, and 43-138 to Gannon. With a very small team, the Yeomen have found it difficult to rack up points against teams with significant numbers. Nevertheless, Oberlin showed well with some impressive individual efforts. Sophomore Mark Muthersbaugh set a personal record in the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 1:57.59, improving by more than two seconds. Junior diver Cory Myers finished fourth in the one-meter dive and third in the three-meter dive.

Sophomore Scott McInerney felt the Yeomen had a good showing at the invitational and has faith in the team. “We train hard and we know what we are there to do. Even though we haven’t obtained a victory, as we only have a team of five swimmers and one diver, we are strong and have pride in our talents as a team.”

The Yeowomen had a similarly difficult time on Friday, losing 88-139 to Baldwin Wallace, 71-132 to Case Western Reserve, 77-124 to Cleveland State and 81-138 to Gannon. Sophomore Bryne Ulmschneider helped lead the Yeowomen with two season best swims, finishing second in the 500-yard freestyle and fourth in the 200-yard free. Senior Melissa Ising also beat her times in the 200-yard individual medley and 100-yard breaststroke. The 200-yard medley relay team of first-years Laura Fries and Shannon Gallagher, Bryne Ulmschneider and senior co-captain Emily Spence finished fifth, less than four seconds behind the leaders. Junior Kiri Ulmschneider and senior co-captain Kate Boyd finished third and fourth respectively in the 1,000-yard freestyle.

Oberlin hosted NCAC opponent Wittenberg on Saturday, Nov. 11. Although the men lost 45-123 and the women lost 83-117, the former won four events with the latter collecting six event wins. The Yeowomen were led by a first-place finish by the women’s 400-yard medley relay team, composed of Fries, Spence, Ulmschnieder and sophomore Ploy Keener. Gallagher also placed first in the 200-yard freestyle, which was the second-fastest time ever recorded by an Yeowomen swimmer. First place victories also came from Kiri Ulmshneider in the 400-yard individual medley, Fries in the 200-yard backstroke and Bryne Ulmschneider in the 500-yard freestyle. The improvements continued, with Ising recording a personal best in the 400-yard individual and sophomore Sarah Cassella setting a personal record in the 1,000-yard free.

The Yeomen had a strong performance from McInerney and first-year Daniel Holm. McInerney won the 50-yard freestyle and was the only competitor in the 200-yard butterfly, while Holm was victorious in the 500-yard free and 200-yard breaststroke. Muthersbaugh also finished third in the 200-yard backstroke and the 200-yard freestyle.

McInerney was very pleased with the team’s performance this past weekend, saying, “Our meets this weekend were great. I couldn’t be prouder of our team. We had personal bests across the board from Mark Muthersbaugh, Melissa Ising, Lydia Moore and Sarah Cassella.”

Oberlin continues its conference play tonight at 6:30 p.m. in a home meet against Hiram. After an impressive performance last weekend, McInerney is confident the team will carry that momentum into the Hiram meet. “Hopefully our dedication will pay off on Friday when we swim against Hiram. I’m proud of our team and I couldn’t ask for a better set of teammates.”