The Morning Swim Show, Feb. 2, 2012: Georgia’s Lauren English Talks About Senior Year as a Bulldog

PHOENIX, Arizona, February 2. GEORGIA captain Lauren English joins the Morning Swim Show to talk about the Bulldogs' 78 straight dual meet streak as well as her senior season.

Georgia broke the school record for most consecutive victories previously set by men's tennis with 76 wins from 1968 to 1972, with a triumph over South Carolina on Jan. 20 – its 77th victory. Georgia has since stretched that streak to 78. Be sure to visit SwimmingWorld.TV for more video interviews.

Morning Swim Show Transcripts
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Peter Busch: This is the Morning Swim Show for Thursday, February 2nd, 2012. I am your host Peter Busch in the FINIS Monitor today we talked to one of the captains of the University of Georgia Women's Swim Team. They just had a school record with 78 consecutive Dual Meet victories and Senior Lauren English joins us right now in the FINIS Monitor from Athens, Georgia. Hey Lauren welcome to the Morning Swim Show, how are you?

Lauren English: Hi, I'm good. How are you doing?

Peter Busch: Good. So it is Groundhog Day and it is kind of appropriate because you guys just keep winning and winning and winning and winning right?

Lauren English: Well we do our best.

Peter Busch: I can't fathom 78 consecutive Dual Meet victories. I mean you have been at the school— I think this is your fifth year right because you are registered with one year?

Lauren English: Yeah, I'm an older year. This is my fifth.

Peter Busch: Was streak already going when you showed up?

Lauren English: Yeah, I mean when I was a freshman we had the kind of the pressure to make sure that we don't lose at home but to be able to capture this record while I'm here was something that I never imagined us doing or me doing while I was still in school in swimming collegiately so to be able to do that and to see the progress for me being a Freshman to Senior is just absolutely amazing.

Peter Busch: What happened when you guys won that 77, I think it was the 77th that broke the record, right?

Lauren English: Yeah, correct. Yeah it was against USC and it was just a really great feeling. They had banners for us and all the parents were cheering and it was just really fun. It was just a cool kind of pride that everyone felt within them and you know it was just a good camaraderie thing.

Peter Busch: So you felt like the school got behind you because I know swimming is not the biggest sport on campus but did you feel like.

Lauren English: Yeah, today's signing day, you know that is kind of a big deal here and all the parking lots are full, but yeah you know although swimming is not like southern football, swimming here has been made public just because we have done so well and we have such a great team so they did some decent coverage on us and they definitely gave us our props for winning our 77.

Peter Busch: Very good. Well, you guys are— even though you are not the most popular you are arguably the most successful sport at the school. Women's swimming has been dominant in the SEC for more than a decade now. The big question, but SEC titles aren't good enough for Georgia. It is a national title that you guys are shooting for every year and that has eluded you guys the past couple of years.

Lauren English: Yes, you know the SEC's title is something that we always shoot for but in the back of our mind we always have a hope and a goal of getting the NCAA title. Unfortunately, we felt sure that for the past couple of years, but we are eager every single year to regain where we were before and to come back stronger and that is what we are hoping to do this year.

Peter Busch: The conventional wisdom is that with Allison Schmitt taking the year off from collegiate swimming that you are not as good as last year and you can't win the national championship what do you say?

Lauren English: I would say that they are absolutely wrong. Allison Schmitt was a great part of the team but she didn't make up the sole— you know the sole and the hard work that his team has. We have a wonderful new class of freshman come in and they have a lot of talent that people haven't seen before so I would say they are definitely underestimating us when they say that our team, solely rise on Allison Schmitt.

Peter Busch: Is chemistry better this year? Not necessarily because Allison is gone but is there something about this team that you feel special?

Lauren English: I mean every year has been special since I have been here but this year I would say is a little bit more than the rest. It especially because last year we were so close to winning incidentally a title and to just see that kind of slip away at the end was a little heart breaking so this year we had been working really hard and even though we have a lot of youngsters on the team it has been nice for the seniors in upper classmen to show them the ropes a little bit and they have a lot of school pride. They work very hard every day so yes, I would say the camaraderie and the spirit that we have this year is a little bit better than in other years and that definitely gives us a head up when it comes to championship season.

Peter Busch: I know you have been dealing with a risk injury, right?

Lauren English: Yes, unfortunately.

Peter Busch: How is it going?

Lauren English: Good, you know I got my— I swam with a waterproof cast and the doctors here were really great about keeping me in the water as much as possible but I have been doing rehab and you know just kind of trying to work my way back up that is what you got to do when you come back for an injury.

Peter Busch: Can you show us what happened?

Lauren English: I mean here is my wrist. You obviously can't see it right now. It is inside but it is healing, it is the scaphoid bone right here. I actually was— and tutoring for GRE's and I fell down the steps so I was doing something very academic and working my way for something other than swimming or after when I graduate but kind of hit me in the butt there, but that is alright so okay.

Peter Busch: Well I'm sorry to hear that. Are you going to be able to swim at SEC's and hopefully qualify for NCAA?

Lauren English: Yeah that is the goal. I mean I have been swimming in the meets and I mean that is all you can do is work your way up from injuries and I have had experience with that so something like a broken bone is not anything I'm going to go home crying about.

Peter Busch: Yeah, well I know you want to be there at NCAA's for your final year so?

Lauren English: Yeah, no definitely and you know what all you can do is do the best that you can and that is what I'm doing in my coaches now that I put forth every single day in practice and so when the end comes, end comes and all I can do is my best.

Peter Busch: So Lauren you mentioned that it happened while you are actually in— you had your academic you know suit on so to speak.

Lauren English: Yeah, yeah.

Peter Busch: I have heard you do that a lot. You are one of the smartest girls on the team for sure.

Lauren English: I work hard. I think that you know there is a place for swimming but my time is almost up and I know that there is a world outside of swimming and I am trying to be part of the professional world and for me to do that I need to take the GRE and apply the grad schools and so I'm finishing that part of my life up right now and so all I can do is I hope and wait to see which one I get in.

Peter Busch: What is your hope?

Lauren English: My top choices are UConn and University of Virginia right now.

Peter Busch: What do you want to study specifically?

Lauren English: I'm in speech pathology so I'm hoping and all I hope to work with Parkinson's patients that has kind of been a dream of mine for awhile.

Peter Busch: And how did you wind up with Georgia, what is your background?

Lauren English: Well, I'm originally from New Jersey and be proud to always say that I am a Jersey Girl. I am excited for the New York Giants play this weekend.

Peter Busch: I imagine so.

Lauren English: I'm very excited and then I really felt that the team here outshines a lot of the other teams that I went to and the program was absolutely right for me so that is how I got to be a Georgia Bulldog.

Peter Busch: You are from New Jersey; you sound like you are from the south, am I the only one who think so?

Lauren English: Oh no, please tell me that. I hope I didn't catch the southern accent.

Peter Busch: Am I crazy, I mean it sounds like you got southern drawl like you grew up in the south?

Lauren English: I turn Jersey on you in 2 seconds. No, no, no I will turn Jersey on you in 2 seconds.

Peter Busch: Let's hear it. I mean you must love Bon Jovi and your big hair.

Lauren English: A little some Bruce Springsteen yeah those are my type. Yeah, my dog's name is Quaffy and I go to Jersey Shore.

Peter Busch: Alright, that is the Lauren English that the folks back home know and yeah.

Lauren English: Oh, yeah, they love it.

Peter Busch: I will tell you a lot of time in Georgia there that southern drawl slipping in.

Lauren English: Oh, no, no, no, it will come back don't worry, don't worry.

Peter Busch: Well any Super Bowl predictions while you are here?

Lauren English: I mean I hope that the Giants win and so far there has been a couple of people on my side in ESPN zone and stuff like that, but you know I guess we will see. It has been a great playoff season so we will definitely see what is coming up. I don't like to be too cocky about my teams but I'm going to say that New York Giants— .

Peter Busch: More likely to happen.

Lauren English: Yeah.

Peter Busch: Giants win the Super Bowl or the Bulldogs win the NCAA championship.

Lauren English: That is hard one to really say, but can I say they have an equal chance because I know that they are both really great teams and they both work hard and I know from my experience here that I see the girls work hard every single day so I know that we have a really good chance. And although I'm not a football player, not on the giants I have faith in them so I'm going to say they have an equal chance.

Peter Busch: Way to hedge your bet Lauren, thank you very much.

Lauren English: No problem.

Peter Busch: It was fun chatting with you, good luck the rest of the year.

Lauren English: Yeah, no problem. Have a happy Groundhog's Day.

Peter Busch: Same to you. That is Lauren English joining us from the University of Georgia that was fun. Well that is it for today's show. I'm Peter Busch, reminding you to keep your head down at the finish.

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