Wednesday, March 11, 1998
The best just got bEtter
SWIMMING: UCLA swimmer takes her enthusiasm straight into the
record books
By Steve Kim
Daily Bruin Staff
Oh look, little Lindsay’s all grown up.
When senior swimmer Lindsay Etter was a freshman, she used to
get together with her freshman teammates and have late-night chats
in the dorms. One night, they decided to give each other nicknames.
Everyone saw Etter as Bubblelicious.
After three years, Bubblelicious still fits her well. She’s
cheerful, friendly and outgoing.
She’s the girl next door.
Etter frequently speaks on the phone with her parents in Spring,
Texas. She’s a dedicated girlfriend, and she’s just as dedicated to
going to church and attending Bible study. And after she graduates,
she would like to be a kindergarten teacher.
How can someone so wholesome be a lean, not-so-mean,
record-breaking machine?
It just so happens that Lindsay Etter is the UCLA record holder
in both the 100 and 200 breaststrokes. She first broke these school
records her sophomore year at the 1996 NCAA Championships.
Last season, she went on to break both of her records at the
NCAAs, decreasing her times to 1:00.77 and 2:11.59. Although Etter
came in third in that record-breaking race, she says winning
doesn’t mean as much as good efforts and good performances.
"That was just a great race," Etter said. "I never thought I’d
ever go that fast. There’s hardly any race where you think, ‘Is
there anything I could’ve done better?’ and you answer no. It was
all happiness."
This season Etter continued to take charge of almost every
breaststroke race, including the 100 breast in the Pac-10s, in
which she tied the conference record.
Being a superb technician, Etter doesn’t need the raw, muscular
strength found in many of her competitors. She makes her swimming
look so easy, while her competitors look strained and exhausted as
they come into the wall behind her.
Someone as good as Etter can afford to be brash, but she remains
modest and quickly turns the spotlight away. Staying true to her
gracious personality, she adds that one of the most memorable
moments in the NCAA Championships meet was watching her senior
teammate Jill Jenkins making a comeback after back surgery.
"Watching Jill swim her lifetime best in her 50 freestyle after
being out for so long – that was really huge for me. She’s one of
my best friends."
Besides Etter’s lists of UCLA swimming accomplishments and
records, her extrascholastic competition experience includes the
’96 Olympic trials and ’97 World University Games in Sicily,
Italy.
"Like every other swimmer, I’ve always wanted to go to the
Olympics ever since I was kid," Etter said. "As you get older, you
realize it’s a lot harder than you thought. Actually making and
going to the trials is huge.
"One that might even top that was the silver medal we won at the
World University Games. Swimming for the United States,
representing my country, being with three other great girls in
another country – that was top. It was like a whole bunch of goals
reached at once."
It’s hard to imagine such a successful competitor being afraid
of challenges, but that was the case not so many years ago. Diving
into a Division I program with little previous experience, Etter
remembers a time when her nerves were less like steel and more like
Jell-o.
"I came in really timid as a freshman, sort of fearful and
scared of challenging myself. I used to pray a lot because I’d get
so scared before races that I couldn’t breathe. It’s such an
involuntary thing. I was so tied up inside. The last thing I wanted
to do was stop in the middle of a race because I couldn’t
breathe."
Over the years, Etter learned to overcome her fears through
gaining experience in the swimming program. She also gives credit
to her faith and a lot of praying.
"I just say, ‘OK, Lord, let’s do this.’ Faith helped me a lot.
And my coach, Cyndi, has given me a lot of room to grow as a person
and as a swimmer. I’m thankful for the program ’cause it has
allowed me to become someone a lot stronger inside. You know, in
the long run, that’s what really counts."
Head coach Cyndi Gallagher attests to Etter’s improvement.
"Lindsay came into the program with a lot of potential but
little experience," Gallagher said. "No one in swimming knew much
about her, but I knew her high school coach. I watched her swim and
at that point, I knew she was going to be good. She came in here
and has not stopped improving. She’s really done well in our
swimming program, which gets swimmers to improve year after
year."
As the NCAA Championships approach, Etter works to get even
better. This is the event that she’s been waiting for. This is the
event where she will try to lower her own school record again.
"The NCAAs is the meet that I think about all year long," Etter
said. "It’s a one-time deal, one-time try."
It will also be her last swimming competition as an
NCAA-eligible Bruin. She has a couple of extrascholastic swimming
races planned after the season, but realizing her college
experience is coming to an end, she says she’ll shift her focus to
her career. She’s leaning toward becoming a kindergarten teacher,
but whatever she does, Etter hopes it’ll be meaningful.
"When I’m done swimming, I hope I can find something that I can
pour my heart into and motivates me as much as swimming does.
Besides swimming, I really haven’t had the chance to try other
facets in life. I’m excited to see where else I can ask myself to
give a hundred percent."
All her years at UCLA have made Lindsay Etter a mature,
profound, gracious woman. She has come a long way.
She stares nostalgically at the vacant swimming pool. Calm,
silent and reflective. Peaceful. Strange.
Just moments ago, the same pool was invigorated with lively
splashes of Etter and her teammates.
After a moment of quiet self-reminiscing, words finally flow out
of her mouth.
"I’m sure there’s more to come when swimming’s not here, but
it’ll sure be different without those early mornings of practice
sessions. I’ll miss the camaraderie and teammates. I’ll miss being
so driven. Pushing the limit, testing myself mentally and
physically, hearing the heartbeat in my ear. It’s hard and it’s
draining, but it’s exciting at the same time because you walk away
with so much satisfaction out of a workout.
"It’s funny how much you can learn swimming. I remember my
freshman year when Cyndi kicked me out of practice because I
couldn’t do the butterfly right. I kept doing one-armed butterfly
instead. She finally said, ‘Don’t come back till you’re ready to
swim.’
"It’s so funny to look back at that now and how far I’ve come
along."