Coming off a finish just outside the top 20 at the NCAA Championships last season, the Wisconsin women’s swimming and diving team has reloaded its arsenal of weapons to come back even stronger this season.
The Badgers lost just four seniors last year, three of whom were NCAA qualifiers, but only one, Jenny Holtzen, scored individually. At the conference level, these graduation losses cut a bit deeper, but head coach Whitney Hite and his staff have recruited a class that is considerably faster than previous years and poised for immediate impact.
With a strong core group of four NCAA-qualifying seniors to build around, the Badgers are looking at a season that might truly be special with the addition of two high-impact transfers and six freshmen, five of whom were ranked within the top-200 recruits nationally.
Leading this group is the No. 1-ranked incoming freshman in the country, Beata Nelson. Nelson, a native of Madison, is the national public high school record-holder in the 100-yard butterfly and qualified for Olympic trials this past summer in five events. Hot on Nelson’s heels is fellow freshman Megan Doty, a two-time high school All-American in the 100-yard butterfly, the same event in which Nelson holds the national record. Doty and Nelson were healthy competition for each other in high school, and with senior Dana Grindall, an NCAA qualifier last year, the Badgers could have a three-headed monster in the butterfly events.
The distance freestyles will also be something for the Badgers to look forward to, especially with the addition of sophomore transfer and Olympic gold medalist Cierra Runge. Runge, who spent the 2014-’15 school year at California before taking a year off to train for the Rio Olympics and ultimately deciding to transfer, was the NCAA runner-up in both the 500-yard freestyle and the mile two years ago. The six-foot-four swimmer will have a welcome training partner in All-American senior Danielle Valley, the current school record-holder in both events.
Redshirt sophomore Abby Jagdfeld is back to competition after sitting out last season due to intra-conference transfer rules after coming over from Purdue at the beginning of the 2015-’16 school year. Jagdfeld is a middle-distance phenom who swims the 100-, 200-, and 500-yard freestyles, and has been competing and holding her own against professionals for the majority of the last year.
The Badgers have strength at every distance and every stroke this season, with at least one swimmer able to qualify for the A-final at the Big Ten Championships in each event. Senior Chase Kinney, last year’s Big Ten runner-up in the 50-yard freestyle, is looking to make a serious run at both the conference and national crowns. Australian sophomore Jess Unicomb, who taught the final at her country’s Olympic trials in the spring, is a strong contender in the backstroke events, along with Nelson. Senior Maria Carlson, a two-time NCAA qualifier, is the Badgers’ top breaststroker and is set to make a major impact after the graduation of Anna Meinholz.
On the boards, diving coach Anton Slobounov is looking for the continued contributions of all five of his divers. Senior Ashley Peterson, who reached the final of the platform discipline last season at the conference championships, is expected to lead the group, and sophomore Dana Liva should be successful as well.
The Badgers open their season at the Natatorium with a dual meet against Auburn at 11 a.m. Saturday.
