Hansen offers season preview to the media
October 10, 2009 | Women's Swimming & Diving
Oct. 6, 2009
MADISON, Wis. -- Eric Hansen, who enters his 11th season as head coach of the Wisconsin men's and women's swimming and diving programs, offered a look at the season ahead as part of UW Athletics' weekly news conference Monday.
A compete transcript of Hansen's remarks can be found below, and archived video of his media session also is available (Hansen's portion of the news conference begins at the 35:15 mark of the video).
Hansen's teams open the 2009-10 season Friday by hosting Milwaukee in a 5 p.m. dual meet at the UW Natatorium.
HANSEN: We begin this season coming off a really strong summer season. In our sport, it's somewhat relentless in that it's ongoing, and summer is probably the most important thing to set us up for a successful winter and spring venture. So we got a lot accomplished this summer. We put two women on the U.S. national team, which is the first time, I believe, since I've been here that we've had two on at one time in Ashley Wanland, a sophomore from the Chicago area, and Maggie Meyer from the Twin Cities area. She's a junior.
On the men's side, we have four returning seniors that we'll lean on heavily, plus a cast of very, very talented freshmen. So on both sides we're hoping to take a big step forward and at the NCAA championships, which will be our focus this season.
QUESTION #1: It says that Meyer and Wanland will compete in select events for the U.S. When will that be? You know, do you have any idea?
HANSEN: That's kind of an ongoing thing. They just returned from a U.S. national team camp this past weekend, and they have a chance to represent the U.S. in December in a U.S. versus Europe meet in England. That would be their first chance. And then there's other events being set up at this time.
QUESTION #2: Eric, I don't know if there's an easy answer to this, but how do you personally define a successful season here for the men and women?
HANSEN: Right now, I know this is a bit different, but on the women's side, a top ten season is a successful season. On the men's side right now, I would say a top 20 season is something that I'd be proud of, and then we'd take steps from there. So they're in a little bit different places right now, but I think we've got the right class on the men's side to take those steps.
And on the women's side, we were 14th, but we were 12th going into the last event. We had 12th wrapped up, and we disqualified the last relay, which was already 8th. So I consider us somewhat 12th coming out of last year, and we return virtually all of our point scorers, and we get some phenomenal talent in as freshmen. And the girls we have returning took huge steps. So to be top-10, I think, should be an expectation, and they know that.
And as I said, on the men's side, we're a half-step behind, but we've got the right people in the right places this year.
QUESTION #3: Could you tell us a little bit more about both Maggie and Ashley and what makes them so good?
HANSEN: Both of them had tremendous years last year. I know Ashley came out of high school going 1:02 in the 100 breast and dropped to 59.1 to be an All American in that event. And then she dropped from 2:14 to 2:07 and set the Big Ten record [in the 200 breast]. And then Maggie is just a talent that continued to develop all year and had similar drops. But I think talent is one thing that sets them apart, but I think work ethic is the other.
We have kind of a saying on our staff that we can make you really, really good, but in order to be the best, you have to make yourself the best. And we offer them every possible option to be the best, whether it's meeting with our, you know, strength staff or John Dettmann or Scott Hettenbach about different things they can do. Or I'll be in the water with them working one on one with them or there's just so many different aspects that we can offer them here at the University of Wisconsin, and those are two girls that take advantage of the majority of those options. Our best kids work really, really hard, really hard, and they set the standard on that.
QUESTION #4: (inaudible)
HANSEN: You know, it's interesting. Our best kids come early and stay late, and the first day we had two kids do it. I think you can guess who they were. And now we have half a team. And it's interesting to see how that's contagious, and I still wonder how people can walk out and watch everybody else do extra. So I'm just kind of, I kind of watch from the sideline when that goes down, because I really want each kid to have something they can call their own and know why they expect to be way better in the upcoming season.
