By Scott Schultz
Daily Bruin Contributor
LONG ISLAND “”mdash; For senior swimmers Beth Goodwin and Brighid
Dwyer, the NCAA Championships were the defining moments of their
swimming careers at UCLA.
After four years of grueling two-a-day practices, the aquatic
athletes will soon be able to sleep late and focus extra energy
towards their studies.
Both swimmers will leave the UCLA swimming program at the peak
of their careers, Goodwin with a personal-best fourth place finish
in the 100-yard butterfly, and Dwyer with a personal best time in
her final 100-yd backstroke.
“We were led by our two seniors,” Head Coach Cyndi
Gallagher said. “It’s such a great moment to have our
seniors go out at their best. They’ve been training and
working so hard and they did it.”
Both seniors were reflective with positive memories about their
UCLA careers and took great pride in representing the Bruin
tradition.
“Just being able to represent UCLA is huge,” Goodwin
said. “Especially that I’ve been able to do it for four
years, I realize now what a wonderful experience it’s
been.”
“To be at the NCAA championships and to be a part of UCLA
is really amazing,” she added.
Dwyer, whose pre-swim ritual of leaping up and down alarmed the
staid judges on the pool deck, was able to lop off nearly two
seconds on her 100-yd backstroke for the second season in a row, a
remarkable achievement for a sprint race.
“I’ve been competing for 16 years and I feel like
every year since I’ve been here I’ve gotten
better,” Dwyer said. “It’s so hard to walk away
knowing that if I kept swimming I’d probably keep getting
better, but there are other things I want to do with my
life.”
Both seniors will graduate with cherished memories of their
experiences at the championships.
“Last year when I made the NCAA championship for the first
time I was so surprised,” Dwyer said. “I realized that
I can compete with the best. That was great. I loved
that.”
“Just standing there (on the winner’s podium,) I
feel like I’ve come so far,” Goodwin said. “And
to have someone who’s gone through it with me for four years
like Brighid, it’s nice. It’s really, really nice to
have her here.”
Dwyer and Goodwin also commented how great it was that senior
diver Anne Baghramian qualified for diving at the NCAA
Championships.
“I think having her here is great, because we had both
components of our team here,” Dwyer said.
Dwyer intends to focus her energies towards graduating and
pursuing a career in teaching, coaching or athletic
administration.
“Maybe some day I’ll swim again, but I think
I’ll need a break for a while,” Dwyer said.
Goodwin will have to wait at least a few more months before she
makes any decision about retiring from the pool altogether.
On March 29 she made the World University Games, which will be
held in Beijing in August. Goodwin will compete in the 100-yd
butterfly.
Prior to making the international team, Goodwin said that she is
not quite ready to retire and has her sights set on trying for a
spot on the 2004 U.S. Olympic team.
“It’s kind of hard to stop, when I feel like I can
still grow in the sport,” she said. “That’s the
only thing holding me back from retiring.
“In a few years when I do retire, I probably won’t
touch the pool,” Goodwin added. “But I know eventually,
when I’m 40 or 50, I’ll swim again.”