Members of the LSU swimming and diving teams spent their summers away from the usual drudgery of class and work.
They traveled across the globe to take part in major swim meets. LSU swimmers placed in the 2010 USA Swimming National Championships, the 2010 European Championships and the 2010 AT&T Diving National Championship.
Sophomore Amanda Kendall led the pack of six LSU swimmers with a 23rd-place finish in the 100-meter butterfly at the USA meet in Irvine, Calif.
Kendall said she had significantly improved since going to the USA Junior Nationals in the same place four years earlier.
Seniors Kannon Betzen and Clint Hallum also swam in the meet, along with sophomores Sara Haley, Audrey Lawson, Jana Ruimerman and Chelsea Griffiths.
Kendall said she had been itching to get back to work after having surgeries to remove her tonsils and a cyst on her wrist. The surgeries came with orders to stay out of the water for a while.
“I was cut off,” Kendall said. “No water, no swimming. But once I got the okay I swam my butt off until California.”
Kendall described the meet as “awesome,” both in her performance and in the general environment. ESPN televised some of the races, and a few big names showed up  — notably 14-time Olympic gold medal winner Michael Phelps, three-time gold medalist Ryan Lochte and backstroke specialist Aaron Peirsol.
“Everyone was there,” Kendall said. “Michael Phelps was there. It makes it exciting.”
Kendall said the famous swimmers energized the atmosphere and gave her a chance to watch and learn.
“Even if you don’t make it back to finals, it makes you want to go back and just watch them swim,” Kendall said. “You can learn a lot from watching someone swim.”
Junior diver Brian Gemberling had a similar feeling in his first experience at the USA Diving Nationals. Gemberling competed in both the 3-meter and the 1-meter dives, although he just barely made the cut in the 1-meter.
Gemberling said he was not sure what to expect in a meet with three Olympian divers.
“Just like any sport, if you see an Olympian, you get nervous,” Gemberling said.
The Levittown, Pa., native came out of the quarterfinals of the three-meter event in fifth place, but dropped to 17th after balking (walking to the end of the board and stopping) on his fourth dive.
In the men’s one-meter event, Gemberling placed 23rd.
“I was pretty happy with how I did overall,” Gemberling said.
Sophomores Rebecca St. Germain and Jesse Lyman also participated in the meet. Germain placed 28th in the women’s one-meter but Lyman had to withdraw from the competition with an injury.
A few thousand miles away, LSU senior Jane Trepp and sophomore Andrei Tuomola competed in the European Championships in Budapest, Hungary.
The two swimmers represented their native countries of Estonia and Finland, respectively.
Trepp spent the summer cutting down the intensity of her practices and preparing for the meet. The five-time All-American finished 17th in the 50-meter breaststroke and 20th in the 50-meter butterfly.
She was disappointed.
“I had really high expectations for the meet since December,” Trepp said.
Tuomola swam in five races, placing 38th in the men’s 50-meter breaststroke.
 
 
 
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Contact Katherine Terrell at [email protected]