Swimming sends off seniors with a win

The Tigers jumped to an early lead against Iowa State.

By Sean Leahy

Published Jan. 26, 2009

Before its competition against Iowa State, Missouri honored 10 seniors who were about to participate in their last regular season home meet.

Once the starting siren sounded, representatives from every class pitched in to help Missouri's seniors say goodbye in style with a 178-117 victory at Mizzou Aquatic Center.

"They've been the legacy of this facility," coach Brian Hoffer said of his seniors. "They were the first class in here and they were the ones who really set the tone for the future."

Once the meet started, Missouri quickly recovered from an emotional ceremony and took care of its conference rivals.

Missouri compiled five first-place finishes in the first six events of the meet, including taking the top three spots in the 200-yard butterfly. In all, the Tigers placed first in 11 of the 16 total events.

"The whole team got up today, the underclassmen as well as the seniors," senior Lori Halvorson said. "That made us have a lot of energy."

Halvorson hadn't competed heavily in the 200-yard backstroke since her freshman year, but she shook off the rust and placed first in the event.

"I was just really focusing on not letting my legs die for the last 100 meters," Halvorson said. "I think it turned out really well for me."

Even though it was the seniors who were showcased before the meet, it was the younger Tigers who made their presence known.

Freshman Stephanie Rovig captured the 200-yard freestyle title by two seconds and freshman Lisa Nathanson took first in the 100-yard freestyle and contributed to the winning 200-yard medley relay.

"This is their time," Hoffer said. "They need to start stepping up because these seniors are going to be graduating."

Also adding to Missouri's depth was sophomore Francie Szostak. She helped pace the Tigers by capturing a 100-yard backstroke victory and a second place finish in the 100-yard freestyle.

By the time the meet was halfway over, Missouri held a commanding lead.

"We all knew we could do it," Szostak said. "Once you get that momentum rolling and everyone is getting behind each other, it's easy to swim fast."

Missouri is in the midst of a five-week span with a meet every weekend.

"We are training at a very high level, which means we are pretty tired," Hoffer said. "I was a little tentative coming into the meet but I really felt like they responded to some Big 12 challenges."

Trips to Iowa and Nebraska round out the regular season for Missouri before they come back home for the Missouri Grand Prix and Big 12 Championships.

"We just have to take the energy that we have at our home pool and bring it to Iowa and Nebraska," Szostak said.