Junior Dani Yoho swam in the 50-yard freestyle on Saturday.
Yoho took first with a time of 23.62 seconds.
Brad Soo / The Collegian
The Fresno State swimming and diving team exploded off the blocks with a 2-1 record in its lone triple-dual meet of the semester. The ‘Dogs downed Cal State East Bay 233-47 and Cal State Bakersfield 206-87, but couldn’t pull off the sweep, falling to undefeated San Diego State 174.5-114.5.
“I’m really happy with how the team did [Saturday]. I couldn’t ask for a better meet out of the Christmas training,” said fourth-year head coach Jeanne Fleck.
During the Christmas training, which began on Dec. 28, the team practiced four days per week for the past three weeks, often practicing and working out six-to-seven hours per day.
“It’s brutal, and it’s really pushing them to their limit,” Fleck said.
Junior swimmer Dani Yoho said that the winter training put the team in prime condition for its meet, both mentally and physically.
“We had a good attitude going in, and had a rough few weeks of training so it was nice to put all that behind us and swim fast,” said Yoho.
And Yoho did swim fast, finishing first in the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 23.62 seconds, just 0.6 seconds shy of her top time this season.
The training paid off for the rest of the Bulldog swimmers as well, who took first in the 400-yard freestyle relay with a time of 3:35.02. Yoho, sophomore Brooke Fuller and freshmen Courtney Sheehan and Lucy Titchin edged out Cal State Bakersfield by two seconds for the first-place finish.
Sheehan also medaled in her second-place finish in the 500-yard freestyle.
“I thought it was a really good meet, because San Diego State was really good competition for us,” said Sheehan, who has already made headlines for the ‘Dogs as a freshman. “It was a pretty good stepping stone for conference.”
“I did what I needed to do and did what [Coach Fleck] asked me to do. I swam my races how she wanted me to, and I think it puts me at a good place for this season,” Sheehan added.
In the 200-yard individual medley, sophomores Brittany Buna and Michelle Dockendorf finished 1-2 for the ‘Dogs. The duo posted times of 2:12.35 and 2:13.28, respectively.
Fleck and her crew continue to train hard in preparation for The Beach Invite in San Diego this weekend before their next home meet against long-time rival San Jose State.
“We’re at full strength again and I really think it’s going to pay off,” said Fleck.
