 |  |
Umbarger dives right in at Keene State
KEENE, N.H., 2/17/10 - Following a disappointing freshman season competing at Chelmsford High School in Massachusetts, Kaila Umbarger asked her coach Harriet Kinnett, "Do you think I could swim in college?"
Umbarger had struggled during her initial season with the Lions and was upset that she hadn't qualified for the state meet. Three years and thousands of laps later, she has received an answer to her question: an emphatic "Yes!"
A freshman sprinter on the Keene State College women's swim team, Umbarger hasn't wasted any time making her mark with the Owls. She has already taken down the 50- (23.74) and 100-yard freestyle (53.25) and 50 fly (26.02) records and helped set a new mark in the 200 medley relay (1:47.71). Her time in the 100 fly (57.23) is an NCAA provisional mark and would've made her an All-American at last year's championship.
But the best is yet to come for the flying freshman. Heading into this weekend's NEISDA championships, Umbarger is ranked seventh in the 50 free and 100 fly in Division III, and the Owls' 200 medley relay team has the fourth best time in the country. She is the third KSC women's swimmer to qualify for the NCAA championships, and she and several of her teammates have a chance of becoming the College's first-ever All-Americans.
"It's pretty awesome," said Umbarger. "I definitely amazed myself. My freshman year in high school I didn't even make states, and here I am going to nationals."
Although she began competing on the Russell Mill Swim Club summer-league team at the age of six, Umbarger didn't take swimming seriously until she reached high school.
Her passion was ballet. Drawn to the dance by its conflicting need for gracefulness and strength, Umbarger also loved to perform.
Joining several of her friends, Kaila was soon performing in the pool. "When she jumped into the water, we knew we had something special," said Josh Blagg, the boy's swimming coach at Chelmsford High.
Coach Kinnett took advantage of Umbarger's versatility. "I could put Kaila anywhere in an individual or relay race," she said. "She always gave 110% every time she hit the water."
Umbarger culminated her four-year career by helping to lead the Lions to the program's first-ever state championship in 2008. She placed third in the 50 free and 100 fly and was a member of two winning relays at the meet. Named to Boston Globe, Boston Herald and Lowell Sun All-Scholastic teams, she was a prize catch for head coach Jack Fabian and the KSC program. Initially looking at several Division I schools, including URI, Umbarger felt Keene State was a better fit, allowing her the opportunity to pursue her academic and athletic goals.
Diving right in, Umbarger has made an immediate impact on a KSC team that has captured three straight Little East Conference championships and will be looking for its third-consecutive NEISDA title this weekend.
Competing at the LEC meet at UMass-Dartmouth back in December, Umbarger, wearing a fastskin suit for the first time, not only swam her way into the Owl record book, but secured a spot at the NCAA championships by posting a time of 23.74 in the 50 freestyle race.
Seeing her time on the board, Umbarger unleashed a cheer of excitement that could be heard all the way back in Keene. "That was much faster than I ever expected to finish," she said.
Fabian attributes Umbarger's improvement to her training regimen that includes two daily practices and lifting sessions. "Kaila is doing more training than she's done before, and that translates into racing ability," he said.
Kaila's success in the pool also comes from her bubbly personality. "I'm competitive, but I also like to have fun," she said. "I stay relaxed and just try to see what my times are going to be."
Looking to improve her times at the New England championships, Umbarger also hopes to qualify for the national meet in the 100 free and 100 fly, as well as in a relay event.
Just a freshman, Umbarger has just scratched the surface of the water when it comes to her potential in the pool. "I'm so proud of her; I can't wait to see how she's going to do at nationals," said friend and teammate Maureen O'Leary. "It's crazy. Kaila has three more years to swim at Keene State. I can only imagine how great she'll become by her senior year."
