2008-09 Swimming Guide.Qxp
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Valerie Carter (1984-87), a 2006 NAU Athletics Hall of Fame inductee, didn’t know it but, right after the ball dropped to start 2006, the ball started rolling on her induction. Keeping it a complete secret, Joe Carter contacted the NAU Athletic Media Relations office in early January to inquire about nominating his wife for the honor, and from there, Carter’s numerous accomplishments in diving at NAU began to surface. Carter (formerly Simmons) qualified for the NCAA Championships twice, becoming the first athlete in the pro- gram to ever qualify, and also became the school record-holder in both the one and three-meter events as well as the Pac-West Conference champion in both events as a junior. Carter was the team co-captain as a senior, all-aca- demic Pacific Collegiate Swim Conference honoree and was twice named the team’s most outstanding diver. Carter didn’t just receive a degree, pack up and leave. She has made Flagstaff her home, and NAU her career. She has four different degrees from the university in physical therapy including an advanced master’s and a doc- torate. Carter currently works as an associate professor in the Physical Therapy Department, and also owns and operates Carter Rehabilitation in town along with her husband. Valerie Carter April Diez-Walker (1992-96), a first-ballot inductee into the NAU Athletics Hall of Fame, was the first female swimmer to com- pete at the NCAA Division I Swimming and Diving Championships and is the only swimming All-American in school history. Diez-Walker was a two-time NCAA Championships qualifier and still holds four individual school records - the 200 freestyle, 500 freestyle, 1,000 freestyle and 1,650 freestyle - and was part of the record-setting 800 freestyle relay team. A 1994 NCAA All-American in the 1,650-yard freestyle, she finished sixth overall at the NCAA meet and placed ninth in the 500-yard freestyle, earning honor- able-mention All-America honors. She was also a championship finalist at the 1993 World University Games in Buffalo, N.Y. Diez-Walker was also named the top female scholar-athlete in the nation following the 1993-94 academic year based on her athletic and academic accomplishments (a perfect 4.00 grade-point average). The former April Diez was named Female Swimmer of the Year following the 1995 Pacific Collegiate Swim Conference Championships after winning the 1,650 free, 200 free, 500 free and 400 individual medley (setting an NAU record in the process). A native of Phoenix and an honors graduate of Xavier College Preparatory School, she earned her degree in sociology at NAU, completed law school at the University of California, Berkeley, and currently resides in Phoenix, Ariz. April Diez-Walker A 2007 graduate of NAU, Alexis Buckley was the first female swimmer in 12 years to participate in the NCAA Championships when she qualified as a Pam Rogers, a 2007 NAU Athletics Hall of Fame inductee, was the Head Coach for the swimming and junior in the 1,650 freestyle with a time of 16:27.12, diving program from 1983-96, and also the first coach second only to All-American April Diez’s time of of the program. Rogers won five Pacific Collegiate 16:18.13. Swimming Conference titles during her tenure and Buckley was the first and is still the only NAU was responsible for the addition of the men’s pro- swimmer to earn a Western Athletic Conference gram, which also won five conference titles. (WAC) title, garnering two of them since the Lumberjacks joined the WAC in 2004-05. As a junior, Rogers was the first woman in the sport of swimming and diving to be the head coach of a com- Buckley won the 1,650 freestyle at the WAC bined men’s and women’s Division I team. The team Championships and as a senior she set a school- Alexis Buckley Pam Rogers finished 29th at the 1994 NCAA Championships record time of 4:23.73 en route to winning her sec- behind All-American April Diez’s performance in the ond title in the 400 individual medley. 500 freestyle and the mile. Rogers coached 39 At the 2006 NCAA Championships, Buckley women’s conference champions in individual events placed 19th in the 1,650 freestyle and 33rd in the and 47 Golden Eagle Scholar Athletes. prelims of the 500 freestyle. In addition to her indi- She was a four-time All-American, a two-time vidual school record in the 400 IM which still stands, national champion and an alternate for the U.S. Buckley is also still a part of school records in the Olympic Team in 1976, and went on to coach ASU to 400 freestyle and 800 freestyle relays. two national and four conference titles. UNSURPASSED BEAUTY... Surrounded by pines and aspens and sitting at the base of the 12,633-foot San Francisco Peaks, Flagstaff is in the middle of the Coconino National Forest, the largest contiguous stand of ponderosa pines in the world, at an elevation of 7,000 feet above sea level. Flagstaff is surrounded by incredible scenery, including the Grand Canyon National Park, Lake Powell, the Sedona red rocks, Monument Valley, Sunset Crater and Oak Creek Canyon. Flagstaff and northern Arizona offer a diverse land- scape, four distinctive seasons, unmatched beauty and an exciting array of recreational possibilities. NFL have trained in Flagstaff he pines of Flagstaff. world-renown Center for High Northern Arizona University has facilities that are utilized by some of the world’s best athletes. The Arizona Cardinals of the their training for world-class nearly every summer since they moved to Phoenix, and the Phoenix Suns of the NBA have held their preseason training camp among t The weight room is considered world-class as one of 11 regional training centers by USA Weightlifting. NAU is also home to the Altitude Training, which provides services for elite international athletes who use Flagstaff’s 7,000-foot elevation to enhance The Wall Aquatic Center, home to the NAU swimming and diving program, is a promi- competitions like the Beijing Olympics. nent resource for clients of the Center, which have included several national teams from around the world, American gold-medal swimmers like Gary Hall Jr. and Anthony Ervin, as well as World and Olympic champion Australian swimmer Ian Thorpe and four-time Olympic gold medalist and Japanese swimmer Kosuke Katajima. Katajima has visited the Center for High Altitude Training numerous times in recent years, staying for three or more weeks at a time. After his most recent visit, he won gold medals at the Beijing Olympics in both the 100-meter and 200-meter breaststroke. As Katajima said to Swimming Technique magazine, “Whenever I come here (to Flagstaff), I always improve my time.” Flagstaff works for an Olympic gold medalist; just imagine what it can do for you. Living and training in an environment such as Flagstaff, at an elevation of 7,000 feet above sea level, provides many benefits to athletes and coaches in pursuit of peak per- formances. Unlike the international teams which only come to Flagstaff for relatively short altitude training camps, the athletes at Northern Arizona University enjoy the ben- efits of long-term exposure to altitude. Although not researched in depth, anecdotal evi- Australian swimmers Michael Klim and Ian Thorpe nd continual learning from with NAU Head Coach Andy Johns dence suggests that the benefits of living and training at a significant elevation result in y to work” baseline test set has AU swimmers going to the long-term improvement of athletic performance. Crucial to the success of our athletes is an application of years of knowledge al of improved performance the best coaches in the world, who visit NAU regularly for altitude training cycles. The development of a “need to rest or read ? helped fine-tune the science of swimming at NAU. Being smart about the timing, duration and intensity of work has resulted in N NCAA Championships in events ranging from the 50 freestyle to the mile. Smart, scientific, efficient training with a common goa over the long haul is challenging, but the Lumberjacks of Northern Arizona University are primed to meet the challenge. Are you AUSTRALIA—SWIMMING GERMANY—SWIMMING Reiko Nakamura Stephanie Rice Britta Steffan Bronze—Women's 200m Backstroke Gold—Women's 400m Individual Medley* Gold—Women's 100m Freestyle Gold—Women's 200m Individual Medley* Gold—Women's 50m Freestyle Junichi Miyashita Bronze—Men's 4x100m Medley Relay Eamon Sullivan ITALY—SWIMMING Silver—Men's 100M Freestyle Federica Pellegrini Hisayoshi Sato Silver—Men's 4x100m Medley Relay** Gold—Women's 200m Freestyle* Bronze—Men's 4x100m Medley Relay Bronze—Men's 4x100m Freestyle Relay Alessia Filippi AUSTRIA—SWIMMING NORWAY—SWIMMING Silver—Women's 800m Freestyle Mirna Jukic Alexander Dale Oen Bronze—Women's 100m Breaststroke Silver—Men's 100m Breaststroke JAPAN—SWIMMING Kosuke Kitajima CANADA—TRIATHLON Sara Nordenstam Gold—Men's 100m Breaststroke* Simon Whitfield Bronze—Women's 200m Breaststroke Silver—Men's Triathlon Gold—Men's 200m Breaststroke* Bronze—Men's 4x100m Medley Relay * denotes World Record (6 total) DENMARK—SWIMMING ** set World Record in leadoff leg of relay Lotte Friis Takeshi Matsuda Bronze—Women's 800m Freestyle Bronze—Men's 200m Butterfly WELCOME TO NAU TABLE OF CONTENTS NOTICE TO THE MEDIA This media guide is provided by the Northern MEDIA INFORMATION 2007-08 Season Review............................................35 Arizona athletics media relations office to assist 2008-09 Schedule .................................... Back Cover 2007-08 Top Times ................................................ 35 media members with their coverage of Media Information ...................................................