Competing at a peak level in a conference meet is the focus of many college swimming programs, including the one at UNO.

Mavericks coach Todd Samland, even though his team is in transition from Division II to Division I, is trying to make one happen this year.

"I feel like I owe that to our seniors," Samland said. "I'm trying to call on a couple of old friendships to make it happen, not because we have to, but because we want to."

UNO is ineligible to compete in the Summit League meet in its first season, and Samland said he's tried to earn an invitation to compete in some Division II leagues' conference meets.

Those leagues were interested, Samland said, but so far have indicated that they would only let UNO swim in preliminaries. The Summit League, he said, wouldn't let the Mavericks get even that far.

"Our kids might not win the conference, but we'd definitely be in the mix to shuffle a team out of first or second," Samland said. "I understand that. But we're going to try to do well by (UNO swimmers)."

Once in the Summit League, UNO will do what others are doing and take aim at Oakland, the 12-time defending champion. But overtaking Oakland, Samland said, doesn't mean focusing on the Golden Grizzlies.

Men's basketball is big at Oakland, but so is swimming. Coach Pete Hovland has been in place on campus for 33 years as either the men's or women's coach, or both, and Athletic Director Tracy Huth directed the women's program to five consecutive Division II championships and three more runner-up finishes in the 1990s.

Oakland's facility, a 50-meter pool with eight lanes, ranks among the best in the league.

"We want to emulate, inspire and create ownership," Samland said. "If we can do that, that's what helps us get to a higher level without focusing on it.

"If we think too much about Oakland, why couldn't South Dakota or South Dakota State or IUPUI get there first? It'll be a definite challenge, but we're not going to worry about it."

Samland had some initial concerns about the transition from Division II to Division I eased when his scholarship equivalent was trimmed from roughly the Division II maximum of 8.1 to somewhere around six, rather than the 3.5 that was part of UNO's initial projections.

Like other UNO coaches dealing with equivalents, Samland recruits with a scholarship dollar figure in mind, and the precise equivalent total fluctuates based on whether he signs an in-state or out-of-state athlete.

Samland said he rarely got too close to reaching 8.1 previously because he has offered support based on swimmer performance — once they reach a certain time, they get more scholarship money.

"The times are attainable, but it's not a cakewalk for them," he said.

Samland said his scholarship budget is down only about 10 percent and his operational budget, for the first time in recent memory, wasn't affected.

Samland said UNO's administration has shown the commitment to attempt to build swimming and other sports up to higher scholarship numbers, though he doesn't foresee a time in the future when UNO would offer the Division I maximum of 14 women's swimming scholarship equivalents.

Samland led UNO to 13 consecutive top 25 finishes at the Division II meet, peaking at fifth in 2008. The Mavs finished in the top 10 every year from 2000 through 2006.

That type of national impact likely won't happen in Division I, but Samland does expect his team to become increasingly competitive in the Summit League.

"The level of competition in Division II has gone up drastically the last three or four years," Samland said. "And the Summit League is comparable to that. Last year our 200 free relay would have won the conference ... but that's only 1 of 26 events, too."

Even though some Summit League teams are better funded than UNO, Samland said the school's academic standing, the community itself, and the work-related experiences available to UNO students help balance that disadvantage.

"You look at some of our competitors, and they might be in towns of 8,000," Samland said. "They might need better funding to level the playing field with us."

UNO's HPER pool — 50 meters and six lanes — is also an attractive facility that Samland considers close to others in the Summit.

"We're going to be competitive in the Summit League," he said. "But we've had girls (place at Division II nationals) who would have barely been invited and wouldn't make the top 16 (in Division I). Those (top Division I) girls are just rock stars. ... But we're going to be a very respectable, competitive mid-level program."

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