Swimmers turn early hours, long practices into Big Ten title

After a long season of practices, waking up at 5:30 a.m. four days a week and practicing each afternoon for upward of three hours, it came down to the meet of the season: the 2007 Big Ten women’s swimming and diving championships. \nNotably, as a member of one of the fastest conferences with the most depth of talent in the nation, our young team (17 freshmen, eight sophomores, four juniors and seven seniors) arrived at the first day of competition with a warrior mentality set on winning a championship. \nThis meant battling Michigan and Penn State, who were pre-scored to take the title. Competing for the second Big Ten title in IU women’s swimming history proved to be a challenging start and a rewarding finish.\nAs six grueling sessions of swimming unfolded, after each competition session the IU women earned the reputation as being stronger than ever. The unification of our fresh young talent and valuable upperclassman experience resulted in an unforgettable perfect, 5-0 season and the 2007 Big Ten win! \nWhile other teams’ weariness became evident in their performances by the third day, IU fully gained its momentum and never looked back. Fully shaved and in our fast skins, we raced to win our heats, accumulating points in every event. Each individual race had the support and cheering of the entire team and parents. No voices held back support. \nUltimately, we were able to outlast our competition due to our intense training, dedication and passion. The dreadful days of waking up early to jump in a cold pool for a good workout proved to be worth it.\nAfter two days in the battle for contention for first place, on the final day, we kept blazing ahead. Diving took the top awards and remained impressive, to say the least. While at the championships, we drew on our preparation. Our demanding training of the whole season was painful, drained us of energy daily and was a struggle to survive at times. But we stayed committed, and it paid off.\nIn some championships, the outcome is decided by the final event. Our victory was secured by the last couple of events. No team could touch us. We finally secured a winning position, not by several close points, but by a dominating margin that couldn’t be touched. \nWe proudly represented IU. We were crowned champions and the celebrating began. The shirts and hats were passed out, as well as the huge trophy! Then, as swimming tradition has it, fully clothed in warm-ups, the team, including coaches and staff, made one final entry into the pool – with jumps, belly flops, flips and a whole lot of smiles! \nWe had accomplished what we had set out to do from the very beginning of the year. It takes a special team to win a championship, and our team had great chemistry and the potential to do something great from the beginning.\nAs a senior class, we are ending our collegiate careers on top, hoping our young team will continue our legacy with consecutive Big Ten titles and top national standings.