The upcoming Big Ten women’s swimming and diving championships haven’t robbed Northwestern senior co-captain Tashy Bohm of any sleep in recent weeks.
How has she dodged the stress? She’s kept her mind off the pool.
“The less I focus on my race, the better,” Bohm said. “I just try to keep the stress levels low.”
Easy-going attitude and all, Bohm’s quest for her third-straight Big Ten title in the 200-yard backstroke begins tonight as the Wildcats travel to Bloomington, Ind., for this year’s conference championships.
No. 18 NU placed third overall at last year’s event, but coach Jimmy Tierney said he’s more concerned about getting a first-class effort from his team.
“We’re going to take each session and treat it like a dual meet,” Tierney said. “I want them to bring the intensity out that they do in the dual meets.”
“Placing matters, but that will come if they focus on doing their best.”
To maintain a cool and relaxed atmosphere in the past few weeks of training, NU swimmers tapered – a training technique in which workouts become lighter to prevent fatigue. And to ensure that his squad maintains its mental edge, Tierney put his swimmers through visualization and reaction drills – in which the Cats swim virtual races in their minds.
These techniques, Tierney said, have produced results
“We’ve seen a lot of them come around and show their best speeds,” he said.
Tierney will be counting on the relays throughout the championships – they’re team-oriented events and are worth the most points.
Relays cap the daily schedule, and Tierney said a strong showing will be a good way to end each of the three sessions.
Individual performances will also be a key to the Cats’ success this weekend.
Not only will Bohm attempt to win her third-straight 200 back title, but she will be looking to improve on last year’s second-place finish in the 100 back. Even so, she said, winning is not her No. 1 priority.
“I’m not concentrating on what place I get,” Bohm said. “I’m looking to swim my fastest and better my times. I’d like to go out with a bang.”
Merritt Adams, too, will be defending a Big Ten title – the 200 butterfly, which she won last year. So far this season, Adams has dominated the 100 fly; she boasts five first-place finishes.
Tierney is also confident his younger swimmers can contribute with big performances.
Sophomore Rachel Johnson is seeded first in the 200 fly, while freshmen Erica Rose and Vicki West are seeded third and fifth in the mile, respectively. Freshman Katie Simmons is also entering the meet on the right foot – she went undefeated in the 200 breaststroke during the regular season.
Bohm, competing in the final Big Ten championships of her career, said she uses her experience and her role as team leader to calm the freshmen down.
“I just tell them to have fun,” Bohm said. “Putting too much pressure (on themselves) makes the stress too hard. I just try to keep the atmosphere light and tell them to do their best.”
Even if the Cats perform at their best, Bohm said, it’s difficult to determine where they will place. She expects jumbled results, with five other ranked teams competing in the meet: No. 13 Wisconsin, No. 14 Penn State, No. 16 Michigan, No. 19 Minnesota and No. 21 Indiana.
Still, Tierney said his team must swim to perfection and not be concerned with its competition. He just wants them to “try and get their hands to the wall first.”
