The Morning Swim Show, July 19, 2011: Committing Early to USC Helps Kendyl Stewart Prepare for 2012

PHOENIX, Arizona, July 1. TODAY'S edition of The Morning Swim Show features an interview with incoming high school senior Kendyl Stewart.

Stewart has made a verbal commitment to attend the University of Southern California in the fall of 2012, and she talks about the people that influenced her decision to go to college there, and why she likes Dave Salo's program. She also talks about the past high school season, when she missed out on a chance to break the national high school record in the 100 fly. Watch the full show in the video player below and visit SwimmingWorld.TV for more video interviews.

Special Thanks to Finis for sponsoring the Morning Swim Show's interview segments in the Finis Monitor. Visit Finis to learn more about their innovative products for aquatic athletes.

Show Transcript: (Note: This is an automated service where some typos and grammatical errors may occur.)

Peter: This is The Morning Swim Show for Tuesday, July 19th, 2011. I'm your host Peter Busch. In the FINIS Monitor today we will talk to Kendyl Stewart. She is one of the top high school swimmers in America and she just announced that she will be a USC Trojan starting next fall. Kendyl Stewart joins us right now in the FINIS Monitor from Carlsbad, California. Hi Kendyl, welcome to The Morning Swim Show. How are you?

Kendyl: Hi. I'm great.

Peter: You made your decision to swim early.

Kendyl: Yeah I did.

Peter: You didn't even wait for the recruiting trips?

Kendyl: Actually, I took— I kind of knew what schools I was interested already and I took unofficial visits to a few and I had a little email contact going with a few of the coaches, so I knew a little bit before July 1st about the school that I was interested in. I had home visits from a few coaches so I was familiar enough with the school and I didn't really feel like there was too much more that I could learn for recruiting trips so I felt like I had enough you know info to make it get vision.

Peter: Do you know kids on a lot of the teams that you were looking into?

Kendyl: Yeah I have teammates from — actually I have four other teammates from my club that go to USC right now so there is a lot of kids up there that I know love it and I'm doing well so that kind of was what originally made me interested in USC just those kids that I have all been friends with and so yeah.

Peter: Who is runner up?

Kendyl: Berkeley.

Peter: Berkeley. Well, tough to go wrong with any of those choices right now, they definitely have their programs clicking.

Kendyl: Definitely, yeah. I know I would have liked it there but USC – really this is where I felt comfortable and just where my heart was set on.

Peter: Now USC is sort of become the breaststroker haven, not to say that they certainly don't have good flyers and other strokes swimmers as well, but what was it about the way they train or what you have seen from others swimmers that made you believe you know as a 100 fly specialist that is where I can succeed the best?

Kendyl: About USC, I really just loved the team and just like I said, I knew kids that were on there. But there are also other kids that aren't in my club from like Southern California that had been to meets around, and I feel like I knew the team. But I was really impressed from when I went up there just the way that they kind of all got along and supporting each other and the coaching staff. Obviously Dave (Salo) is an amazing coach and he has coached so many world-class athletes and just in a short time that he has been at USC – I think like five years at USC at least on the women's side – has risen and situated rankings a lot and I just feel like with the international atmosphere with all of the like Trojan swim club athletes and it just like a really unique place that would be a good environment for me.

Peter: Well, as I mentioned 100 fly is your best event. 52.4 as a sophomore in high school would have gotten 7th at the NCAA last year. Why didn't you swim in high school this year?

Kendyl: Actually, there was kind of a big mix-up. I was planning on swimming at my high school championship but there was – my coach kind of had a mistake and accidentally entered me in 100 free instead so that was kind of a little problem, but it turned out okay and I had a good swim in the 100 free. But I would have liked to swim butterfly.

Peter: Wait, how do you accidentally put somebody in the 100 free over the 100 fly?

Kendyl: I don't know. It was his first year and I don't know. I had kind of been swimming different events the whole season at dual meets so I don't know that he knew. I think he put me in what he thought I wanted to swim so I was entered in 100 free and 100 back. So yeah, but it is okay.

Peter: Good thing he didn't put you in the 500.

Kendyl: Yeah, but it is okay.

Peter: What do you think you could have gone this year in a 100 fly?

Kendyl: My goal was to break the high school record, the national one … so that was my goal but I am not going to swim senior year high school to prepare for Olympic trials.

Peter: Oh no, you missed your chance?

Kendyl: Yeah. I did.

Peter: Oh I'm sorry that stinks.

Kendyl: Yeah.

Peter: I was going to say, well there is always your senior year but you are not even going to be there.

Kendyl: Umm-hmm.

Peter: Bummer.

Kendyl: Yeah but being a good long course swimmer is also my goal so…

Peter: I was going to ask because we talked to your coach at North Coast Aquatic, Jeff Pease, before this interview and he told us that he thinks you got a legit shot to make the 2012 team and we see a lot of kids who are good, high school short course swimmers but that doesn't necessarily mean much for a long course. It is a whole different animal. Do you feel as comfortable in the long course as you do short course?

Kendyl: I like long course better. I just, I think part of it is because my club focuses on it a lot more. My coach just really just loves long course and I think that is kind of rubbed off on me but I'm really excited for next summer and I'm trying not to put too much pressure on myself. I went to Olympic trials last year- or not last year, last time – when I was 13 and I kind of experienced it and in this year I was just going to not put so much pressure on myself and enjoy it. My goal is to make top 8 finals and race as fast as I can and I think I have a shot but I'm just going to you know just try my best and I like long course a lot. And last year, I kind of I didn't race as well as I could have but this year I have been training harder and I feel like if I continue the way that I continue now I ought to be faster and hopefully race up at the top.

Peter: Well, I think that is a good mental approach, you know try and keep the pressure off. I know that will probably more difficult if you start rising in the rankings and people expect you to be in maybe the top three or four contending for a spot but—

Kendyl: Definitely yeah.

Peter: Keep this approach as long as you can I would say and you will work out just fine. Your coach also said he described your swimming this way; you have a natural feel for the water. He said he has never really seen something like it. Where you just— you grab the water very easily is that something you remember from being as a kid or is that something you know as a 16 year old that you even kind of know what he is talking about or you are just out there swimming?

Kendyl: I have always loved swimming. I never really started off as something like my parents said, you are going to be in the swim team and that kind of put me into it for safety. I live two minutes from the ocean and it is just something that they felt like I needed to do but I loved it and it turned out I was pretty good at it and I picked it up fast and I wouldn't— I don't know, I don't think it is something that I notice but, I do love swimming and I do it because it is fun for me and I enjoy it. But it is good to be good at something that you love doing that is for sure.

Peter: Okay, now we got the world championships coming up. Who is another butterflier that you love watching?

Kendyl: I would say Dana Vollmer. I think she is someone that I looked up to. She is an awesome swimmer but she seems like really cool, really nice, really fun, just someone I enjoy watching.

Peter: Any predictions on who takes the Women's 100 fly in Shanghai?

Kendyl: I don't know. I will be watching and I know a lot of girls on that team that— girls my age that I have been on trips with them, so it is going to be really exciting to watch everyone race.

Peter: It may not be long until you are joining them. Kendyl, thank you very much and congratulations on the college decision.

Kendyl: Thank you, thank you for having me.

Peter: That is Kendyl Stewart joining us in the FINIS Monitor from Carlsbad, California. 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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