Northwestern University Athletics
Season Recap: Team Effort Leads To Ranked Success
4/15/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Swimming and Diving
April 15, 2005
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern's 2004-05 season was truly a tale of team success. From top to bottom, the Wildcats put together the best dual season in recent memory before finishing the year off strong with a veteran and a newcomer earning All-America accolades at the NCAA Championships.
Northwestern put together an 8-4 record this season, including a 5-2 mark against Big Ten foes. The Wildcats defeated three ranked opponents: No. 21 Indiana, No. 23 Tennessee and No. 8 Michigan. The Wildcats closed the season ranked No. 25 by the College Swimming Coaches Association of America (CSCAA).
"The team did a great job early in the year, committing to a high work ethic and buying into our training plan," NU Head Coach Jimmy Tierney said. "We discussed the fact that with our small numbers, every individual would play a key role in our team having success this year. These factors combined to pay off with three big victories over nationally ranked teams."
Northwestern kicked off the season with a dual victory over UW-Milwaukee before sweeping the NU Relays.
Then on Nov. 5 in Bloomington, the Wildcats served notice that this would be a special year. Seniors Christy Olin (Glen Ellyn, Ill./Glenbard West) and Brielle Bovee (Winter Park, Fla./Lake Highland Prep), junior Katie Paglini (Chicago, Ill./The Latin School) and freshman Andrea Hupman (Lawrenceville, Ga./Brookwood) all turned in early-season NCAA `B' standards and helped NU upend the 21st-ranked Hoosiers, 159-141.
"The senior class definitely played a major role in leading this team both in the pool and out," Tierney said. "No doubt the success early on of Brielle and Christy helped spur us on to victories and increased the team's confidence level."
Northwestern dropped its next two meets against Purdue and No. 10 Wisconsin, but divers Leanne Dumais (Ventura, Calif./Buena) and Beth Campbell (Burr Ridge, Ill./Fenwick) both qualified for NCAA Zones against the Badgers.
The Wildcats concluded their fall schedule with a first-place finish at their own TYR Invitational, beating out four other teams. Hupman was named Swimmer of the Meet after setting Norris Aquatics Center records in the 100 and 200 freestyle events.
After a training trip to the Bahamas, NU returned for the winter portion of the schedule much renewed. The 'Cats took out their second ranked opponent of the season on Jan. 8 with a 184-167 win over No. 23 Tennessee.
Leading by eight heading into the final event -- the 400 free relay -- NU needed a win or a 2-3 finish to secure the victory. Sophomore Ashley Welnhofer (Wilmette, Ill./New Trier) kept the race tight in the opening leg before Hupman opened up a significant lead. Senior Lori Schwanhausser (Ridgefield, Conn./Ridgefield) and junior Michelle Oeser (Eliot, Maine/Brown) brought the relay home in first to wrap up the win.
Hupman and Dumais swept the Big Ten Swimmer/Diver of the Week awards for their efforts against the Lady Vols.
After losses to top Pac-10 programs Arizona and Washington, the Wildcats swept their final four dual meets of the season against Big Ten foes Illinois, No. 8 Michigan, Ohio State and Iowa.
The win against the Wolverines was a true team effort. Olin, Paglini, Bovee and Hupman took first in the 400 medley relay to lead off the meet and NU never looked back. Bovee captured both breast events, while Olin and freshman Katie Braun (Edina, Minn./Edina) combined to sweep the fly strokes.
Dumais won both diving boards, and NU again swept the weekly Big Ten accolades, with Bovee and Dumais picking up the hardware.
Northwestern swam well at the Big Ten Championships, finishing seventh after numerous Wildcats swam personal-best times and nine student-athletes scored points.
Hupman finished sixth in the 50 free, then a day later captured third in the 200 free with an NCAA `A' standard. On the final day of competition, she earned her second `A' time in the 100 free. Her time in the 100 was the second-fastest in NU history.
Freshman Carrera Harris (Shafter, Calif./Shafter), Bovee, Olina and Hupman led the 400 medley relay to a third place finish. Individually, Harris pointed in the 100 and 200 backstrokes.
Bovee took fourth in the 100 breast, swimming the second-fastest time in school history. She ended up third in the 200 breast with a personal-best time. Both efforts earned her invites to the NCAA Championships.
Junior Amy Mueller (Tampa, Fla./Hillsborough) captured 15th in the 500 free, 11th in the 400 IM and 13th in the 1650 free. Braun also pointed in the 400 IM, finishing ninth, and the 100 fly, taking 11th. On the final day, Braun was eighth in the 200 fly.
Paglini scored in the 200 IM and the 200 back.
Olin finished sixth in the 100 fly and 14th in the 200 IM. She took second place in the 200 fly for the second-consecutive year, and earned invites to the NCAA Championships in all of her events.
Senior Michaela Restivo (Douglastown, N.Y./Trinity School) narrowly missed pointing for NU in the 100 fly, finishing 19th with a personal-best time. Schwanhausser did the same in the 200 free, finishing in 19th with a personal-best effort. She was even closer in the 100 free, finishing 17th.
Hupman and Olin both earned second-team All-Big Ten honors, NU's first such honorees since 2002.
While the whole team performed well at the Championships, it was the freshmen who most caught the coaching staff's eye.
"The coaches were ecstatic with the performance of our freshmen during their first seasons," Tierney said. "They responded well to our team focus and infused much needed enthusiasm. We could not have reasonably expected the level of their contribution this first year."
The Wildcats rounded out the season with Bovee, Olin and Hupman participating at the NCAA Championships. Hupman finished 14th in the 100 free and Olin took 16th in the 200 fly to earn honorable mention All-America honors and put Northwestern in 36th place.
"We were pleased to have three swimmers qualify this year," Tierney said. "Two of them were fortunate enough to respond with performances earning them All-America honors. I am extremely proud of all three. We expect our team to perform at the highest levels in NCAA competition and hope this is the start of bigger and better things. I think other members of this team will see themselves capable of qualifying for the NCAA's in the future."
