Has No Problem Staying Busy
Written by Sports Information Student Assistant Adam Fabrizi
BEREA, OHIO -- Baldwin-Wallace College senior swimmer and track athlete Scott Roberts has no problem staying busy these days. In fact, he almost never stops moving.
This week, Roberts, a Sandusky resident and Sandusky Perkins High School graduate, is a member of the Yellow Jacket men’s swimming and diving team that is preparing to compete at the Ohio Athletic Conference Swimming & Diving Championships beginning on Thursday. Next week, Roberts will begin the indoor track season as one of the best hurdlers in the OAC.
"Scott is an outstanding student and athlete," said veteran Yellow Jacket cross country and track coach Dr. Bill Taraschke, a native of Milan and a former coach at Edison High School. "He defines the term student-athlete. Scott excells in whatever he does, whether it is in the classroom, on the track, in the pool or running cross country. He is also a team leader who can motivate others."
This year, Roberts is competing in his third season of swimming and is again experiencing success. After swimming and setting a school record during his freshman and sophomore years, he decided to take a year off to concentrate on track in 2002-03. In the fall of 2002, he also ran his first year of cross country for the Yellow Jackets.
"I decided to take some time off from swimming and work on improving my times for track," said Roberts. "One thing I’ve experienced this year is that it has been a little rough trying to get back into the swing of things in the pool."
By the way that Roberts has competed in the pool this winter, you would have never thought he took any time off. He helped to lead the B-W men to a 7-6 overall and 3-1 OAC record prior to this week’s championships. Entering the championships, Roberts has the top times in the OAC in the 100 and 200-yard butterfly events, is second in the 200 individual medley and ninth in the 50-yard freestyle. His top times this year are 53.58 in the 100 fly, 2:06.30 in the 200 fly, 2:05.49 in the 200 IM and 23.23 seconds in the 50-free.
"This year’s squad is the best I’ve seen since I’ve been here," said Roberts, a history major who intends on pursuing a doctorate’s degree. "We feel that we have a real legitimate shot at winning the OAC title.
"One thing I’ve noticed about this season is that everyone on the team is not only working harder and pushing each other, but we all have become closer and formed pretty good friendships," said Roberts, who holds the B-W school-record in the 100-yard butterfly. "Our ultimate goal is to win the conference title. Individually, my goal is to receive a Division III national berth."
"Scott is a great team player," said fifth-year Head Swimming & Diving Coach Mike Gallagher. "He is a very determined individual and will do anything in his power to achieve his goals not only in the pool, but in the classroom as well. Scott is well-liked by his peers and is a team-leader.
" Scott is a Dean’s List student who would like to pursue a doctorate’s degree," said Gallagher. "He has set his goals high since day one and has achived almost every one of them. He is a big reason why we have had such a successful season, why we are going to compete for an OAC title and why our swimming and diving program is gaining great momentum for the future. If I could have 10 Scott Roberts, I might be able to win a national title!"
The past three years, Roberts has prepared himself for a chance at helping his team win an OAC title and the possibility of qualifying for the Div. III national meet as an individual. Now, he just has to go out and do it.
"Scott is prepared to have the best OAC Championship Meet of his career because he has worked hard to get ready," said Gallagher. "We hope that he can meet his own expectations."
While most of the other swimmers and divers will be able to take a break following the conclusion of the season, Roberts will turn his attention to track where he will again be chasing the clock for the chance at meeting a national qualifying time.
"Scott has the ability to qualify," said Taraschke. "He is in great shape and it doesn’t take him a great deal of time to get into track shape. "
In track, Roberts will be competing in his fourth season. He has earned three varsity letters and has competed in numerous events such as the 55 meter hurdles, 60 meter hurdles, 110 meter high hurdles, 400 meter hurdles, long jump and triple jump. His best event is the 400 meter hurdles where he is one of the top hurdlers in the OAC.
In 2003, Roberts was B-W’s top 400 hurdler and placed third at the OAC Championship Meet with a time of 53.74 seconds to earn All-OAC accolades. It also qualified Roberts provisionallyt for the NCAA Division III Outdoor Championship Meet, but eventually the time did not make the final cut. He was also selected as a first-team Academic All-OAC At-Large student-athlete by virtue of his solid 3.36 grade point average and accomplishments both in swimming and track. He was also a nominee for CoSIDA Academic All-District IV accolades.
In addition to excelling last spring, in the spring of 2002, Roberts earned All-OAC honors in the 110 meter high hurdles and in the 400 hurdles. At the OAC Championships, he finished third in the 400 meter hurdles with a 54.01. That time was also a provisional qualifying time for the NCAA Division III national meet.
"Scott has been right there," says Taraschke, who has led B-W to 34 OAC titles in cross country and track and coaches both the men’s and women’s teams. "He just needs to take a little more time off. He has done it each year so far, so we are looking for this year to be his best one yet."
"I feel that as long as I’m able to stay healthy, I have a real good shot at qualifying for Nationals this year," said Roberts. "This is my last chance, so I want to give it my best shot. Another personal goal I have is to set a school-record in the 400 meter hurdles. If we can win an OAC title and I can both set the record and qualify for nationals, I think I’d be able to call the season a success."
With the amount of time required to compete in a collegiate varsity sport and succeed in school, time management becomes a major factor to being successful. This is especially the case in Roberts’ life. However, trying to balance more than one sport and his schoolwork is something that he has been able to accomplish.
"I have found that in order to be successful in school, you need to set aside time for a certain task. I’ll set some time for working on homework, reading and studying," Roberts stated. "As long as you are able to manage your time, it makes things that much easier.
"You also need to make sure you plan some time to relax and take a break from everything," said Roberts. "If you go from classes to practice and then back to homework for the rest of the night, you’re going to end up stressed out, exhausted and you will eventually burn-out. Something as simple as watching television or going to hang out with friends for a little while helps."
Following graduation, Roberts has plans of continuing to stay busy. He hopes to enter the military and attend graduate school in history.
"I’d like to enter the military and see if they can help pay for grad school. My goal is to eventually obtain a Ph.D. in history and become a college professor. I’d also like to coach swimming and teach others what I have learned over the years," continued Roberts. "I also want to continue running. Maybe compete in a 5k or some sort of running event."
And, the beat goes on and on and on.
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