Why leave a team that had just solidified itself as the best in
the nation? Why move away from the part of the country where you
grew up and made a name for yourself? Why test unsure waters when
you have gotten used to success in one of the nation’s most
competitive pools?
And what, after a bold departure from one school, would you be
feeling when you return to compete against your old teammates in
another uniform?
Junior Taylor Spivey, an Atlanta native, was one of Auburn
University’s bright young stars in 2001. In Spivey’s
freshman year, the backstroker won the 100-meter backstroke at the
SEC conference meet and set the school record in the 200m back.
“In the Pac-10, winning is a big deal, but in the SEC,
they pretty much give you a medal of honor for winning,” head
UCLA swim coach Cyndi Gallagher said. “It is a huge
deal.”
So why then did Spivey choose to transfer from Auburn, which had
just won a national title, after her sophomore season?
“The swim program was very intense,” Spivey said.
“There was a lot of pressure, right away. I was the only
backstroker my freshman year, which meant that if I screwed up, a
relay would be screwed up. I was used to a much more laid-back
style of training, and Auburn expected my entire life to be
swimming. It was a lot to ask.
“Eventually I really started to hate swimming. I hated the
look of a pool, I didn’t want to get in a pool, and so I was
not motivated to go to practice. I had always wanted to go out to
California, so it just seemed like a great time to make the
change,” she said.
Spivey found exactly what she was looking for at UCLA. Gallagher
and assistant coach Greg Meehan concentrate on more than just a
swimmer’s performance in the pool, which is very important
for Spivey.
“Greg and Cyndi want you to be a great swimmer as well as
a great person,” she said. “They are more focused on
shaping well-rounded girls. They care about us in and out of the
pool. Auburn had great coaches ““ they got me to where I am
today, but at UCLA, I am more than just a swimmer. I get to have a
life ““ I get to be in a sorority ““ things that I
couldn’t do at Auburn.”
The social aspect of Spivey’s life contributes to her
success in the pool. While supportive, Spivey’s sorority
sisters at Pi Beta Phi are not focused solely on Spivey as a
swimmer.
“I love my sorority, the girls I have met in Pi Phi are my
best friends,” Spivey said. “In high school, I did not
have any friends who were also swimmers. The girls in Pi Phi give
me that same friendship that I was missing. When I am done with
practice, I enjoy being able to leave it in the pool. I can go and
swim my heart out and then leave and not have to worry about
it.”
Spivey’s story takes an interesting twist Thursday, as the
Bruins and her teammates venture across the continental United
States to compete in the NCAA swimming National Championships at
““ where else ““ Auburn University.
“It is going to be difficult, returning to my old home
pool,” Spivey said. “But I am more excited than
nervous. I turned around completely. People thought I was just
going to quit, but I came out here and started over again, and now
I am swimming just as fast as I was, so I get to show them what
they are missing.”
Spivey’s homecoming isn’t all nerves and revenge.
There are positive aspects of her return to the South.
“Going back into my old pool is going to make me swim
faster,” she said. “Not only am I going to be trying to
prove that I am as fast as I was a few years ago, but I’m
going to be swimming in front of a home crowd. My family has only
seen me swim once this year, and they are going to be there. My old
friends are going to be there. I have every reason to swim
fast.”
A writer couldn’t fashion a more perfect scene for Spivey
at Nationals this week. The pressure, the drama, the incentive for
the swimmer to exceed expectations belong not in a pool but in a
screenplay.
As Spivey returns home, accompanied by some new friends, a
fitting climax to the story seems apparent as Spivey tries to show
Auburn swimming what it is missing.