Jan. 19, 2008

Complete Results

by Matias Saari
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

FAIRBANKS, AK - First there were words of thanks, then flowers and a card, and finally a big hug from each of her Alaska Nanooks teammates.

The scene was a little emotional for Karin Wagner of North Pole, the lone senior competing at the Patty Center Pool for the final times this weekend.

"I'm sad to leave the team, but I'm also really happy that I got the opportunity to swim in college. It was a great experience," Wagner said. "I'm really excited that they did (the ceremony) for me. It really shows how supportive our team is."

Wagner attended UAF for two years before, true to her wishes, swimming was reinstated as a varsity sport in 2005. She's been on the team ever since, though the first 1 1/2 seasons were a bit of a struggle as she worked to recover fully from shoulder surgery.

"I've definitely seen a big improvement this year. I've been able to train a lot harder and it's just been great. I feel great in the water," she said.

Alaska coach Scott Lemley said Wagner has been an important part of the squad, which currently has nine swimmers from outside of Alaska. Only Wagner and freshman Tori Reiss hail from the Fairbanks area.

"I suspect that it's going to be hard for us to be able to keep local kids, so we really appreciate the fact that Karin stuck around," Lemley said.

On Saturday against California Baptist University, Wagner took third place in the 50-yard freestyle and fourth in the 100 freestyle. She also led off the team's runner-up 400 freestyle relay.

"I'm just exhausted right now," Wagner said after the meet. "I could take a nap."

The Nanooks, still tired from a rigorous training schedule over the last several weeks, dropped the dual meet, 118-72, to the three-time defending NAIA national champions. A rematch is set for 9 a.m. today.

"I was hoping the emotional aspect of being able to swim in a meet would be able to override some of that fatigue, but you can only get your body to do so much," Lemley said.

Sophomore Kelly Becker won the 200 butterfly with a solid time of 2:10.93 while freshman Mariya Pavlovskaya took the 400 individual medley. That pair also joined Jacqueline van Driessche and Samantha Zinsli on the winning 400 medley relay.

Wagner, meanwhile, may be done with competitive swimming after the Pacific Coast Swim Conference championships next month, but she won't be gone from the pool. Wagner might join a local master's team as she finishes a bachelor's degree in psychology this summer and possibly pursues a nursing degree thereafter.

"I definitely want to stay in the water," she said before jumping back in the pool for a warm-down swim.