Q&A with Pat Reams

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Senior Pat Reams and the Virginia men’s swimming and diving team will defend its Atlantic Coast Conference championship this week when the annual league meet is held in College Park, Md. Each day the finals will be broadcast live free on the Internet at ACC Select. Reams recently sat down with VirginiaSports.com to chat about defending the conference title, the team’s chemistry, his favorite event to swim and what he plans to do after graduation.

Question: Are you ready to defend your title at the ACC Championships?
Reams: This is what we have been working towards all season, so it’s finally hitting me that it’s really upon us and this is the last go-around. We don’t want to leave anything in the water. Training has gone really well this year. I’m really excited; especially after watching what the women did last week. I feel like we’re ready because we have done the same training all year. There’s no reason for us not to step up and perform just as well as they did.

Question: Being the defending champions, do you sort of feel like there is a target on your back?
Reams: Definitely, because everyone is aiming to take us out. The whole conference is going to be fired up but at the same time, it doesn’t change how we approach the meet in terms of training or anything. It just changes the dynamic on the pool deck.

Question: How important are the relays at a big meet like this?
Reams: We want to go in and do our best in all of the relays. The 800 freestyle relay is our bread and butter, but we want to also win the medley relays because we won them last year. We want to win the 400 freestyle relay again and put up a strong showing in the 200 freestyle relay to show that we’re coming along in sprints. We’ve always been a distance-oriented team, but we’re moving up in the sprint rankings and this is our time to show it.

Question: What is your favorite event to swim?
Reams: The 200 butterfly, mainly because it is my best event. I can hold my own in the 100 butterfly, but I just don’t have as much out speed in the first 50. So half of the time, sixth or seventh after 50 yards, and then I have to try and catch up to everyone. In the 200, I can set my pace and really attack the race plan I want, and not worry about being behind anyone. I can just rely on my training to get me home.

Question: How would you describe the team chemistry this year?
Reams: The team chemistry is great. We know that we’re different from the swim teams of previous years and at the same time we are still a part of that family and tradition of Virginia swimming. We can’t duplicate everything from years past. Last year was also awesome in terms of our team chemistry, but we couldn’t come in to this year expecting it to be the exact same because we graduated some, brought in some, and so the team dynamic is naturally different. We have great team chemistry though.

Question: How did you get started swimming?
Reams: I started in fourth grade to recover from a broken elbow. I fractured my elbow in third grade when I was playing baseball in the spring with a kid who swam for a local club. Our parents talked and I guess the rest is history. So from then on I swam year-round and also played football, basketball, and baseball for three years. Then in seventh grade I decided swimming was what I was best at so I stuck with it.

Question: What made you choose UVA?
Reams: I visited during the spring break of my junior year of high school with my mom and a friend. We were visiting schools along the east coast, and when we came to UVa, I just fell in love with Grounds. I came over and saw the pool, talked to some assistant coaches, and I just really loved it.

Question: What are you majoring in?
Reams: I’m an economics major with a foreign affairs minor. I graduate this May and next year I will continue with the M.S. in Commerce program, so I’ll still be around Grounds and the pool deck. I’d like to get into banking or work on Wall Street. I’ve been looking for internships and sending out my resume lately, and I feel like it’s time to step out of the swimming world and experience something else. Swimming has taught me a lot that will help me in the future.

Question: What do you do for fun in you spare time?
Reams: Honestly, I watch a lot of sports on TV and just hang out with the guys. We go out to eat and then sit around and watch basketball or football games. We might catch a movie here and there. I try to relax and stay laid back. We might go out and throw Frisbee on the Lawn but usually when it comes down to it I choose to lay around on the couch and just relax before next week’s training.

Question: What is your favorite spot on Grounds?
Reams: I love sitting on the Lawn. I like getting breakfast on the Corner and go sit and eat on the Rotunda steps for an hour or two. It’s a great place to hang out and talk to people. You see families touring, people having fun, and it’s just great to be outside.