Rhiannon Myhre '25
May 3, 2024
Three weeks ago, swimmers Matt Beelher ’24, Ingrid Janney ’24, and Crystal Yuen ’24, accompanied by coach Glenn Neufeld traveled all the way to San Antonio, Texas to compete in the TYR Pro Series, which is a highly regarded national meet.
It is no surprise to anyone in the Mercersburg Academy community that swimming is a significant part of the school's athletic identity. Swimmers are some of the most hard-working student-athletes on campus. They train endlessly, and when time comes for a major competition, anyone can see where all that hard work pays off. While the swim team has a variety of different levels, these athletes in particular went above and beyond to prove just how much time and effort they put into their sport.
Neufeld said, “The TYR Pro Series is a great opportunity for athletes to swim against some of the best in the world. Swimmers making finals for the most part were college, graduate, or professional athletes, so it’s pretty impressive when we brought three 18-and-over athletes to the meet and all of them were able to get a final swim at night. It’s always challenging when you travel halfway across the country for an event and you’re competing at the highest level. Ingrid, Crystal, and Matt all did a great job, and they all deserved it.”
This meet is for the best of the best, so naturally preparation was crucial. Beehler commented: “I prepared for the meet by cutting out a lot of junk food and snacks from my diet, replacing them with healthier options and more protein, drinking a lot more water to stay very hydrated, and getting a lot more sleep to help my body recover.”
After such extensive preparations, the swimmers were ready to face the challenge head on. Yuen shared her goals going into the meet, “ I did not really go into the swim meet with high expectations. I was really excited to get away from campus, have some good food, and see some really fast people swim. So, I didn’t really have any goals. I just wanted to have a fun time and, usually, in my opinion, fasting is a byproduct of having fun.”
Even though the purpose of their trip was competition, that doesn’t mean that the swimmers didn’t get to have a little fun. Yuen said, “I had a lot of fun with Ingrid and Matt and I am very happy that I got to spend time with them and bond with them. We did a lot of fun things like meet with [former Mercersburg] Coach Pete Williams and alumni,” adding, “We also went to a rodeo!”
Yuen placed 24th in the bonus final of the 400m freestyle and achieved a lifetime PR of 57.09 in the 100m freestyle. Her outstanding time elevated her from 114th seed to 61st overall. Beehler and Janney both placed in the 200m freestyle, with Beehler finishing 23rd the with a time of 2:06.11 and Janney placing 18th place in the bonus final with a time of 2:16.69.
Beehler, Janney, and Yuean are all graduating this year and are looking forward to their time in the collegiate swimming world, and their results at the TYR Pro Series suggest success at the next level.