By Sondra Rodriguez, Student Reporter

To Travis Moore and David Vanderpool, Gibson Health and P.E. Center has all it needs for a swim team-a six-lane, 25-yard swimming pool. All it is missing is the swim team itself.

Moore and Vanderpool hope to fix one by starting a co-ed swim team to compete against other NCAA Division II schools by the 2009 school year.

Moore, junior biology major from Fort Worth, said the swim team would be a good addition to ACU athletics.

“Swimming is a good outlet,” he said. “It gives students another way to be competitive in a sport that’s not football because not everyone can play football.

This sport is for everybody guys and girls.” The idea developed after Moore and Vanderpool struggled to work around the limited swim hours in the Gibson Center.

Vanderpool, junior English, biblical text and premed major from Nashville, Tenn., said, “We said to ourselves, ‘What can we do to get swim time that fits our schedules better?’ Well, if we had a key, we’d be able to swim whenever we wanted, but what would it take to get a key? Let’s start our own team.”

The two approached the director of athletics Jerry Mosely with the idea. They were told to research how to make the team a reality and present it to the school board. The two expect to present their proposal next week.

“We have to research the annual cost of running a swim team, funding, how much a coach would cost and if our current pool will be able to support 20 or so kids swimming in it everyday,” Vanderpool said.

He said funding will come from local businesses as well as companies from his hometown and will cover a salary for the coach, swim caps, goggles, uniforms and maybe sweats.

“Not anything terribly expensive,” he said.

Moore and Vanderpool are recruiting students for the coaching position and for the team. The two have created a Facebook group but said students should expect a Chapel announcement and interest meeting in the next
week.

“Let’s get a key, let’s compete and let’s enjoy this,” Vanderpool said.