In sports, dynasty is a word reserved for unmatched success and performance in premier leagues with the best athletes. To describe the Ohio State Synchronized Swimming team, dynasty is not enough.

Last March at the U.S. Collegiate Championships, the Buckeyes won their 5th consecutive title, a mark dwarfed by the 13 consecutive titles won from 1985-1997.

In the 28 years of collegiate championship competition, OSU has held the top spot 24 times.

“I definitely think that they’ve put together a dynasty,” said Jennie Harper, Emerging Programs Manager for USA Synchro, the sport’s governing body. “They’ve done a great job with the program, not only on a collegiate level but also producing national champions and Olympians.”

At the collegiate level, OSU helped lay the foundation for a sport that could develop into an NCAA program.

“It’s not something we vocalize,” said Holly Vargo-Brown, acting coach of the OSU squad. “But we know that other teams are watching us, and we want them to know we have high standards.”

“They’ve set a precedent,” Harper said. “With their help, they have elevated the sport’s level of competition.”

Vargo-Brown, beginning her 14th year as assistant coach and a former swimmer, is taking over the team while Coach Linda Witter is on medical leave.

“We’re hoping to have her back by the end of February,” Vargo-Brown said.

Swimmers at OSU are prepared to compete at a world class level. In addition to competing for another collegiate title, OSU will send six swimmers to compete this summer with the 2005 U.S. National Team.

Sophomore Becky Kim will represent the Buckeyes on the 2005 U.S. National Team 1, putting herself on the fast track to the 2008 Olympics. The remaining five will help comprise the 11-member National Team 2.

“Becky was key, as a freshman, in helping us win the championship last year,” said Vargo-Brown. “She puts the team above everything else.”

Kim and Kate Hooven, who captured the duet title together at the 2004 Collegiate Championship meet, will lead the charge of the 26-member team that lost one senior to graduation during the off-season.

“Every year is hard after winning a championship,” Vargo-Brown said. “The expectations are so high and there’s also a segment of the population hoping that you don’t do as well as you did last year.”

Last year, OSU also won the trio and team competitions at the collegiate meet.

With a score of 95.667, Kim, Hooven and Lindsay Newbill, a senior, took the trio event. All three were given All-American honors for the 2004 season.

In the team competition, OSU’s top eight swimmers earned a score of 98.167 to give them the nod over Stanford in the finals. Alabama-Birmingham took 3rd.

Also returning to this year’s team are Chelsea Luker and Carly Grimshaw. Both juniors hold dual citizenship in Canada and Great Britain and were given honorary All American awards. The pair are also members of the Canadian National Team.

One coach struggling to find a weakness on the OSU team is Stanford’s Heather Olson. Olson, a former Olympic team captain in 2000, was a captain of the 1998 Cardinal squad that ended OSU’s 13 consecutive title streak.

“To beat a team like Ohio State in 1998 was huge because they had such a larger squad which, even today, makes them very tough to beat,” Olson said. “It’s very difficult to match the depth that Ohio State has.”

“That’s our greatest strength,” said Vargo-Brown. “It’s also our greatest struggle having such a deep team. We want all 26 swimmers to share the common thread of being able to compete at the highest level.”

Stanford has finished second place to the Buckeyes in every collegiate championship since their titles in 1998 and 1999.

Olson’s plan to overtake OSU is basic.

“It starts with recruiting and preparation,” she said. “We have to do the best we can in the pool and have as few mistakes as possible.”

Olson attributes her team’s success to having such a wide range of talent.

“The challenge is blending all of that together. We’re looking forward to collegiate meets, but we also want to prepare them to win at nationals, and for some, the Olympics,” she said.

OSU opens their season at home Jan. 15 with a Tri-Meet against Michigan and Keuka (NY.) College.

The 2005 Collegiate National Championships will be held in Gainesville, Fla. at the end of March.

OSU will also prepare the team for the U.S. National Championship, open to colleges and club teams, held at the end of April.