The NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships are a chance for some of the young swimmers to showcase their talents on a big stage.
For others, it is the last hurrah before the end of a long career.
Senior Sean LeNeave will swim in his last championship, while freshmen Andrei Tuomola and Craig Hamilton are participating in their first.
The NCAA announced the five Tiger qualifiers Wednesday night. LeNeave, junior James Meyers and Tuomola already knew their times would get them in the championship meet, but Hamilton had to wait until the last minute to learn his fate.
Twenty-three ended up being the magic number for Hamiton, who grabbed the last spot in his event.
“He was either going to be the last one in or the first one out,” LeNeave said. “It’s awesome that he got in as a freshman.”
LeNeave, a three-time All-American this season, will take part in four relays and the 50-yard freestyle in his last competitive meet.
“It’s nice to go out like this,” LeNeave said. “It would have felt like I cut the rope short if I didn’t make it to NCAAs.”
The women’s team won’t have to say their goodbyes, as the Lady Tigers didn’t qualify any seniors in the meet. Junior All-American Jane Trepp, sophomore Mary Beck, sophomore Morgan McGee, sophomore Samantha Goates and freshman Amanda Kendall will swim for LSU in the women’s NCAA championships.
The Tigers and Lady Tigers hope to add members of the diving teams to the qualifying roster. Freshman Rebecca St. Germain, freshman Elle Schmidt, freshman Jesse Lyman and sophomore Brian Gemberling will compete for spots at the NCAA Championship via the NCAA Zone ‘D’ Diving Championship today.
Goates said the Lady Tigers think they can place well in some of their relays.
“I think we’re looking forward to getting top eight in some of our relays … especially in our 200-free … We’re not too far off of it,” Goates said. “It’s on the first day, so I’m pretty nervous about it.”
McGee said she expects the meet to be more low key than the Southeastern Conference Championship meet because they split up the men and women’s teams.
“It’s going to be shorter sessions, less people,” McGee said. “It’s going to be a little less intense, but still really exciting.”
LeNeave compared the SEC and NCAA meets to the Olympic Trials and the Olympics. LeNeave reasoned that the U.S. has the best swimmers in the world, making the Olympics like a “party” compared to that meet — a similar feeling to the NCAA and SEC meets.
“The SEC is the best conference in the country,” LeNeave said. “Placing 30th at the SEC meet could get you eighth in the NCAA meet.”
Once the dust settles on the championship meet, it’ll be back to business as usual for the NCAA competitors, who will join the rest of the team in spring training.
The women’s meet runs March 18-20 at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind. The men’s meet will follow the week after, running March 25-27 at Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio.——Contact Katherine Terrell at [email protected]