Q&A with senior Lyndsay DePaul

Senior Lyndsay DePaul helped lead USC to victory over crosstown rival UCLA in its last dual meet of the season. The Daily Trojan sat down with the co-captain and asked to share us her thoughts on the season, and how the team will prepare for the NCAAs and Pac-10 championships.

Daily Trojan: Looking back at the team’s regular season, what lessons did you and the other swimmers take out of the dual meets you participated in?

DePaul: We learned not to take some teams too lightly and we learned what it’s like to win and what it’s like to lose. We know what we can do, we learned what we are capable or and what we aren’t capable of — this has all been a learning experience.

DT: Your two losses came against California and Stanford. How did losing to those Northern California schools influence the team?

DePaul: Going into those two meets, we didn’t really know what to expect. We were going up there coming off some really hard training and we knew they were going to be ready for us. We flew up the day of the Cal meet and had to be at the meet two hours after we got there, so the travel situation was tough. Our main problem was that we kept getting out-touched and that makes a huge difference at dual meets. We have been working on our finishes and hitting the wall so that we won’t be getting out-touched by anyone.

DT: What was the goal of the women’s swim team throughout the season and how did the swimmers work to achieve it?

DePaul: We set multiple goals and one of them was to win all of our dual meets, which didn’t happen. Another one was to be top four at the NCAAs and I really believe we can do that. Hopefully we can go to NCAAs with a full roster of girls, which is 18 girls, and win.

DT: As a co-captain on the team, what did you notice about the team dynamic and motivation as the season went on?

DePaul: Our freshmen and sophomores were very mature and jumped on board very quickly. This year they made sure that we were all on the same page. It is our [seniors] last year but they have been helping us out.

DT: What was the most exciting moment about the women’s dual meet season?

DePaul: I think the UCLA meet as a whole was monumental. Everybody’s attitudes and strength was great. It was exciting to see everybody’s confidence at yesterday’s meet. It really set the stage for Pac-10s and NCAAs.

DT: What is the message you would like to send to the USC community as the women’s swim team prepares to wrap up its season with the NCAAs and Pac-10s?

DePaul: Our girl’s and boy’s teams work really, really hard and that fan support would be greatly appreciated. We put a lot of effort in and it is nice to have support and have people cheer for us. Thank you to everyone who has supported us and followed us throughout the season.