The final day of the 2023 NAIA National Swimming Championships was a day of joy, celebration and gratitude for the Westmont swim program. Part of that was the result of what happened in the pool, but much of it oozed from the hearts and minds of a coach and swimmers who care deeply about each other.
The swim program completed its fourth season today. That means the freshmen swimmers in the first year Jill Jones Lin was head coach ended their collegiate careers as swimmers on this day. That reality was felt deeply by all.
“They are the most reliable people, not to mention swimmers,” said a tearful Jones Lin about her seniors at the end of the day. “I am so grateful for them that they stuck it out with me and with the team. They are just amazing.
“All the women who were here at nationals knew that they would not be here without their teammates. That is such a special thing that we have – such a tight knit team that pushes each other and encourages each other. I love this group and I love the seniors and I love the team that they’ve helped create. It is so apparent the culture and the legacy that they have left. They did such a great job.”
Reflecting after the final race, senior Morgan Bienias recalled, “Coming into Westmont, I really didn’t want to swim at all. I think it was (because of) my past experiences with other teams. The Westmont women’s swim team has been much more than I ever expected it to be. I am super grateful for all the women I’ve met. It really did make my swim career so different. These women made it special.”
“I have had great club experiences before this,” expressed senior Bailey Lemmons, “but I had never been surrounded by a group of women like this before. They have been like sisters and family to me during these four years. They especially supported me during the last two years that I didn’t compete. I have always felt welcomed and loved regardless of where my swimming career was at. Swimming at nationals my freshmen year and then being here my senior year with this group of women is so full circle and really special.”
The culture and comradery spoken of by coaches and players alike is not accidental. It was envisioned by Jones Lin who invited her student-athletes to join in creating a community of loving and encouraging each other while pursuing excellence both in the pool and in life.
“Honestly, if it wasn’t for Jill, I would not have swam in college,” stated senior Emma Leathers. “I did not want to swim under a male head coach. Jill has built an incredible program from scratch. Any ounce of respect that Westmont swim has, it is because of Jill and how much the other coaches respect her and it bleeds into us. The way she prioritizes character over talent speaks highly of what type of head coach she is.”
“Jill is the first woman mentor I have had,” noted Lemmon. “I remember freshman year that it was her birthday at nationals. We all got to share how much she means to us. Jill is forever going to be in my life. Her support in the pool and in my personal life has been huge. I don’t know if I would have gone through my injury if it wasn’t for her and her care and love for me and the rest of the team. I am so grateful that I met her when I did because I was the first recruit that she had. I am so grateful that God put us together at the beginning of our freshman year.”
It is that life lived in support of each other that was so evident in and around the pool today, the final day of the 2023 season.
It was on display when Morgan Bienias started the day off by competing in the 200 yard backstroke. Bienias had spent the fall semester in an off campus program and was unable to do much training before returning in December. With just two months of trying to get back into shape for collegiate competition, Bienias was in the pool for the final individual race of her career as her teammates and coach screamed encouragement from the deck.
“That was awesome,” said Jones Lin of her performance. “It was a miracle that Morgan even made the meet and it to nationals and it was this event that she qualified in. We were going to be surprised by whatever she put out. She put out 0.01 off of her lifetime best and school record, which snuck her into finals in 15th place. She was able to score a point, which we were not anticipating. She was amazing and did what we needed her to do.”
Bienias’ time of 2:07.90 was celebrated by all as they greeted her after the race.
Their life together was also on display when Lemmon and Emma Bustamante competed in the 100 yard freestyle.
“Bailey and Emma were just outside making the finals,” reported Jones Lin. That race is a splash and dash race and so many variables that can make you go slower. It was fun, however, seeing Bailey compete in her last individual race and for her to end her career on one of her favorite events.”
Lemmon finished in 18th place with a time of 53.45 while Bustamante placed 23rd in a time of 54.81.
Then came some disappointing news regarding the 200 yard breaststroke – an event in which Ella Chaisson earned All-American status last year. The hope was that Chaisson would boost the team’s point total with another solid performance.
“Ella decided to scratch,” said Jones Lin. “She has been dealing with an injury that we are trying to monitor. That was a big hit and we were all bummed. Ella, of course, was the most bummed.”
Westmont was still represented in the event by freshman Daisy Marquardt, who ended up placing 18th with a time of 2:30.28.
“Daisy had a great run in the breaststroke, even though it’s not an event we have been training her for,” noted Jones Lin.
With the meet headed into the final few events, Westmont stood in eighth place, a few points ahead of The Master’s.
“We were looking at the results and realizing we could potentially score well as a team,” described Jones Lin. “We were looking at other avenues for points and we focused on Morgan’s final swim in the 200 yard backstroke and our relay to step up and score as many points as possible.”
Before those events, however, Olivia Garrison was about to embark on the longest of the races in the championship – the 1,650 yard freestyle. Because of the distance of the race, the event is conducted as a time trial, with times compared across heats to determine placing, rather than advancing to a final.
“It was a really fast event this year,” explained Jones Lin. “Olivia was two seconds faster than her best time this season. It was a hard fought swim and she was able to score in the top 16, which was huge.”
Garrison placed 11th with a time of 17:52.39, adding to the team’s totals. Watching the team cheer her on, one had to wonder who was expending the most energy. Garrison in the pool, or her teammates waving their arms and yelling out encouragement for all 66 laps.
Entering the final event of the meet – the 400 yard freestyle relay – Westmont was still in eighth place, a few points ahead of The Master’s. Garrison, Marquardt, Bustamante and Lemmon were selected to make up the relay team.
“All the relays have been wild cards,” expressed Jones Lin. “We have put together combos that we might not have tried out with our whole team available to us. It was really cool to see them come together.”
Garrison went first and kept pace with the leading swimmers.
“Then Daisy went second and pulled ahead of the field,” recalled Jones Lin. “I told them before the race that we had to smash that heat if we wanted to stay in our place in the team scores. They did just that.
“Emma dove in and kept increasing the lead. Then Bailey had clear water out in front of her to finish strong. They all swam so fast and finished with a school record.”
Westmont won the first heat with a time of 3:33.23, beating the old record by over three seconds. Then, the Warriors had to wait for the results of the second heat, in which the teams with the fastest seed times had been placed.
“Watching the next heat and seeing that we beat three of those teams to get sixth place was so awesome,” expressed a joyful Jones Lin. “It was icing on the cake for the whole meet.”
In fact, it was a fitting ending not just for the meet, but for a season and for the careers of a special group of seniors.
The Warriors finished eighth in the national meet, matching their national ranking. Remarkable for a program completing just its fourth season.
During the four-day championship, eight Westmont team records were rewritten, four relay teams earned All-American honors and two Warriors captured All-American titles in individual events – Chaisson in the 200 yard individual medley and Lemmon in the 50 yard freestyle.
Following the meet, the seniors were asked to reflect on their wishes for the future of a program they helped to create.
“NCAA Champs,” quipped Leathers.
“I hope all our records are broken,” added Bienias.
“We worked really hard to establish a team culture and Jill set up four pillars for our team,” reflected Lemmons. “I hope every summer that culture is (passed on to) the team and the future teams uphold those and continue the legacy that we tried to establish during our four years here. I would hope that the ‘character first’ priority maintains the integrity of this team and that I will be proud of every single team that comes after us.”
“I hope that the future teams are able to develop as close of bonds as us original five were,” said Leathers. “It has been so very special and I hope that carries forward.”
Ron Smith is the sports information director at Westmont College.
email: sports@newspress.com
