Friedrichs, White Excited to Extend Season

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Oct 3

5:00 PM

Women's Swimming & Diving

at Front Range Invitational

Oct 4

11:00 AM

Women's Swimming & Diving

at Front Range Invitational

Oct 24

2:00 PM

Women's Swimming & Diving

vs Colorado Mesa

Oct 24

2:00 PM

Women's Swimming & Diving

vs Denver

Oct 31

4:00 PM

Women's Swimming & Diving

at Wyoming

FORT COLLINS, Colo. – One more chance from different perspectives.

Colorado State's women's swimming and diving season as extended a few weeks for both Kristina Friedrichs and Maya White, and the variance of what it means isn't lost on any of them as they compete at the National Invitational Championships in Elkhart, Ind., at Elkhart Health & Aquatics.

"It's like bookends. It's kinda cool you get to have someone on their way out showing there's still opportunities for the postseason, and we should still be shooting for those," CSU head coach Christopher Woodard said. "Why take an early exit to the career? If you still love doing what you do, let's got as far as you can. It's sending a message to the younger generation. It's realizing you only get four bites at the postseason, so when you're a freshman, don't set limitations for yourself. Go for it all. It's kinda cool to have them both there."

Friedrichs, a senior, qualified by hitting NCAA 'B' cuts in both the 50-yard freestyle and 100 butterfly. That gives her two bonus swims, which she will take in the 50 fly and 100 free. White, a freshman, hit her 'B' cut in the 1,650 freestyle, using her bonus swim to enter the 200 breaststroke.

While many of her teammates have proclaimed they are now entering the "swammer" stage of their life, the young lady who ranks second in school history and three events and third in another still proclaims her love of the sport and is more than happy to see her career extended.

"It's really exciting to get another opportunity. I'm sad it's not conference and the whole team is not going to be there, but I think there's something really symbolic about me, a senior, on my way out, getting to go to this meet with a freshman who is up and coming and has so much ahead of her," Friedrichs said. "I've been thinking about this meet and what it means for me, and really, it's kind of the last hurrah. Conference was awesome, but there's always that stress and pressure of performing. I feel this will be one last full-send with the Rams."

Training has been interesting. The majority of the team is technically off, but they have all been invited to keep working out. Friedrichs has talked roommate and fellow team captain Madison Hunter into joining her, and White has had some company as well, with Emily Chorpening helping to pace her.

With Friedrichs a sprinter and White a distance swimmer, their workouts are really different, but having another teammate there still serves as motivation.

"It's definitely weird. I always feel like I'm getting a private swimming lesson by myself," she said. "Tina is doing the complete opposite of me. It would be really awkward and a little sad to swim by yourself. Even though we're not training together, we are training together."

And her future pursuits are different because of this chance.

For her, this meet represents encouragement. For one, because she missed nearly a month of training due to illness prior to the Mountain West Championships, she didn't feel she was really herself at the meet. She hoped to be close to her times, and she was, but she didn't have the training to drop time and admitted in the back of her mind there was a sliver out doubt in being able to do so.

Qualifying for this meet not only gives her a bit of a do-over, but a boost for her next three years.

"It's just exciting. If you had asked me four years ago when I was a freshman in high school, I wouldn't have thought I would be here at this level or point and getting to go to this meet," she said. "It's just exciting overall.

"It gives me hope of what I could do in the future. I don't want to make any assumptions, but I'd love to get to another level. This is just a little bit of hope."

Woodard would like to see it extend beyond her. To the rest of her classmates, but also to any of the returners and even the freshmen entering the program next year. A chance to race is something he feels should be embraced, no matter when it happens.

The goal, in theory, is to come in at one level and attain one much grander by the exit. As a coach, his message is there is no time better than the present.

"Everybody should be gunning for it. The whole idea is to go as far as you can, as fast as you can," he said. "Not just in the races, but the whole season. Any opportunity to race beyond our normal season should be cherished. NCAA 'B' qualifying times are incredibly difficult to attain for anyone in any program."

Competition begins each day with the preliminaries at 10:30 a.m. (MT), the finals at 7 p.m. Friedrichs will compete Thursday in the 50 fly and 50 free, swim the 100 fly on Friday and the 100 free on Saturday. White's schedule has her swimming both of her races on Saturday.

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