Victoria Weber didn’t set a half dozen school records at Cony High School by slacking off. But now in her second season with the Assumption College swim team, Weber is finding out she has a little more left in her tank.
“I think I’ve been working a lot harder in practice,” she said. “I think it’s going to pay off later this season.”
victoria weber
SCHOOL: Assumption College
SPORT: Swimming
HIGHSCHOOL: Cony
MAJOR: English/education
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To an extent it’s paid off already, since Weber has a pair of victories in her specialty, the 100-yard freestyle, in three meets, including the nine-team Wesleyan Invitational that featured 120 competitors in her event. The Greyhounds have a few smaller meets before they taper down for the University of Rhode Island Invitational on Nov. 22-23, but many of their more important meets occur after the beginning of next year.
For now, it’s lots of hours in the pool along with weight training and cross training. As coach Stuart Cromarty said, his team has to learn how to swim tired to be successful later in the season.
“We’ve been training a lot harder,” Weber said. “It’s definitely going to show.”
Weber said she’s feels much stronger this season and has gained a lot of muscle. It’s her kick, she added, that makes her a good sprinter.
“I just kick until I can’t feel my legs anymore,” she said.
In addition to the 100 freestyle, she’s a regular entrant in the 50 free and 100-yard butterfly, an event she’s fully committed to this season.
“I’m starting to get the hang of it,” she said. “I think it’s going to be a really good event for me.”
Weber also swims freestyle and individual medley relay events at both 200 and 400 yards.
“She pretty much can swim all the events,” Cromarty said. “This year we decided to start her early (in the butterfly).”
Weber’s times are nearly what they’ll be in another six weeks. In winning at Wesleyan she swam the 100 in 56.29 seconds. She hopes and expects to be nearly three seconds faster after the first of the year.
“Starting around January we start working on the sprints,” Cromarty said. “We’re working more on conditioning right now.”
In high school, Weber focused attention on meets rather than practice. At Assumption, she devotes equal attention to both.
“I’ve learned to have a hard-working mindset when it comes to practicing,” she said. “It’s worth going all out in practices.”
Cromarty said it’s just part of the maturity college athletes go through and added Weber has developed into a team leader.
“I see a captaincy in her future,” he said.
The Greyhounds have improved each year under Cromarty and this season have a shot at one of the top two spots in the NE-10. Last season they finished third. Weber was seeded second in the 100 freestyle at last year’s meet but was sick prior to and during the meet and didn’t swim as well as she had during the season..
“It really affected me,” she said. “This year I think I’ll do a lot better.”
During the summer she swam each day with Cony coach Jon Millett, taught a few swim lesson and worked with youngsters at the Augusta Recreation summer camp. An English and education major, Weber would like to teach at the elementary level and coach swimming.
Gary Hawkins — 621-5638ghawkins@centralmaine.comTwitter: @GaryHawkinsKJ
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