A team’s performance often declines when it swims against inferior teams. But for the UCSB men’s and women’s swim teams, that was not the case.

Santa Barbara took to the road last weekend, traveling to Cal State Northridge in a dual meet showdown. The Matadors were no match for the Gauchos – both UCSB teams put up 157 points leading to a sweep of Northridge. The women won handily 157-101, and the men cruised to a 157-91 blowout.

“We went in, stayed focused and took care of business,” junior swimmer Marc Cavallero said.

The men, who improve to 8-4 on the season, showcased their dominance of the Big West by finishing first in 13 of the 14 events. All this was accomplished despite leaving many of their top swimmers out of their normal events.

The win was a total team effort as Gaucho swimmers finished first in nine out of 12 individual events. Two Gauchos, sophomores Matt Schubert and Shaun Crossman, swam exceptionally well, winning two individual events each.

Schubert took top honors in the 500-yard freestyle (4:39.54) and 1000-yard freestyle (9:46.53) while Crossman was the fastest in the 200-yard butterfly (1:55.05) and individual medley (2:01.07). Senior Seth Derrick also performed well, swimming the fastest 50-yard freestyle time of the season for the Gauchos, clocking in at a blazing 21.27.

Like an identical twin to their male counterparts, the women were equally dominant after taking first in 13 of the 14 events. For their efforts the women improve to 10-3 on the season.

“It is hard to stay competitive against a team like Northridge, but we still swam well,” senior co-captain Karin Finger said. “The coaching staff was proud of the way we swam.”

Top performances came from freshmen Lindsay Dalonzo and Pam Wong, and junior Romina Mosquera. Dalonzo finished first in four events: the 200 butterfly (2:07.72), 200 free (1:53.81), 500 free (5:10.31) and as the anchor in the 200-yard freestyle relay (1:38.49).

Wong was the top finisher in the 100-yard breaststroke (1:08.20) and the 200-yard individual medley (2:08.78). Mosquera, the skilled veteran of the bunch, was the fastest in the 1000 freestyle (10:28.27) and 200-yard backstroke (2:10.69).

UCSB will return to action at the Speedo Cup, Nov. 29 through Dec. 1. The three-day swim meet takes place at the Belmont Plaza in Long Beach, which is also the site of the 2002 Big West Swimming Championships.

“This will be our biggest meet before the Big West Championships so we want to do well at it,” Cavallero said.