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| Lindsay Payne gets a hug from Lauren Edmondson as Laura McCarthy and Robin Kim celebrate their upset win in the 400 free relay – photo by Eric Stieger, Carleton College |
Williams College has long been known as one of the best academic
institutions in the country. The swimming and diving programs
at Williams have been one of the country’s NCAA Division III
powerhouses for the last several decades. Simply put,
Williams offers one of the best combinations of athletics and
academics in the country (any Division) and will continue to strive
for greatness in the future.
Head coach Steve Kuster has been at the helm since the 1999-2000
season. In 10 seasons guiding the Ephwomen, his teams have
compiled a 68-6 dual meet record (64-3 vs. Division III opponents
and 4-3 vs. Division I). The Ephs have won all 10 of the
NESCAC championships to date. Kuster has been named NESCAC
Coach of the Year an impressive six times: 2002, 2003, 2004, 2007,
2008, and 2010.
On the national, level the Ephs have been one of the strongest
teams in Division III since the introduction of women’s
swimming in the early 1980s, winning the first two NCAA Division
III Swimming & Diving championship meets (1982 & 1983).
The Williams women have been in the top four eight of the last
nine years. The Ephs have had countless All-Americans and
several national champions. Most recently Logan Todhunter '12 won
three events and set two national records at the 2010 NCAA
Championships as did Caroline Wilson '13, lifiting the Ephs to a
third place finsih. Todhunter was named the Swimmer of the Meet and
the Honda Division III Swimmer of the Year. Both Todhunter and
Wilson competed at the ConocoPhillips US Nationals in 2010.
Lindsay Payne '06 won the NCAA Division III 100 breaststroke
four times and also won three additional events in 2006 with three
national records. The 2006 Ephs also won the 400 Free Relay and 400
Medley Relay and in 2005 captured both the 200 and 400 Medley
Relays. Payne was named the Swimmer of the Meet at the NCAA
Division III Championships in 2006. Coach Kuster was named National
Coach of the Year in 2003 after the Ephs finished 2nd.
Academically, the Ephwomen are equally as strong. The
women’s team consistently carries one of the highest grade
point averages in Division III, most recently with a team GPA of
just above 3.3.
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| Logan Todhunter '12 |
The Ephs train and compete at the Samuelson-Muir Pool. The
8-lane 50-meter pool has two bulkheads, which divide it into two
8-lane 25-yard pools. There are also two 1-meter diving boards and
two 3-meter diving boards. The pool was opened in 1989 and
frequently hosts the NESCAC Championships and has hosted the NCAA
Championships.
The Williams program allows athletes to compete and succeed at all
levels of competition, including the highest levels in our sport
and Lindsay Payne is the perfect example. She started at
Williams as a 1:07 100 breaststroker and finished her career as the
national record holder at 1:00.54 and competed at the 2008 Olympic
Trials. She finished 9th at the 2007 US Long Course National
Championships and represented Team USA in a meet in Chiba, Japan.
An important ideal of Williams Swimming is not just the
improvement of the student as an athlete, but also the growth and
development of the student as a person.
