All last week, the Wildcats pumped themselves up for their Senior Day meet against Ohio State on Saturday. However, one senior was a little more excited to swim than the others, because she was almost unable to participate in the meet due to illness.
“I’m incredibly grateful that I was able to even swim today, ” senior Katie Braun said.
From the way she swam, it was hard to tell she had been sick. Braun won both the 100 and 200 butterfly with NCAA ‘B’ qualifying times and swam on the winning 400 medley relay team during Northwestern’s 167-133 domination of the Buckeyes.
“I’m glad that I am able to end my career on that note,” Braun said. “I’ll be able to look back and say ‘Awesome, I ended with wins, I ended this season the way I started it,’ and that’s ultimately what I really wanted to do.”
Braun was not the only senior with a standout Senior Day. Senior Andrea Hupman won both the 100 and 200 freestyle, also with NCAA ‘B’ qualifying times, and swam on the winning 400 medley relay and 200 free relay teams.
“It was one of my best meets and definitely some of my best swims this season, and it’s great to go out like that,” Hupman said.
Senior divers Leanne Dumais and Beth Campbell had standout meets as well against a strong Ohio State diving program.
While the seniors shined during the meet, the underclassmen also contributed to the Cats’ victory. Junior Hayley Fry won the 100 breaststroke, came in second in the 200 breast and swam on the winning 400 medley and 200 free relay teams. Sophomore Genny Szymanski won the 200 backstroke with a season-best time.
“There (were) a lot girls coming around, so it’s exciting for us,” coach Jimmy Tierney said. “(The Senior Day) meet is always special for us, no doubt, but I think this was one of our best.”
The underclassmen also played their part out of the pool to make Senior Day memorable for the graduating swimmers. The girls spent the week surprising the seniors with gifts and decorating their lockers.
“It just made the whole week really special and leading up to this meet I couldn’t have asked for anything more,” Hupman said.
The excitement surrounding Senior Day, coupled with NU’s success across the board at the meet motivated the team and lifted their energy level after several weeks of hard training.
“It just feels great to win the meet,” Hupman added. “The competitive spirit that we had all day long is what makes this sport so great and makes the team so great, because we all come together and reach our goals. I am looking forward to carrying that into Big Tens.”
Tierney seems even more pleased than his swimmers at the conclusion of Saturday’s meet.
“They all performed beautifully and I’m excited for them, because they are a great group of girls and they deserve it. They all worked hard!”
Reach Bette Marston at [email protected].
