Despite being undermanned throughout the season, the Belles exhibited great perseverance and determination as they pushed through a grueling MIAA slate during the 2011-2012 season.
The Belles struggled early, but they finally broke through with their first victory in their fourth meet of the season against Defiance. The victory marked the first win in a dual meet for Saint Mary's since the 2008-2009 season.
Senior captain Audrey Dalrymple, who was named to the 2012 All-MIAA team, said she was proud of the team's effort and attitude during the season.
"We had an incredibly small team this year with only 10 girls and no divers," Dalrymple said. "Due to our small numbers, we chose to highlight individual goals and push, not only ourselves, but each other in order to achieve them."
Saint Mary's did not win as many meets in Belles coach Mark Benishek's second year as he would have hoped, but he was also very proud of the team's attitude and credited the strong senior leadership for keeping everyone on the same page.
"Our senior leadership has been a strong point all year. Katie Donovan, Megan Price and Audrey Dalrymple all had strong performances," Benishek said. "Their senior leadership has been great and they have backed it up with strong swims. We know we can always count on them for motivation."
The Belles finished sixth in the MIAA championships at the end of the year.
Contact Joe Wirth at jwirth@nd.edu
