by Kelly Kennedy & Nicole Fitzsimmons, Asst. Production Editor & Asst. News Editor
The Manhattan College Women’s Swimming and Diving team has a lot to be proud of after their performance at the 2020 MAAC Championship. The women came home from Buffalo, New York with a new record in 400 freestyle relay.
According to GoJaspers. com, the 400 freestyle relay team of freshman Mackenzie Tuttle, freshman Teddy Segmuller, sophomore Jamie Quinn and senior captain Kali Nembach broke the Manhattan College school record with a time of 3:41.10. The relay placed 10th overall, earning the team 14 points.
“We all were really dedicated this year and our hard work paid off in the pool while we were at MAAC. You have to work all season for that end meet. It’s not like you have a game every week. You have dual meets, but the last one is really the most important one. So you work for all these months to hope to do well at the end of the year and we ended up doing well,” said Kali Nembach, a senior exercise science major and captain of the team.
This relay team consists of mostly younger swimmers. The two freshmen, Mackenzie Tuttle and Teddy Segmuller, will be on the team for three more years, and sophomore Jamie Quinn has another two years on the team. Tuttle, Segmueller and Quinn intend to get better with age and more training.
“I’m really excited because the relay was so young, so I hope to break the record again, keep getting better, keep getting stronger every time,” Quinn said. “I’m hoping for the freshmen and recruits we have coming in to keep getting stronger and stronger.”
Quinn also participates in 100 back and 50 freestyle. Only a sophomore, Quinn will challenge herself to become stronger and faster in the coming years.
But for Nembach, this MAAC Tournament was her last. She ended on one of the best notes she could have: she broke a record she set for herself early in her career during the 200 freestyle. Nembach participates in sprint freestyle, and this year she participated in breaststroke as well.
“I just always think it’s exciting to see the team get faster and our records get faster and being able to be on it with my passing teammates and with my new, current teammates was exciting,” said Nembach. “I just hope it keeps getting faster.”
Next year, Nembach hopes to see more of the girls compete during the night phase of the tournament. If you place top 16 in the morning, you have to swim again at night, which she claims is just as exciting as a relay.
“I’m hoping that more girls will get to do that,” she said. “And we’ll just bring more energy and excitement to the team for the coming years.”
Nembach has some advice for her fellow teammates that are still advancing in their college careers, especially since the team has been continuing to progress and break records.
“I think that really one of the most important things is to just kind of put your head down and do your work because if you can work hard the entire year, your effort will really show because of all the time and energy you’ve put into it,” Nembach said. “And if you do have a few tough meets, just know that in the end, it’s all gonna work out.”
The MC Women’s Swimming and Diving Team has proven itself as a force to be reckoned with. Moving forward, the women will look to reach greater heights.