Marin Wieneke has etched her name in the Columbus East girls swimming record book each of the past two seasons when she has twice broken the school record in the 100-yard breaststroke.
As her senior year winds to a conclusion, Wieneke is hoping to lower that record one or more times in the coming weeks in hopes of possibly landing a spot in the state finals for the first time.
“That’s pretty much the goal,” Wieneke said. “What I do at conference will definitely determine how much time I can shave off. During the time between conference and sectional, we’ll have to taper, and I’ll try to perfect my technique. I may be able to shave off half-a-second to a second.”
That Hoosier Hills Conference meet takes place on Saturday afternoon at Floyd Central. Wieneke is the defending champion in the breaststroke, having clocked 1 minute, 11.93 seconds last year.
Although she has done the breaststroke only a few times this season, and the Olympians haven’t faced every team in the HCC, Wieneke has beaten all of her conference opponents in the event.
“I know that my track record with the conference teams at least this year has been pretty good,” Wieneke said. “I know there’s some good breaststrokers on Seymour, and we haven’t swam them yet. I’ll have some really good competition.”
Wieneke first broke the school record as a sophomore, when she finished fourth in the Columbus North Sectional in 1:10.78. Last year, she went 1:10.39 in the sectional preliminaries, then posted a 1:10.40 to finish third in the finals.
The top two finishers in last year’s sectional are back this season, so Wieneke will have to make up some ground to claim the automatic state-qualifying spot that goes to the winner. If she doesn’t get that, she has to hope to go fast enough to make the state-qualifying standard or earn a callback.
“That’s the goal for us this year — for her to get down there,” East coach Jill Arnholt said. “She’s been pretty steady. We are definitely looking for her to break that 1:10 mark and see how close she can get to state.”
Wieneke, who also has competed in the 50 freestyle and two relays at most meets the past three years, also was part of the school record-setting 200 medley relay team as a sophomore. She has branched out a little this season, winning the 200 individual medley and 500 freestyle in a dual meet against New Albany in December.
That was only Wieneke’s second time swimming the 200 IM and 500 freestyle and her first time doing them in the same meet.
“I like the long distances,” Wieneke said. “My brother (Evan) used to swim the 500 and the 200 free, and I like those. I also swam the 100 fly for the first time (Tuesday) night. It’s just fun to try out different things.”
Wieneke won the 50 freestyle and finished second in the 100 butterfly on senior night Tuesday against Madison. The only swimming event she hasn’t done in her career in the 100 backstroke.
“She’s had a chance to swim some other events, and she is just a heck of an athlete,” Arnholt said. “She can step up and swim some other events and do really well for us. She has been really versatile for us, and it’s nice because she’s willing to try anything. It’s been very nice to work with her and see her step up and try new things and get a little bit out of her comfort zone.”
And she is enjoying the variety.
“I personally have been trying to just round everything off,” Wieneke said. “I haven’t been swimming much breaststroke, but I am having fun with it. We’ve worked really hard in practice to make up for being in quarantine. We’ve had to pull our own weight. We’ve had to work really hard, despite all the challenges and breaks that we’ve had.”
But the breaststroke remains Wieneke’s signature event. Although her best time this year is a few seconds off her school record, she hopes to get back down there by sectional time.
“I usually start around 1:17 at the beginning of the season and go from there,” Wieneke said. “I’m usually around 1:12 right now, but since I haven’t been swimming it in meets, it’s hard to tell.”
A finalist for the prestigious Lilly Scholarship, Wieneke carries a 4.22 GPA and is a National Honor Society member. She is looking at Arizona and Indiana University.
“She’s just a top student-athlete and a great leader,” Arnholt said. “She wants to represent our school the best she can.”
Wieneke plans to major in biology and minor in women’s studies. She wants to become a doctor, possibly an OBGYN.
Although her competitive swimming career will come to an end next month, Wieneke, who grew up swimming on Lutheran Lake behind her home on southwest Bartholomew County, has thought about joining an intramural swim club or a rowing team or just swimming for exercise in college.
“Especially since I’ve been swimming all four years, it will be a big lifestyle change, not having eight practices a week,” Wieneke said. “I definitely want to stay active in college. That’s definitely been an integral part of my life with swimming.”
