Swim team aims for better season; recovers from losses
By Lucas Almeida
The Guardsman
City College women’s swimming team held an intra-squad meet in the Wellness Center on Feb. 3 in preparation for the program’s third year of existence.
Womens swimming head coach Phong Pham expects his team to reach higher goals and perform better after last season’s disappointing fifth place finish in the conference.
“Our goal is to go to top three in the conference this season,” Pham said. “I think our expectations are to qualify at least two individual swimmers for the state championship and two relay teams for the state championship.”
The Rams return four swimmers from last year’s squad, including Carrie Guilfoyle and Roselyn Sretpisalsilp, co-captains this season.
Guilfoyle, who could not swim in the intra-squad meet due to a cold, watched the preseason meet cheerfully and is excited to be one of the co-captains of this year’s team alongside Sretpisalsilp.
“I love it. It’s exciting,” Guilfoyle said. “We are really friendly and we are always competing at practice which makes it fun.”
As one of the leaders of the team, Guilfoyle has confidence that this year will be a successful one, not only for her individually, but for her teammates as well.
“For the team I’d like to see each swimmer improve individually and achieve their own personal goals,” said Guilfoyle. “I think that’s what’s great about the sport of swimming, you don’t have to win but you can do great things for yourself and it feels equally good.”
Guilfoyle’s best event is the 100-meter butterfly and she says she hopes to drop her time enough to qualify to the state championships. Sretpisalsilp enjoys the 100-meter backstroke and hopes to beat her times from her first season in order to make it to the state championship.
Newly-appointed assistant coach Alyssa Stember was a star in the California Community College Athletics Association Swim and Dive Championships last season. Stember finished seventh in the state and 14th in the nation in the 50-meter and 100-meter backstroke. She was considered for All-American status last season and was the Coast Conference champion in both events.
Coach Pham said he wants his swimmers to achieve All-American Status this season.
The Rams will hold their first swim meet at home on Feb. 10 when they will face Laney College. The meet starts at 12:30 p.m.