On Oct. 30, the Hawkeye women’s swimming and diving team took on No. 17 Minnesota and suffered a 192-105 defeat.
The loss dropped Iowa to 3-1 on the season, 1-1 in the Big Ten.
Despite the loss, head coach Marc Long was proud of the individual efforts that he saw.
“Within the meet, we had tremendous performances,” he said. “We had Kelly [McNamara] in the 100 fly and Olivia [Kabacinski] is just right there. They’re out there chasing Big Ten champions, and that’s what we aspire to be.”
Junior Emma Sougstad was the top point-scorer for the Hawks, placing second in the 100 breast (1:05.56), 200 breast (2:18.28), and 200 individual medley (2:06.69). She also was part of the winning 400-medley relay team.
Sougstad, along with sophomore Rowan Hauber, freshman McNamara, and senior Kabacinski touched in 3:44.31.
Hauber also scored points for the Hawkeyes in the 100 and 200 back, posting second-place finishes in each. McNamara earned a runner-up finish in the 100 fly, touching in 54.88.
Sougstad, who Long called a “team leader,” said that the loss was disappointing, but the Hawks didn’t lose any confidence.
“We learned a lot,” Sougstad said. “The mindset was obviously to come in and win, but if that doesn’t happen, then the goal was to pick myself up and see how I can get better from there.”
Other point-scorers for the Hawks included freshman Abbey Schneider (third in the 1,650 free) and sophomore Tereysa Lehnertz (second in the 200 fly).
The team of McNamara, Kabacinski, sophomore Nikol Lagodzinska and junior Taylor Flummerfelt placed second in the 400-free relay, touching in 3:26.84.
On the diving side, sophomore Morgan Rafferty earned third-place finishes in the 1 meter and 3 meter.
Before the meet, Kabacinski said the team knew that the Gophers would present a major challenge, but her team wouldn’t waver.
“This season has felt different for us, I think,” she said. “I’ve seen a huge progression in attitudes and talent.”
The focus for Long’s squad will now shift to Purdue, which will host the Hawkeyeson Friday.
Long said a short memory would be needed to regroup and move past the Minnesota loss.
“We’ll start [Saturday] morning,” he said after the meet. “We’ll hit the weights and the water. It’ll be a good opportunity to sharpen some things up and get to work.”
The Boilermakers are ranked No. 15 by CollegeSwimming.com, presenting another tough test for Iowa.
Sougstad said the rankings don’t intimidate the team, and the Hawks will always be up for the challenge of facing the best teams in the country.
“We’ll be really excited to get back in the water,” she said. “It’ll be like a redemption swim. We can do it.”