Though the Cal women’s swimming team has won the NCAA championships three times in the last four years, the Bears are not necessarily making another championship their main goal.
“I don’t necessarily think our only goal is to win,” associate head coach Kristen Cunnane said. “Out of the other hundreds of times out there, I think if our only goal is to win, there’s a big chance we’ll be disappointed.”
Instead, No. 3 Cal will be focused on getting its strongest team together before the NCAAs in late March.
Departing from the multiteamed tournaments of the fall season, the Bears will face their Pac-12 competitors head-to-head for the first time this season in a series of dual meets.
“We’re focused on putting together the best team we can,” Cunnane said. “But our main goal is to use the dual meets to prepare for the end of the year.”
With the NCAA three-peat as a possibility this spring, the Bears will need the same strong performances that they had in the fall from freshman standouts Elizabeth Pelton, Rachel Bootsma and Kelly Naze as well as veterans Caitlin Leverenz and Cindy Tran.
Bootsma, an Olympic gold medalist, tied Leverenz in the 200 fly at the Georgia Fall Invitational in early December with an NCAA B qualifying time and has automatically qualified for the NCAAs with three relay teams. The Georgia Fall Invitational was the Bears’ biggest test thus far, as it pitted them against both No. 2 Georgia and No. 10 Virginia.
In order for Cal as a team to compete at the NCAA championships, the individual swimmers must first get qualifying times. With an A standard qualifying time, an athlete will qualify automatically for the championships, and a B standard time is a provisional qualifying time.
Pelton was also key in the Georgia Fall Invitational. Pelton not only won the 200 back but also broke her American record and Natalie Coughlin’s school record. Pelton, along with Bootsma, Leverenz and Cindy Tran, was part of the Cal 400 medley relay team that won in Athens, Ga.
Along with the impressive freshman class, captain Leverenz and two-time NCAA champion Tran have been key to Cal’s success in the fall season with wins individually and as part of relay teams at the Georgia Fall Invitational.
Cal raced several Pac-12 teams during the Arena Invitational but has yet to race the toughest Pac-12 teams. The Bears beat UCLA and Arizona State in the Invitational, but they will meet two of their biggest obstacles for a three-peat in the upcoming dual meets, including USC and Stanford.
No. 1 USC is Cal’s biggest competition in the Pac-12. The undefeated Trojans are led by captain Haley Anderson and freshman Jasmine Tosky. Anderson is the first American to medal in an Olympic marathon swim and is an NCAA champion in the 500 free. Tosky is a two-time World Champion in the 800 free relay.
Cal will also meet No. 7 Stanford in a dual meet. Stanford is spearheaded by Andi Murez, who was part of the 200 and 400 free relay teams that won the NCAA and Pac-12 titles.
Despite steep competition in the Pac-12, the Bears are focusing on the dual meets as a way to prepare for the Pac -12 Championships in March and the NCAA Championships later the same month.
Though the Bears can begin qualifying for the NCAAs in the fall season, the spring is when they focus on getting ready for the NCAAs. Losing dual meets does not necessarily affect Cal’s entry into the NCAAs, and individual qualification is entirely based on times.
At this moment, the team is just concerned with getting to the NCAAs.
“The spring season is all about racing within the Pac-12,” Cunnane said. “Meets in the fall are good for seeing where we are and for making adjustments. Now, it’s really about the NCAA and building up to that.”
Jessica Lim covers women’s swim. Contact her at [email protected]