The Wittenberg men's and women's swimming and diving teams recently returned from their annual winter break "vacation" to South Florida. Rather than lying around on the beach, however, these athletes got after it in the pool, setting themselves up for what they hope will be an outstanding stretch run to the 2005-06 season.

The Tiger women improved to 7-0 on the dual meet season with a 49-26 victory over Monmouth (Ill.) at the Pine Crest Academy training facility in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. In addition to the unblemished dual meet record through the first half of the 2005-06 season, the Tigers captured first place in the DePauw Invitational last month.

The Tiger men improved to 5-3 on the dual meet season with a 50-25 victory over Monmouth, also in Florida. Wittenberg placed second in a tough field at the DePauw Invitational, despite a young team that includes a host of point-scorers in the freshman and sophomore class ranks.

Those outstanding dual meet records are sure to be put to the test in the coming weeks, however, starting with a daunting road test on Saturday against perennial national powerhouse Denison. The Big Red have been in the top two in the North Coast Athletic Conference and among the top five in all of NCAA Division III for more than a decade.

The rest of the January meet schedule leading up to the annual NCAC Championship meet in Canton, Ohio, Feb. 9-11, figures to be just as challenging. The Tigers will square off against Ohio Athletic Conference favorite Ohio Northern, national powers Case Western Reserve, Transylvania and Emory, and NCAA Division I scholarship program Wright State, all by Jan. 28.

Next: 1/14 @ Denison