Ramsy looks to be premiere sprinter

On Saturday against Purdue in the 50-yard freestyle, the field of IU sprinters was without season best time holder sophomore Claes Andersson. Sophomore Dale Ramsy made sure the results didn't take a hit. Ramsy swam to a first place finish, good for a personal season best.\nIt is those types of performances that have Ramsy's coaches and teammates excited about his potential. \n"Dale is our real success story this year," teammate and junior David Schulze said. "When he came in last year, you looked at him and it wasn't even clear that he knew how to swim competitively. And this year, he's really stepped it up and he's been a good leader for all of the sprinters."\nRamsy began swimming during his sophomore year at Lake Central high school, making this only his fourth year of the sport. He joined the swim squad at the insistence of his friend as they searched for a sport to compete in between the track and cross country seasons. \nFrom there, Ramsy fell in love with swimming. Ramsy placed 8th in the 50-free in the state championships during his senior year and is a member of his high school record holding 200-yard medley, 200- and 400-yard freestyle relay squads. \n"Ever since then, I've been loving it," Ramsy said. "The biggest thing about swimming that I love is getting on that block as the anchor or any position and being right with the other team and getting that adrenaline rush. I didn't get that with any other sport. That's why I stuck with swimming and that's why I think I'm excelling at it now."\nWhen it came time to choose a college, Ramsy, a native of Crown Point, Ind., tried to keep his options open, but knew that he would ultimately end up at IU. Ramsy's father, an IU graduate, took his son to IU basketball games growing up, instilling a sense of Hoosier pride that came calling when Ramsy had to pick a college.\n"I didn't really choose IU, it sort of chose me," Ramsy said. "I knew I'd come here ever since I waslittle. In the back of my head, I just knew IU was going to be the right place."\nOnce at IU, Ramsy was impressed by the togetherness the team exhibited. Seeing team members joke together, hang out together and display a cohesiveness that was apparent in and out of the water assured Ramsy he made the right decision. But, on a squad with a number of swimmers who've been competing since early childhood, Ramsy dedicated himself to quickly becoming a better swimmer. \n"He has been a great part of coaching," head coach Kris Kirchner said. "He came here and, basically, was pretty fast. He did a lot of things wrong. However, he has a huge athletic heart. The guy can jump like a deer, he is strong as a bull. \n"In one year, he has really gone to work in weight training and he has become a monster. We've had our struggles, he's probably not the most nose-to-the-grindstone practice swimmer, and I hope in his future that's one part of his preparation that gets better. But, race-time, he's a beast. He is a strong, fast sprinter."\nRamsy tries to not to let swimming dominate his life. He tries to make time for listening to music, playing guitar, hanging out with friends and just getting away from the sport for awhile. \n"There are some people that think about swimming 24-7," Ramsy said. "I try to think about it in practice, and then when it comes down to it, I think about it all the time. But, I like to break away from\nthe pool and get a little bit of 'Dale-time' if you will."\nAs for the future, Ramsy, a business major, wants to make the Olympic trials in 2004 and would be willing to forge a career in some aspect of swimming. \n"If it comes to the point where I can swim at a world-class level, then I'll do it," Ramsy said. "I love it"