SENIORS
HONORED IN SWIM MEET VS. CAMPBELLGREENSBORO, NC, January 13, 2005 -- Only time will tell if the strategy will pay off. N.C. A&T head swimming coach Shawn Hendrix decided to schedule a swim meet the first week back from the Holiday break in order to give her swimmers an extra week to prepare the Northeast Conference Swimming Championships.
The downside to the early 2006 meet is Hendrix did not have much time to practice after the swimmers returned from the Holiday break. Despite it, Hendrix was pleased with some individual efforts Friday during a swim meet against Campbell.
The Camels defeated the Aggies 118-106, but Donielle Campbell's improvement from the last time the Aggies faced the Camels and the honoring of four seniors -- Ashley Farr, Sujotta Pace, Brittani Smith and Janelle Mason -- didn't make the evening a total loss. Chancellor James C. Renick also added to the celebration of Senior Night by swimming the anchor leg of an exhibition relay.
"I'm so proud of these girls,'' Hendrix said. "This is the second senior class in the history of the program to swim all four years. On top of that, these four girls have a combined GPA of 3.89. I'll certainly miss them because they have done so much for this program."
Mason and Smith will further their education, while Farr will enter the workforce and Pace will continue her theatre studies.
Although it was senior night, it was Hendrix's freshmen who showed off the promise of the program. Donielle Campbell, a freshman out of Atlanta, swam a 2:26.02 in the 200 IM on Nov. 11. On Friday, she dropped her time to 2:23.18 and won the 200 IM.
"You can tell she was in the pool over the Holidays,'' said Hendrix. "You like to see that kind of dedication from your swimmers."
Gia Wright took the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 1:09.98. The Aggies are back in action on Jan. 21 when the swim against Howard in Washington, D.C.