When the swim and dive team has to face four straight days of Pac-12 competition, sophomore Noelle Tarazona said the key to pushing through is taking each event one at a time.
This mindset led the Bruins to several individual successes and several broken records en route to a fifth-place finish at the weekend’s Pac-12 championships.
Coach Cyndi Gallagher said that having to be in peak condition for four days is not only physically draining, but mentally draining as well – an aspect of competition the team tried to prepare for ahead of time.
“We talked a lot about it and what it was going to be like,” she said. “Taking each session one at a time, one race at a time.”
Tarazona said she took this attitude to heart and found success with it. Her 200-medley relay team shattered a school record, as did her performances in the 400 IM and the 200 butterfly.
“I just took each day session by session and (tried) not looking too far ahead into the meet, just trying to have as much energy and keep the energy up,” she said.
The weekend marked a breakout performance for the sophomore, who has made major improvements since her first season as a Bruin.
“I haven’t made it onto the podium so far at a Pac-12 so that was really exciting,” Tarazona said.
The first of the Bruins’ podium wins came from sophomore diver Emma Ivory-Ganja, who earned third place in the 3-meter dive and second place in the platform event. Ivory-Ganja attributed her strong scores to the meet’s fun atmosphere, which allowed her to relax between events.
“I tried to take it easy when I had the chance and then when we had to dive just give it all my energy,” Ivory-Ganja said.
Senior Andrea Reigel, juniors Ting Quah, Lauren Baker and Emily Weir each also made their way onto the UCLA record books this weekend.
For the swimmers, the Pac-12 championship marked the last competition before the NCAA championships. The divers will get another chance to qualify at the NCAA Zone-E Championship. Regardless of what the next step is for the athletes, the team has already turned its attention toward their final challenge.
“The next step is getting ready for NCAA, figuring out how to go faster,” Reigel said.