The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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Junior Barrett Mieseld earned first-team All-America honors by finishing seventh in the 100-yard butterfly at the NCAA Championships. photo courtesy nc state media relations for the men, who were successful in re‑ cording the program's 20th top‑20 national finish (each of the previous 19 came be‑ tween 1952-79). "I think it has always been a goal at NC State for a while to get back to where it used to finish," Holloway said. "I think it's a sign of what the program and the school are still capable of doing. "The one thing about nationals that was awesome was watching these guys right after the last event. They were looking up at the scoreboard when they were about to update the scores for the final time. "To watch those guys and see the pride they had when it said, '15th,' and hearing them say, 'We're back!' is a testament to the history of the program, to all of those guys that were here in the '50, '60s and '70s who set that benchmark. These guys understand that and cherish that, and I think that was a great moment for us." Although Holloway admits the success came faster than anybody expected, it was not by accident. After the progress made in year one, the coach set numerous obstacles in front of his team, and they responded by rising to the challenge. "We set our season up to gear toward the end of the year in February and March," he explained. "We tried to set up a schedule that was conducive to preparing us for the competition at the end of the year, to put ourselves in a situation where we knew that we could handle the stress of racing a lot of top-level teams. "Each segment of training built on the one preceding it, and it just built up their confidence and their ability. Obviously, last year was a good start, then they got hungry, they were aggressive with it, and it came together at the end." Holloway specifically pointed to the team's dual meet in October at Southern California, a swimming powerhouse. It was the first indication to the coach that his team was further along than last year. Al‑ though the Pack lost on the scoreboard, the squad recorded wins in several events and the two teams spent time training together, which proved to be invaluable. "The schedule was tougher than the pre‑ vious year, but one thing we wanted to do with the men's team was put ourselves in the situation where we were racing in un‑ charted waters against a top-10 team," the coach noted. "We wanted to do it early in the year to send the message for what was needed to get us to the next level. "We actually had a nice weekend of rac‑ ing with them, and Southern California is one of the top five teams in the country year after year, and they produce a lot of Olympians. The goal was to get in an envi‑ ronment where that type of swimming and diving is an everyday thing, to get them to be around it. "They brought those emotions back to Raleigh, and it kind of helped us do the same thing in Raleigh — making a champi‑ onship environment an everyday normalcy here at the pool." The time on the West Coast also allowed the coaching staff to learn and work with USC head coach Dave Salo, a three-time U.S. Olympic coach. It also made an im‑ pact on the athletes away from the sports world. "It enabled us to pick up some ideas to bring back and help cultivate what we wanted to do here," Holloway said. "This was almost like an early-season reminder of this is where we're going, this is what it takes to get there, and feed off of it. "I definitely think it helped catapult them in the way they approached every day — not just in the pool, but the decisions they were making outside of the pool because they were around Olympians and heard Olympians speak, saw their attitudes on the deck." Holloway was rewarded with ACC Coach of the Year honors following this season's success, but he explained that it really is an award that is shared by his extended staff, and it starts with associate head coach Todd DeSorbo, Holloway's first hire when he took the job at his alma mater. "I think it's a great honor for our school, I think it's a great honor for the history of our men's program, and for our alumni that built all of the history before us," he said. "It's an honor that our entire school needs to make sure they cherish because it's defi‑ nitely not a Coach of the Year award, it's a staff award. We're blessed to bring it back, and I think it shows the revitalization of our men's program. May 2013 ■ 65 64-66.Swimming.indd 65 4/30/13 2:05 PM