Oct. 24, 2002
EVANSTON, Ill. - It is often said that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. For Northwestern women's swimming and diving coach Jimmy Tierney, he hopes that is the case with his squad during the 2002-03 season.
With All-American Merritt Adams departed due to graduation, the Wildcats may not have as many individuals who can put forth a dominating performance meet-in and meet-out. Instead Tierney will look for a number of talented individuals who can provide strong performances in the hopes of coming together as a firm nucleus once the Big Ten and NCAA Championships come around.
"We won't say where we want to finish in the Big Ten," Tierney stated. "We're going to deal much more with the process and doing things right from the start and supporting each other. We'll focus on building this team and taking them on this journey, hopefully with some exciting results.
"We're going to try to combine all of the special gifts that each person has and try to put it into the mix. I believe we have a recipe for success based on some wonderful people with a lot of talent."
The strength of the Northwestern team in recent history has been in the butterfly events. Last season, three of the six Wildcats that qualified for the NCAA meet participated in one of the fly events. The group is expected to lead the way again this season headed by seniors Carmen Cosgrove and Rachel Johnson who each automatically qualified for Nationals a year ago. Along with junior Erin Swenson and sophomores Paige Nath and Christy Olin the squad should be one of the best in the Big Ten. Freshman Janell Brodrick will also be looked at to contribute in the discipline.
"We have a good core of flyers there," Tierney said. "We can cover the 100 and the 200 very well and that is a huge asset."
In the sprint freestyle, Cosgrove is the top returner, especially in the 100, but there should be plenty of help, including from a pair of newcomers. Freshman Sara Petric is coming off capturing Wisconsin state championships in the 50 and 100 free. The Wildcats went across the Atlantic Ocean to reel in Marijana Surkovic who competed for Croatia at the 2000 Summer Olympics and placed seventh in the 50 free at the 2000 Junior European Championships. Sophomore Maria Reeves will help the depth in the events, as will fellow second-year returnees Michaela Restivo, Lori Schwanhausser and Shuyan Phua.
The middle free has been a shared role in the past, but Swenson brings experience to the table. Junior Katie Simmons, who worked mainly in other events, including the breaststroke and IM, is expected to help solidify the position in the lineup. Junior Vicky West, a Big Ten Champion in the 1650 free in 2001, will also be asked to contribute in the middle distance range.
Experience is prevalent in the distance events as West and fellow junior Erica Rose return. Rose, an accomplished open water swimmer, was named the US Swimming Open Water Swimmer of the Year in September after winning the 10K Nationals as well as a race in China. West competed in the 1650 at the NCAA meet in 2002. Freshman Amy Mueller will also step into the distance lineup.
One area that has depth issues is the backstroke. However, freshman Katie Paglini is expected to be an instant impact in the discipline. Paglini is the Illiniois state record-holder in the 100 and 200 back and was a US National finalist in the 100 back in 2001. Sophomore Rachel Tepe is coming off shoulder surgery in the off-season and may be able to add to the event as long as her health isn't a concern. Nath will add the backstroke to her repetoire as well this year.
"There is a little bit of a depth issue there," said Tierney, "but we also have someone on the high end, in Katie, who is a talent on the national level. We're confident the other girls will step up to help."
Simmons returns at the breaststroke where she will provide veteran leadership after competing in both the 100 and 200 at the NCAA Championships last season. Sophomore Brielle Bovee came on strong at the end of last season and will provide a solid 1-2 punch to the lineup with Simmons. Lesley Meade and also Johnson will round out a quality quartet of Wildcat backstrokers.
The IM squad is very strong, as Swenson, Nath and Johnson all return. Paglini will contribute in the 200 while the 400 will be solid with Simmons and Rose possibly figuring into the mix.
"We're really excited about our depth in the event," Tierney said. "We should be getting some NCAA qualifiers in that event."
The relay events were the one in years past where Northwestern made its mark on the national level. Tierney hopes that the team's depth will help the Wildcats to put together strong relay squads that could score at the NCAA Championships.
"We're going to focus a lot on the relays from the team aspect," according to Tierney. "Whatever four girls we bring into the relay events, hopefully they will be stronger as a team than they are as individuals."
Behind third-year coach Tom Michael, the Wildcats return one of their most experienced diving groups in years, headed by sophomore Ashley Carter. Carter earned Big Ten Diver of the Week honors last season after totaling one of the highest six-dive scores in NU history in a meet against Penn State. She could make an impact on both the conference and national levels this season. Seniors Christy Michalak and Kristin Ward also hope to contribute as Northwestern looks to have multiple divers score at the Big Ten Championships for the first time.
"They've got the veteran knowledge and experience to be very important to us this year," Tierney said of the seniors. "Carter will see great success before her career is over at NU. She is our future."