TACOMA, Wash. - After dominating a pair of rivals two weeks ago in Oregon, the Pacific Lutheran University men's and women's swimming teams are back in the pool on Saturday, opening its home slate against Northwest Conference upstart George Fox University.
 
Two weeks ago, the PLU men downed Willamette University and Lewis & Clark College by identical 116-86 scores while the PLU women steamrolled Willamette 159-42 and Lewis & Clark 160-45.
 
Sophomore Bailey Hamilton had a fantastic opening weekend for the season. Hamilton won all six of her races, earning the NWC Athlete of the Week award. She is excited to see what the team will do this weekend after weeks of hard training.
 
"It felt great to get back to racing with my teammates," Hamilton said. "We've really hit the ground running this week in training...All of the tough workouts are ultimately preparing us for tougher competitions, so I think we will definitely see some of the payoff against George Fox."
 
As training continues to increase in intensity, Hamilton and her teammates turn to each other for support. Junior swimmer Ethan Trieu expressed feeling this sense of community as well. 
 
"Our training is definitely starting to head towards the thick of things in regards to intensity, however I must say that with all the challenges that our coaches throw at us in the pool, the squad is ready to take on those challenges together," Trieu said.
 
Trieu won six of six races against Lewis and Clark and Willamette for the men's side, contributing heavily to the squad's two wins. As a new transfer student this year, Trieu experienced how the Lute swim team bonded throughout the season thus far.
 
"The team's atmosphere has definitely changed since the start of the season to now, both in the pool and out," Trieu said. "Now that we have just passed mid-semester, the team has changed from just being teammates, to now being a family."
 
After traveling to Oregon, the Lutes are excited for their first meet at home.  
 
"Being able to have the support of our fellow Lutes on the pool deck, creating an atmosphere that will get us riled up and ready to race and represent PLU proudly is what I look forward to most," Trieu said.
 
"This weekend I'm most looking forward to putting our training to the test, and hopefully seeing some rewarding results," Hamilton added. "I'm confident we will maintain our positive, on-deck atmosphere and kick some Bruin booty!"
 
The Lutes and Bruins square off on Saturday at 1 p.m. inside the PLU Pool.