Colorado State University Athletics
Ward Hits Olympic Trials Cut in 100-Meter Breaststoke
2/18/2020 7:10:00 PM | Women's Swimming & Diving
Junior hits target on eve of Mountain West Championships
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – The 2020 Mountain West Championships have yet to start, but Maddie Ward is already proving she's up the trials of the meet.
Literally.
The Colorado State junior competed in the long course time trials on Tuesday afternoon at the Jean K. Freeman Aquatic Center– the same day the team flew in for the meet – and posted a US Olympic Trials cut in the 100-meter breaststroke, winning the race in a time of 1:10.55.
The cut is 1:10.99, and her mind was having trouble accepting the truth at first. The fact she didn't hear anything right away had her wondering, then she saw her teammates celebrating on the deck.
"I mean, for a second there, I had to really process the time," Ward said. "I thought I saw a 1:10.55, and I really second guessed myself, even though I knew the time was 1:10.99. There's always that little bit of, what if that's not the time. It's really exciting, and a lot of emotion when through, but mainly just happiness.
"I don't like to think of goals as unrealistic; I always set my standards pretty high no matter what I've went through. This season, I've had a fair amount of hurdles, but I didn't set my standards any lower because of those."
The long-course race is different than short course, with swimmers used to three flip turns when competing yardage, leaving them to wonder when the wall is coming when it's switched to meters, with only one turn in a 100.
The last time Ward competed in a long-course race was when she was a junior in high school, and she missed the Olympic Trials cut in the event by .04; the last time she trained long course was the next summer. After getting a late start to training coming off a pair of offseason surgeries, Ward was ecstatic about hitting an important goal in her career for the first time, one she was dead-set on achieving this time around, injuries or not.
That determination is something CSU head coach Woody Woodard has grown accustomed to, as Ward had her record-breaking year as a sophomore while holding off having surgery. Consistency has been tough to nail down for Ward this season, so Woodard said they went in with an altered plan.
"I think what I expect from her is the ability to adapt, and she adapts to every situation," he said. "
She didn't have a strong game plan this year in terms of rates, so it was more about being mentally tough and physically tough up front in your stroke. That's what I expect from her, whatever the situation calls for, she'll adapt and come up with a new strategy if she needs to."
This marks the third consecutive US Olympic Trials where the Rams will have an active member of the team qualified. Katie Kicklighter did so in 2016, Breann Fuller in 2012.
The Rams' record holder in the 100- and 200-yard breaststroke, as well as the 200 individual medley, Ward picks up a bit of confidence from the achievement, and Woodard feels it can have a carry-over effect to the rest of the roster. She will compete in all three races this weekend, as well as swim legs in the 200 and 400 medley relays. She is part of the school-record 200 medley team, as well.
"I think this helps a lot. Going into today, I obviously wanted to get that cut, but actually finally seeing it happen brings a lot of confidence to me to carry into the meet," she said. "When it's a good race, even when you're happy with it, I always think about things I could fix, so I think it's good for me to see what I need to improve in my other breaststroke races going forward in the meet."
There were 12 time-trial events held on the day, and only one other swimmer hit a cut. The Olympic Trials will be held in Omaha, Neb., from June 21-28 at the Chi Health Center. A few other Rams took on races in the time trials, as freshmen Sydnee Whitty and Sarah Mundy competed in the 50 freestyle, junior Elsa Litteken tackled the 100 backstroke and freshman Hannah Sykes raced in the 100 butterfly. The Rams have another long-course opportunity in a few weeks, as some may attend the National Invitational Championships March 12-14 in Cleveland, Ohio.
Literally.
The Colorado State junior competed in the long course time trials on Tuesday afternoon at the Jean K. Freeman Aquatic Center– the same day the team flew in for the meet – and posted a US Olympic Trials cut in the 100-meter breaststroke, winning the race in a time of 1:10.55.
The cut is 1:10.99, and her mind was having trouble accepting the truth at first. The fact she didn't hear anything right away had her wondering, then she saw her teammates celebrating on the deck.
"I mean, for a second there, I had to really process the time," Ward said. "I thought I saw a 1:10.55, and I really second guessed myself, even though I knew the time was 1:10.99. There's always that little bit of, what if that's not the time. It's really exciting, and a lot of emotion when through, but mainly just happiness.
"I don't like to think of goals as unrealistic; I always set my standards pretty high no matter what I've went through. This season, I've had a fair amount of hurdles, but I didn't set my standards any lower because of those."
The long-course race is different than short course, with swimmers used to three flip turns when competing yardage, leaving them to wonder when the wall is coming when it's switched to meters, with only one turn in a 100.
The last time Ward competed in a long-course race was when she was a junior in high school, and she missed the Olympic Trials cut in the event by .04; the last time she trained long course was the next summer. After getting a late start to training coming off a pair of offseason surgeries, Ward was ecstatic about hitting an important goal in her career for the first time, one she was dead-set on achieving this time around, injuries or not.
That determination is something CSU head coach Woody Woodard has grown accustomed to, as Ward had her record-breaking year as a sophomore while holding off having surgery. Consistency has been tough to nail down for Ward this season, so Woodard said they went in with an altered plan.
"I think what I expect from her is the ability to adapt, and she adapts to every situation," he said. "
She didn't have a strong game plan this year in terms of rates, so it was more about being mentally tough and physically tough up front in your stroke. That's what I expect from her, whatever the situation calls for, she'll adapt and come up with a new strategy if she needs to."
This marks the third consecutive US Olympic Trials where the Rams will have an active member of the team qualified. Katie Kicklighter did so in 2016, Breann Fuller in 2012.
The Rams' record holder in the 100- and 200-yard breaststroke, as well as the 200 individual medley, Ward picks up a bit of confidence from the achievement, and Woodard feels it can have a carry-over effect to the rest of the roster. She will compete in all three races this weekend, as well as swim legs in the 200 and 400 medley relays. She is part of the school-record 200 medley team, as well.
"I think this helps a lot. Going into today, I obviously wanted to get that cut, but actually finally seeing it happen brings a lot of confidence to me to carry into the meet," she said. "When it's a good race, even when you're happy with it, I always think about things I could fix, so I think it's good for me to see what I need to improve in my other breaststroke races going forward in the meet."
There were 12 time-trial events held on the day, and only one other swimmer hit a cut. The Olympic Trials will be held in Omaha, Neb., from June 21-28 at the Chi Health Center. A few other Rams took on races in the time trials, as freshmen Sydnee Whitty and Sarah Mundy competed in the 50 freestyle, junior Elsa Litteken tackled the 100 backstroke and freshman Hannah Sykes raced in the 100 butterfly. The Rams have another long-course opportunity in a few weeks, as some may attend the National Invitational Championships March 12-14 in Cleveland, Ohio.
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