By Brian ReganThe Daily Northwestern
Competition lives in Matt Grevers.
The two-time NCAA 100-yard backstroke champion wants to race under all conditions, especially ones filled with pressure.
“If I get a crowd behind me, it makes all the difference,” Grevers said. “The adrenaline flows and you can take off.”
His performances and leadership this season are a big reason why Northwestern is ranked No. 7 in the country and has beaten Indiana and Purdue in consecutive meets for the first time in more than 10 years.
So far this season, Grevers has not lost an event despite still harboring a rib injury from an ultimate Frisbee accident. The Frisbee incident showcases Grevers’ resolve to do whatever it takes to win.
“(Mike Alexandrov) threw a high pass and I was running for it,” Grevers said. “I was looking the other way and there was a trash can in front of me. Ouch.”
Coming into the season behind in his training makes the senior more determined to work for his goals on a shorter timetable. His determination has drawn both admiration from his teammates and recruits.
“A lot of the reason I came to this school was because of Matt,” junior Kyle Bubolz said. “We raced in high school and the results were always back and forth.”
Since then both swimmers have gone into their respective events, Grevers the backstroke and Bubolz the fly.
That will be the case until the squad’s internal competition gets the better of them , or if Grevers get his wish and tries new events.
“I want to do the 100 fly,” Grevers said, “and try to take down Kyle Bubolz, the reigning Big Ten champ, or take down Mike Alexandrov in the 200 IM.”
The last time Grevers did that was two years ago against Alexandrov, where Grevers recorded his best time in the event and pushed Alexandrov to one of his best marks.
Even in practice, the team challenges each other to races in the workouts themselves.
Aside from his desire to beat his teammates, Grevers has set high goals for both the team and himself.
“Look for Matt Grevers to win all his individuals at NCAAs,” he said. “It may or may not happen, but I’m just putting that out there.”
Whether Grevers can build on his successes from the last three seasons is something that will be left to chance and some luck.
But Bubolz is certain about one thing.
“Matt believes he can beat anybody at anything, which is a good quality,” he said. “But as far as him beating me in the fly, no way.”
Reach Brian Regan at [email protected].
