REDHAWK CHAT: Kasey Carpenter and Allison Way

The Mid-American Conference Women's Swimming and Diving Championships are coming to Miami Feb. 24-27. As part of the RedHawk chat series, seniors Kasey Carpenter and Allison Way stopped by Thursday to answer questions about the event and their season so far.

Senior captains Way and Carpenter helped lead Miami University to the Mid-American Conference Women's Swimming and Diving Championship in 2009 and are preparing to defend that title next week at Miami's home pool, the Nixon Aquatic Center. Last season, Way helped the RedHawks claim first-place finishes in the 800 freestyle relay and the 400 medley relay. She also placed fifth in the 200 butterfly event. Carpenter is one of the MAC's premier backstrokers, placing second a year ago in the 200-yard event.

Here is a transcript of Thursday's chat.

MURedHawks.com: Good morning, we're just a few minutes away from getting started with Kasey and Allison ...

Pat Carpenter, Lebanon, Ohio: Question for Kasey Carpenter...Does any one race, since your first competition at the age of 8, stand out in your mind as the most exciting or most memorable?

Kasey Carpenter: Hi Grandma! The race that stands out in my mind the most was when I got my Olympic trial cut, because I wasn't expecting it.

chad (oxford): do you have boyfriends

Allison Way: At the moment, I do not have a boy friend, but I'm always on the prowl.

Kasey Carpenter: Yes, I've had a boy friend for a year and a half.

Sarah (Fairfield): Do either of you have any pre-race rituals before you hit the water for your event?

Allison Way: I swim my fastest if I eat a banana before the meet. And I have to stretch a lot before my race, then I get in the zone and I'm ready to go.

Kasey Carpenter: I do the same thing every time. I crack my back--yeah, weird, I know--and then I put water in my mouth from the pool--but I don'[t swallow it. I've done it ever since I had a really good race long ago.

Chad Bauman (Cincinnati): Kasey, what would it mean to you as a senior to end the season with a MAC Championship? Alisson, what kind of advantage does swimming in your home pool with the strong local Miami crowd supporting you

Kasey Carpenter: Hey Chad! It would mean so much to win a MAC championship at home as a senior. But right now we're taking it one day at a time and trying to focus on our races rather than an overall championship.

Allison Way: Our team swims really well when we have a crowd to cheer us on. So having over 90 alumni as well as parents and friends will help us go our best times and have a shot at the title.

Gini Way: What is your most memorable moment in your swimming career?

Allison Way: Hi Mom!! My most memorable moment was winning MACs last year. Not only did I have the meet of my life, but having the team come together at the end was icing on the cake. I've never had I so much fun in my life!

Phoenix: Hey Kasey, some of your friends out here in Arizona want to know if you're going to go sub 2:00 in the 200 Back this year and bring home a 200 Title?

Kasey Carpenter: I'm hoping to go under two minutes because if I didn't I wouldn't be dropping time!!! As long as a REdHawk wins the 2 back, then I'll be happy.

Bill from Millville: I often hear the term "tapering" used when talking about swimming. What does that mean and what does that entail?

Allison Way: All season long, we train at very difficult levels until about two weeks before our championship. At this time, we "taper", we go down in yardage little by little every day until our body stores up a lot of energy which helps us go fast in the end. In addition to this, we shave our legs directly before the meet to cut the drag.

Wally - Columbus: You both have had outstanding careers in swimming. When you finish your college swimming career, how will you keep in touch with the sport? (ie Coaching, etc.)

Kasey Carpenter: Hi "Wally" -- I would like to coach on the side, if time permits while I'm in school (I have one more year of undergrad and am looking into vet tech school after I graduate).

Allison Way: I thought that I would never swim again, but now that I'm at the end of my career I know that I will most likely be attending practices this spring and I will probably swim masters when I'm older.

Ruby (Darrtown): The strokes used in the breaststroke and the butterfly look fairly similar. What kinds of physical attributes of an individual differenciate and/or determine who swims which event?

Kasey Carpenter: Your events picks you, you don't pick your event! I have been attempting to swim breaststroke for 15 years and we've never gotten along ... but at age 6, backstroke came naturally to me and I still swim it today.

Trixie from Troy: Excluding swimming, what sport or sports do each of you enjoy playing?

Allison Way: Hey Trix!! In high school, I played varsity tennis and it is by far my favorite sport in the whole world. However, swimming was always my priority, even during tennis season I would go and practice by myself at 5:30 in the morning to stay in shape.

West Lafayette: Are you guys excited or sad to be swimming in your last MAC Championships next week?

Kasey Carpenter: Is this you, Dad?? I am both excited and sad. The sadness won't set in until my last 200 back ever. But I should be excited the whole meet other than that!

John (Oxford): What are the keys to posting the fastest time possible in a race?

Allison Way: The thing about championship meets is that everything usually comes together in the end. If a swimmer trains hard all season and lets their mind be blank during the race she should be able to post a fast time. That's the miracle of taper.

Cincinnati: How long have each of you been swimming?

Kasey Carpenter: I've been swimming since I was six. I've been doing it year-round since I was seven.

Allison Way: I've been swimming year-round for 15 years.

Jill (Hamilton): Allison, what are you looking to do after college?

Allison Way: After college I plan to find a career in advertising. I want to be a copywriter. I also would love to be able to travel for a year or so.

Jill (Hamilton): Kasey, what are you looking to do after college?

Kasey Carpenter: Next year I will be in my fifth year here. I will be helping Coach Jennings coach the team. Then I am looking into vet tech schools which is a two-year program. Eventually I would like to be a vet tech somewhere.

Tank (Piqua): You'll be swimming the MACs in your own pool next week. How much of an advantage will that be for Miami's swimmers?

Kasey Carpenter: The advantage we have is purely mental. We know we are at our home pool and everyone else knows it too. Other than that it is just water with all of our fans so if you can't handle the pressure than it might be hard to not be a RedHawk!

MURedHawks.com: We have time for one more question ...

Cincinnati: What do you think your chances of winning the MAC are this year?

Allison Way: At the beginning of this year, the seniors sat down with Coach Jennings to talk and decided we aren't defending anything. Instead we are going to focus on touching people out and going best times. If we can do that, we have a shot.

Kasey Carpenter: This year's team has different people and different attitudes than last year's team. So to add to Allison, we like to say we aren't defending. We are almost in the exact same spot as we were last year ranking wise. At this point it's anybody's meet. We're just excited to get out there and race.

MURedHawks.com: We would like to thank Kasey and Allison for coming to today's chat. The MAC Championship is Feb. 24-27 at the Nixon Aquatic Center in Oxford. Join us for week's chat when our guest will be a representative from the synchronized skating team.

REDHAWK CHAT: Kasey Carpenter and Allison Way

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