Men's Pre-Season Outlook

A veteran ladened team should again make the Flying Dutchmen a
contender for the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association
(MIAA) championship this season.

A year ago coach John Patnott's Flying Dutchmen finished runner-up
to Kalamazoo in the MIAA. Both teams went on to make an impact
at the NCAA Division III national championships Kalamazoo
finishing ninth and tenth respectively.

While the pre-season roster includes 18 returning letterwinners,
there are just three seniors -- Jeff Burgess of Jenison (Jenison
HS), Dan Daly of East Grand Rapids (East Grand Rapids HS), and
Mike Porter of West Bloomfield (Southfield Christian HS).

Returning junior letterwinners are Eric Bishop of Saginaw (Arthur
Hill HS), Tom Bouwens of Zeeland (Zeeland HS), David Glancy of
Fremont (Fremont HS), Jason Harris of Alpena (Alpena HS), Kevin
Kirkpatrick of Eureka, Mo. (Eureka HS), Jarod Lippert of Alma
(Alma HS), John Neeb of Cedarburg, Wisc. (Grafton HS), David
Vruggink of Wyoming (Grandville HS), and Adam Wesseling of Grand
Rapids (Forest Hills Central HS).

Sophomore returnees include Chris Dattels of Wilmette, Ill. (New
Trier HS), Joshua Ficke of Etiwanda, Calif. (Etiwanda HS), Ryan
Gallas of Fox River Grove, Ill. (Cary Grove HS), Padric Moore of
Holland Patent, N.Y. (Holland Patent Central HS), and Scott
Vroegindewey of Kalamazoo (Portage Central HS).

Dattels, Daly, Ficke and Lippert achieved NCAA Division III All-
America status last year as members of relay teams that advanced
to the championship heat. The 200-yard freestyle relay finished
seventh nationally while the 200-yard medley relay was eighth.
Dattels also finished tenth in the nation in the 100-yard
backstroke.

Burgess, Dattels and Lippert were voted to the 1998 All-MIAA
team. Dattels was the conference champion in the 100-yard
backstroke while Lippert won the 100-yard freestyle.

Women's Pre-Season Outlook

A blend of returning veterans and new team members should put the
Flying Dutch in a position to challenge for an eighth consecutive
Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) title and
the opportunity to compete in the NCAA Division III Championships
where they've finish in the top ten eight consecutive years.

The pre-season roster of 25 swimmers and divers includes eleven
letterwinners from a team that finished fifth at the Division III
nationals.

Four returning letterwinners were 1998 NCAA All-Americans.
Junior Llena Durante of Chicago, Ill. (Whitney Young HS) finished
second in the nation in the 100-yard butterfly while sophomore
Betsy VandenBerg of Beverly Hills was the silver medalist in the
200-yard breaststroke. Junior Erinn VanAuken of Holland (West
Ottawa HS) was sixth in both the 50-yard and 100-yard freestyle
races. Sophomore Katie Baumann of Zeeland (Zeeland HS) was a
member of an All-America relay team.

Other returning letterwinners include junior Megan Clapp of
Kalamazoo (Loy Norrix HS), junior Colleen Doyle of Rochester
Hills (Marian HS), junior Michelle Fangmeier of Inver Grove
Heights, Minn. (Simley HS), junior Jennifer Gliesman of Macomb
(Lutheran North HS), senior Kari Jackson of Canton (Plymouth-
Canton HS), junior Kate Mulder of Holland (Holland Christian HS)
and junior Erin Najjar of Sarasota, Fla. (Bradenton Christian
HS).

The Flying Dutch have returning defending MIAA champions in seven
individual events. Van Auken is the two-time defending
conference champion in the 50-yard freestyle and 200-yard
freestyle while Durante is the two-time winner in the 100-yard
butterfly. Other defending MIAA champions are Fangmeier in the
400-yard individual medley and VandenBerg in the 100-yard and
200-yard breaststroke events.

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