Swimming Seniors End Careers at Virginia Tech Invitational

Participating in a sport that is focused entirely on time, it was fitting that seniors Kyle Krueger and Paige Newell ended their swimming careers not necessarily thinking about how fast they were swimming, but about how they had arrived at this moment.

These seniors, along with five other underclassmen, swam at the Virginia Tech Invitational, their personal championship meet, in Blacksburg, VA while the rest of their team stayed behind in preparation for the Ivy League Championship.

Both Krueger and Newell spent the weekend making and recalling memories, as they tried to appreciate the final moments of their swim careers, which began over 15 years ago.

“I think Paige and I were very reflective in this meet, and really tried to soak up all the enjoyment and all the little things,” Krueger said. “We tried to remember how much we enjoy swimming and swimming for Harvard. It was definitely bittersweet, and strange to be swimming our last race but it was a nice, fitting way for us to wrap up our last season.”

Krueger placed fourth in the 100 breaststroke on Saturday and sixth in Sunday’s 200 breaststroke race, while Newell placed second in the 1650 freestyle. After they scored top eight finishes in multiple events, assistant coach Amanda Kulik described the seniors’ performances as inspirational for the younger swimmers who learned from their advice.

“While this meet was a great opportunity for them to race again, it was a way for them to give their heart and soul in the pool,” Kulik said. “It was a very challenging meet for both of them, because they had to try to swim with the bittersweet emotions.”

The Harvard representation in the pool may have been small, but Kulik described the team’s presence on deck as quite the opposite.

“We were only nine people there, but we sounded like we were as big as Virginia Tech who had about 40 athletes,” Kulik said. “They were very excited coming on deck, and being able to be heard. It’s always about the times, but [this weekend] was more about racing with heart and racing with passion and racing for themselves, and racing for everyone on the team, either here or back home. And a lot of them raced for the seniors, for Kyle and Paige.”

Top finishes over the weekend include freshman Margaret Chory’s second-place finish in the 100 backstroke and her first place finish in the 200 backstroke.

“We had great swims across the board,” Krueger said. “[Chory] was the winner of her event on Sunday and came back in a really exciting race to chase down two other girls in the last 50 and post a really solid swim, so we were really happy for her.”

With competition from within the Crimson in multiple races, Newell she was even more motivated racing alongside her teammates. Freshman Daniela Suarez-Rebling finished just ahead of Newell in first place in the 1650 freestyle, while freshman Savannah Butler twice finished behind Krueger in the 100 and 200 breaststroke races.

“What’s not always displayed in swimming results are the smaller fights that take place throughout the race, or even between the fifth and sixth spot,” Newell said. “On a team, we push each other in practice every day, so when you get the opportunity to race with your teammate in a high pressure situation ... you can see the swimmers looking to each other for strength.”

Although Harvard’s official captains were absent from the meet, Kulik explained that nothing changed relating to leadership on the team.

“Everyone in that senior class is a leader,” Kulik said. “They’ve each taught the underclassmen something, whether it be about their swims or about their personal lives. This meet, [Krueger and Newell] wanted to share their advice and wisdom about just how special it is to have the opportunity to compete at the Division I level and what it means to be a Harvard swimmer.”

With guidance from their departing seniors, the underclassmen used the meet to take note of areas to improve for next season as well.

“For those that are coming back, we have some great things they discovered in themselves in the pool; we know what we need to work on in the future,” Kulik said. “I’m incredibly proud of this group of women. Not only the women here, but the women at home, and how they are incredible competitors and fighters. It was really heartwarming to see the interactions unfold.”

—Staff writer Orlea L. Miller can be reached at omiller@college.harvard.edu.