Edina High School ’22
Washington University ’26
MSV had the opportunity to sit down with Edina high School grad Matthew Walker and find out about his freshman year as a student and a swimmer at Washington University. For as long as Matthew can remember, swimming in college was a forgone conclusion. Not only did he see it to help him get into a good college, but he knew he’d enjoy it once he began. So far, he’s been absolutely right!
Swimming in college is different for Matthew, but not so much in the workouts or training. It’s more about how the season is structured. High school swimming is short and sweet at 13 weeks, and you train for one big meet at the end of the season. If you’re lucky, you might have a big club meet shortly following. In college, you train for your mid-season big meet, then focus on the season ending meet. According to Matthew, it blends better and makes it feel like one big season that the entire team is a part of.
Balancing his school, swimming and social life hasn’t been too challenging either. In fact, Matthew shas seen some aspects of college that make it easier. You don’t have to cook your own meals, you don’t have classes for six hours straight, and Washington University offers multiple practice time options so athletes can have some flexibility with their academic schedule.
Matthew particularly enjoyed the team’s training trip to Florida this year to get some time with long course training and, of course, some beach and hang out time with his teammates. He recognizes this as one of the great traditions of college swimming.
Advice for athletes thinking of swimming in college: Pick a school that will give you what you are looking for academically and provide you with a degree you are proud of. The degree is what’s going to carry you after college. Also, meet the team and get a feel for what they are like. You’ll be spending a lot of time with them.
Advice for soon-to-be Freshman swimming in college: Don’t burn yourself out the summer before you head off to college. Stay in shape, but take couple days off every now and then to enjoy the summer; this will help you go in fresh and ready to take on the challenges!