After a gold-medal winning performance in Athens over the summer, Wisconsin women’s swimmer Carly Piper earned yet another accolade to grace her mantle over the weekend. Piper was awarded her second Big Ten Swimmer of the Year honor at the Big Ten Championships Saturday evening.
“It was great. It was something that was in the back of my mind when I got there,” Piper said. “With all the competitive spirit that was happening, and having the whole team atmosphere there just made it even better.”
Piper previously won the award as a sophomore in 2003. This marks the fifth time in the last six years that a member of the Wisconsin swimming and diving team has garnered the honor.
“I think Carly is very worthy of such a prestigious honor,” head coach Eric Hansen said. “To get the award twice in one’s career is awesome, and to keep the award in the program is a great thing, too.”
Over the weekend, Piper earned victories in both the 500-yard and the 1650-yard freestyle events while competing at the Big Ten Championships. Piper has won both events at the championships for four consecutive years.
Yet even after all of her success, Piper admitted that she never expected to enjoy the career she has had at Wisconsin.
“I came out of high school, I’ll admit it, I was alright, but I wasn’t that great,” Piper said. “But coming here, and, especially after the winning it [the] first time, it was just great that it happened, and knowing all the training and stuff has paid off. Especially after the second time too; just in the back of my mind knowing that I definitely [made] the right choice.”
The senior has been an integral component for the No. 8 Wisconsin women’s swimming and diving team this season, helping the Badgers to a 10-1 overall record and a perfect 5-0 Big Ten mark.
Piper holds Wisconsin’s top times in the 200-yard, 500-yard, 1000-yard and 1650-yard freestyle events this season. She also is a member of Wisconsin’s fastest 400-yard and 800-yard freestyle relay squads this season.
Piper will be competing at the NCAA championships March 17-19 in three events, the 200-yard, 500-yard and 1650-yard freestyle events after earning NCAA “A” qualifying times.
The Grosse Pointe, Mich. native currently owns the ninth-fastest time in the nation for the 200-yard freestyle (1:47.08), the third-fastest time in the nation for the 500-yard freestyle (4:42.25) and the second-fastest time in the nation for the 1650-yard freestyle (16:06.61).
This past summer, Piper became the first Wisconsin women’s swimmer to compete in the Olympic games. Piper earned her gold medal after helping set a world-record time of 7:53.42 in the 800-meter freestyle event in Athens.
