The fall quarter for the UCLA swim and dive team saw a finale featuring strong performances from freshman backstroker/freestyler Madison White and freshman Linnea Mack in freestyle, backstroke and butterfly.
The two will need to rely on performances such as these to continue if they are to replicate the form of last year’s team following the winter break. Last year, UCLA came out of the break with three straight victories against San Diego State, Kansas and Simon Fraser.
Last quarter at the Texas Invitational, Mack set the school record for the 100m backstroke, and along with White, finished in the top four. Mack was part of a relay team that broke the school record in the 200m medley relay . White finished fifth in the 200m backstroke.
Coach Cyndi Gallagher said she felt that the two freshmen did an incredible job of stepping up.
“This was their first big travel meet with UCLA and the competition (was) intense,” Gallagher said. “They did a really good job of stepping up, swimming in their own lane and swimming fast.”
The team, while loaded with freshman talent like Mack and White, is also rich in senior leadership. One of those leaders whom the younger Bruins will rely on in the winter season is senior Lauren Baker.
Baker set the tone for the upcoming season with a win to finish the Texas Invitational, taking the 1650-yard freestyle.
Mack noted that she was impressed by how Baker attacked the race in Texas, winning by nearly six seconds and posting a time of 16:06.86.
UCLA will see some tough opponents this spring according to various seniors on the team, and the freshmen will need to be prepared. The Bruins are looking to avoid the way they ended their schedule last year, losing three straight meets to Stanford, Cal and USC.
UCLA will face Stanford, Cal and USC again, teams that are ranked in the NCAA at No. 2, No. 3 and No. 6, respectively. Baker, however, is confident in the future of UCLA swim and dive, especially after the performances of the freshmen in Texas.
“Maddie and Linnea stepped it up, and I think the future for UCLA swimming looks really good,” said Baker.