The Northwestern women’s swimming team is ranked 20th in the nation, but in four chances it has yet to beat any of its Top 25 counterparts.
NU coach Jimmy Tierney is not concerned. In fact, that’s what he expected.
“Earlier in the year we just did a lot of endurance stuff, and they get kind of broken down a little bit,” he said. “They’re still a little bit tired from it. (But) we’ve done a little more race-sharpening stuff the last few weeks.
“They’re just in really good shape right now. It’s the way I work the season plans, (so) they start to hit their stride right here in January.”
The Cats will have to stay in stride Saturday as they travel to Knoxville, Tenn., to square off against Tennessee and No. 5 Auburn. NU gained a split when the trio last met on Jan. 15, 2000, beating Tennessee but losing to Auburn.
NU has a tough task ahead if it hopes to beat Auburn, a dangerous team in every event, Tierney said. But the coach said that Tennessee won’t be as big a challenge, although the Volunteers boast one of the nation’s strongest diving teams.
As sweet as two victories would be, Tierney said he wants his team to keep one word in mind — progress.
“Everything for me is a progression toward Big Tens and the NCAA championships,” Tierney said. “If they’re racing really well and they’re learning and making progress toward peak performances in February (and) March, that’s kind of what I look more toward than team scoring.
“We want to win, no doubt about it, but I look at more than just that when we evaluate the meets.”
NU has received strong performances recently from Vicky West, last week’s Big Ten swimmer of the week. Tierney is especially interested in what West and other distance swimmers — including Erica Rose and Stephanie Cranston — will do Saturday. This will be their last chance to swim the mile, a key event for NU, before the Big Ten championships.
Team captain Tashy Bohm, a top-two finisher in the 200-yard backstroke at every event thus far, has her eye on two elite backstrokers this weekend: Taylor Spivey of Auburn, the Tigers’ best in the event, and Pam Hanson of Tennessee, who last year qualified for the NCAA tournament.
Yet Bohm is keeping her expectations grounded.
She said the Cats cannot focus solely on winning because they have not yet tapered — a conditioning strategy that allows swimmers to build their energy for critical meets.
“I just want to get some good in-season best times, go out there and race a lot, and maybe give them a run for their money,” she said. “I try to pump up (my teammates) and make sure they’re having fun at all times. If you’re not having fun you shouldn’t be there at all.”
Improvement, Tierney said, is more important than the outcome of Saturday’s meet.
“I’m hoping we can have some really good races,” he said. “And you never know — a couple of them may get themselves fast enough that they might have the time to qualify for NCAAs at this point.”
