SEC point-scorer Josh Romany will be transferring from Tennessee to the Indiana Hoosiers after sitting out last season.
Romany is an international competitor for Trinidad & Tobago, and competed for that nation at the World Junior Championships back in 2013.
He swam his freshman season at Tennessee in 2014-2015, scoring at SECs in the 50 free (19.90) and leading off both freestyle relays. He sat out last season, competing almost entirely in long course meters.
When he originally committed to Tennessee back in 2014, Romany told SwimSwam he had taken official visits with the Volunteers, the Michigan Wolverines and the Indiana Hoosiers. He’ll now make the leap from Tennessee to Indiana in the Big Ten conference.
Romany told SwimSwam this week about his decision to transfer:
I am very excited about this move as I believe coach Ray and the rest of the staff would help me accomplish my short and long term swim goals. I know I will be an asset to the team. Go Hoosiers!
Romany’s Top Times
- 50 free (SCY): 19.90
- 100 free (SCY): 43.98
- 200 free (SCY): 1:36.99
- 50 free (LCM): 23.08
- 100 free (LCM): 50.83
- 200 free (LCM): 1:52.46
Those 50 and 100 free times would have put Romany into the B finals at last year’s Big Ten Championships.
Indiana just put sprint freestyler Blake Pieroni onto the U.S. Olympic team as a relay-only competitor on the 4×100 free relay. Pieroni was the Big Ten champ in the 100 and 200 frees and finished 10th and 8th, respectively, in those events at NCAAs. Pieroni will be a junior this coming season, pairing with Romany, who has only used up one year of college eligibility so far.
Romany will join an Indiana sprint group that has become a powerhouse – a dramatic turn from a run of years where sprint freestyle was the program’s glaring weakness. Pieroni will be a junior, NCAA 100 free B finalist Anze Tavcar a senior and NCAA 50 free B finalist Ali Khalafalla a junior.
That rise coincides with the hiring of multi-time Big Ten Coach of the Year Dennis Dale, who works with the Indiana sprint group under head coach Ray Looze. The Indiana coaching crew just put three swimmers onto the U.S. Olympic team this summer: Pieroni and breaststrokers Lilly King and Cody Miller.
sorry to him he leave Tennessee… may he fare well at Indiana.
Hardly a sprint powerhouse. They have a few ok men and where are the women?
We are talking about the men’s team, they have 3 Olympian sprinters. They have 3 men under 50.0 in the 100 free and 2 under 49.0. How many other college teams have that? Not sure, but it’s not a ton of teams.
I was going to say the same thing as ALUM – this article is about the male sprinters. But since you asked about “where are the women” how about this:
2nd at B1G, but only 300 points ahead of Minn.
7th at NCAAs, highest placing B1G team on the women’s side.
There were only 4 programs in the country that finished in the Top 10 at both meets:
Georgia (1st – W, 5th – M) – combined program
CAL (3rd – W, 2nd – M)
NC State (9th – W, 4th – M) – combined program
IU (7th – W, 9th – M) – combined program
I would say that not only are the… Read more »
Great point, phenomenal program as a whole both men and woman.
No mention of rising junior Oliver Patrouch either. :19.7 in the 50 last year…
Im asking about their women sprinters. I know the team did well and that is not in dispute. im asking specifically who/what the women sprinters (freestylers) are/did as i am stating that they are not a sprint powerhouse as posters and the article implied.
Coach Looze has worked tirelessly to get IU back to a top notch program. They will reap the benefits of 2016’s Olympic haul in a major way. Expect them to move into the top 5 on the women’s side for sure and possibly on the Men’s side too.
IU turning into a sprinting hub!
Dennis Dale is an amazing sprint coach. Was a big loss for Minnesota
FASTONE – “Was a big loss for Minnesota”
Probably the biggest understatement ever! Go back and read the comments about how it was time for Dennis to go so the program could “move forward”. The only thing that has kept Minn even a little bit competitive in the B1G is their unbelievable diving program. It is actually sad to see, especially for swimmers like Daryl Turner. He deserves much better. If the nosedive downward wasn’t proof enough, just look at iUs sprint group now! 3 Olympians in that group (Tavcar – Slovenia, Khalifala – Egypt; Blake for Team USA – splits time between Dennis and Mike Westphal’s group).
sounds like Purdue (the diving statement)
200 breastroke B1G champions 2 years in a row?
Found a lot of articles with the same opinion but nothing specific about his methods or philosophy. Does anyone know anything about those? Would love to how he’s been able to be so successful.