Maybe it was fatigue, maybe it was youth, maybe it was the short warmup – or perhaps it was just all the sniffling and sneezing.
Whatever the reason, the Northwestern women’s swimming team simply was unable to hop out of the gates Saturday. No. 20 NU fell to Tennessee, 191.5-158.5, and No. 5 Auburn, 197-153, in Knoxville, Tenn.
With its morning and evening sessions, the meet resembled a championship event. And it was the 11 a.m. session that proved to be devastating for the Wildcats.
“Tennessee, I think we were capable of beating,” coach Jimmy Tierney said. “But we got ourselves into a big hole in the morning session. We made a run at them (in the evening), and showed strength and character coming back.”
Tierney said that losing both the 400-yard medley relay and the 200 freestyle relay to Tennessee in the morning severely hurt the Cats’ chances of beating the Volunteers. Add to that Tennessee’s elite diving squad – which captured the top three spots in both diving events – and NU was digging itself out of a 20-point deficit going into the evening session.
The Cats did pull within 10 points in the evening, but Tennessee’s lead was just too much to overcome.
Against Auburn, NU didn’t have enough depth to keep up with the Tigers, who were in control the entire meet after winning five of seven freestyle events.
“They just have more national-level talent than we do right now,” Tierney said. “Their freestyle group is one of the best in the country. That’s our thinnest area right now.”
Despite the disappointing outcome, NU did have some strong showings – even though the team was plagued by illnesses.
Katie Simmons, battling a cold, remained unbeaten in the 200 breaststroke with a winning time of 2:17.45. It’s an unexpected accomplishment for the freshman – but something that pumps her up for every meet.
She placed second in the 100 breaststroke as well, but Tierney said her individual medley was sub-standard. Simmons placed sixth in the 400 IM.
Simmons, however, said she was satisfied with the day’s results.
“I was pretty happy with (my performance),” she said. “It could have been a little better, but for our first meet in a month it wasn’t that bad.”
Although the distance swimmers as a whole did not meet Tierney’s expectations in the mile, Erica Rose stepped up to the challenge. She swam her best times of the season, placing second in both the 500 free and the 1,650 free.
One of NU’s more gutsy performances was turned in by Rachel Johnson, who also overcame illness to win the 200 butterfly with a time of 2:02.88. But like Simmons, Johnson wasn’t pleased with her IM performances. She placed fourth in both the 400 and 200 IMs.
Then again, she could hardly breathe.
“I was disappointed,” Johnson said between sniffles. “I don’t want to make excuses for myself, though. I gave my best effort.
“You just don’t think about (the illness). You put the team before yourself. You think as the team would.”
And Tierney believes this is a team with a lot more to come. It’s just a matter of time, he said.
“We did (make progress) in some areas, but not across the board,” Tierney said. “A team that is as lacking in depth as we are can’t afford that. You’re not going to have all your team hitting perfect every meet, but you have to be as close as possible.
“We’re young, we’re learning and we’ll get there.”
