One final challenge...
She is a Bulldog in every sense of the word. She has tasted the thrill of victory and she understands the agony of defeat. She is a sixteen-time NCAA champion and led her team to an NCAA National title in 2005. Now, as she prepares for her final competition representing the University of Georgia, only one question remains: Will Kara Lynn Joyce make NCAA history as the most decorated athlete of all time?
No one can dispute that the mark of a champion is not just how they celebrate victory, but how they handle defeat. It is the ability to step up when you are down and hold your head high that shows true character.
Kara Lynn narrowly missed making the final of the 200 freestyle when she finished second in her heat in prelims. It is almost unheard of that a second place finish in the top heat would fail to advance, but that just highlights the intensity of the competition at this 2007 NCAA Championship meet. Kara appeared as stunned by this development as the rest of us.
One of Kara's best traits is that she has a forward vision that allows her to rebound quickly from disappointment. And rebound she did. Her 200 freestyle swim in the consolation final produced the fourth fastest time in the event. She followed that up with a brutal anchor leg on the 4x200 freestyle relay, her fourth 200 freestyle of the day. With a relay split of 1:43.88, the second fastest time in the meet, she was able to over power the Arizona team and pull her Bulldog team to a third place finish in the event.
The aftermath was heart wrenchingly funny: Kara painfully dragging herself from the pool, making it to a place on the podium, where she obliged an autograph seeker from a prone position.
This is what they mean when they say "leaving it all in the pool."
Here's to four fast years of 50 freestyle at the NCAA Swimming Championships!
It was an fast race with four swimmers under the 22 mark--this was the first time Kara raced anyone who broke the 22 second mark with her. It was a photo finish and I had to turn to the clock to verify the outcome--KLJ (21.71). Kara sent a text to Sean after the race, "Whew!"
My sentiments exactly!
We started off the morning session with a great relay lead-off. Kara set the tone with a 21.73 in the first event, the 4x50 freestyle relay. Her split established a new pool record, (former record held by non other than Jenny T.) This tied the time that caused the stir at SEC's three weeks ago and is .10 off her American record of 21.63.
Solid morning swims from the Georgia girls--the relay is third behind Michigan and Auburn. It will be a fast heat tonight. Claire Maust snagged the second seed in the 500 freestyle for tonight. Fast swims all around. So, just when we thought things couldn't get too much more interesting, Kara stirred things by showing up for her 50 prelim in a shocking-pink fastskin.
Definitely had to be there...never seen one like it.
It all started with Jim Carty's article in the Ann Arbor News. It was a great article--nicely written and with great quotes. Jim really captured Kara's relaxed and focused attitude about her upcoming NCAA swims and her opportunity to make history with this career ending meets. Everyone I encountered commented on the article, followed by what became the inevitable question, "So what did Jack mean with that comment about 'high cotton'?" Someone else asked, "What did he mean with that comment about Kara 'bringing her lunchpail'?"
I have to say, one of the best things about Georgia Coach Jack Bauerle is that you always know where you stand with him. In each case, I hesitated, babbled a little, trying to formulate a response and then had to concede, "I have absolutely no idea what Jack means--it has to be good though...you think?."
And so it goes...there have been numerous interviews over the past couple days with variations of the same quotes. The Atlanta Journal Constitution actually used the term "tall cotton" instead of "high cotton." Our reaction was--"Oh 'tall cotton' that's got to mean a good year for cotton..." The Savanah Morning News clarified the "lunchpail" quote, explaining that Kara is a sprinter with a distance swimmer mentality in practice, which for me was a moment of total clarity.
“She’s a tough kid. She takes a lunch-pail approach..." Jack
Bauerle--CollegeSwimming.com
And so, in reading the articles, you definitely have to read between the lines. But--yes, it is all good!
Kara Lynn Joyce has an opportunity to make NCAA history in Minnesota:
- By completing a 4 year sweep of the 50 and 100 freestyles. (This has never been accomplished by one athlete in both events.)
- Repeating her trifecta sweep of the 50/100/200 freestyles. (Kara was the first athlete to accomplish this with her NCAA performance in 2006.)
- If she is successful in her bid for three individual titles, she will tie Jenny Thompson (19) for the most NCAA Championship titles.
- In the event that her Georgia relays are successful in defending a single relay title, Kara will end her career with 20 NCAA Championship titles-an unofficial NCAA record for any athlete in any sport.
Hello Swimming Fans~
I really can't believe this is Kara's final NCAA Championship meet. It has been an incredible four years of fun and fast swimming. I am going to miss all of this. For our UGA and KLJ family, friends and fans, I am going to start this blog with highlights from the past four years in no particular order of relevance.
- Watching our girls set a World record as part of the University of Georgia 4x50 (scm) free relay in 2004 at the NCAA meet in College Station, TX--Kara Lynn Joyce, Neka Mabry, Page Kearns, Andrea Georoff (1:37.27).
- American Record in the 50 (scm) freestyle by KLJ (24.21) at the same meet. There is a funny story here. Kara actually broke the NCAA record with her relay lead-off split that morning in prelims. Two Auburn swimmers then put up faster times in the heats leading up to her prelim swim of the 50 freestyle. As the second Auburn time lit up the clock, I saw Kara's lips tighten and her head move--almost imperceptible movement--but she was shaking it as if to say--"No way is that going to stand!" And then she just got up and destroyed the field. She laughed later and said, "You saw that--cause that was definitely what I was thinking."
- Winning the NCAA National Championship title at Purdue in 2005. When you are talking about college swimming, it doesn't get any better than that.
- Almost winning in 2006 in Athens, Georgia...Although the bittersweet ending was hard to stomach, the quest for the title and the great swims that we witnessed from our girls during those three days were absolutely unforgettable.
- Watching Kara set the American record in the 50 yard freestyle in 2006 at NCAA's in Athens, Georgia.
- Watching Kara tie the record before she set it. That was just plain comical. Having missed it by a hundredth at SEC's, it was pretty much a no brainer that she would break it at NCAA's. But it actually took four tries that day--with a relay lead-off (+.08) , a prelim swim (+.04), a relay final (.00) and then finally the main event (-.06).
- Five Homecoming Weekends in Athens. Can't believe we have been to five of them and that next year will be our last. I am sure we will be like some of our UGA friends and come back again just for the fun of it.
- Watching John Ertter do a 21 second keg-stand after the football tailgate this past fall. That has to be some kind of AARP record!
