Penn State University is a bit of an outlier when it comes to your typical Big Ten team. For one, most of the schools in the Big Ten are here in the Midwest (I am writing this from Chicago), while Penn State is over THERE in the East. Secondly, because of their location, their competition comprises primarily of a mixture of schools from the Big 12, ACC, MAC, and a slew of other conferences. However, if there is one thing that Penn State has proven in recent years, it’s the fact that they have been able to breed talent that can race with the best of them on both the individual and team level, and senior Shane Austin has been a key reason in reason years why the Nittany Lions are always a force this time of the year.
If there’s one thing that Penn State has really nailed down in recent years, it has been their sprint-oriented focus. Shane has been a key contributor for the Nittany Lions in this department, and following a relatively quiet freshman year, he really made a name for himself during his sophomore year in 2012. During that year’s Big Ten Championships, he broke 20 seconds for the first time in the 50 free with a 19.96 in the prelim session (he would take 13th with a 19.97 in finals) and he also led off the 200 freestyle relay in a then-career best 19.86. In the 100 free, he would also dip under 44 seconds with a 43.85, and a 44.20 in finals gave him 14th overall at night.
But perhaps Austin’s biggest acomplishment from these championships when his coaches gave him the nod for the anchor leg in the 400 medley relay, and Austin delivered with a 42.97 leg that combined with superb backstroke, breaststroke, and butterfly legs from his teammates to give the Nittany Lions a second placed finish, and a berth at NCAAs. He would deliver once more at NCAAs by dropping a 42.77 split in the preliminary session of the 400 medley relay and a 19.42 anchor in the 200 medley relay to help Penn State secure two top 8 finishes from the relays. He also set his personal best time in the 50 free with a 19.80 in the individual at NCAAs.
Austin kept things rolling last year with anchor duties on the Nittany Lions’ 200 medley relay, and his 19.10 split once again gave the Lions a top 5 finish and a chance to race again at NCAAs. An unfortunate DQ prevented PSU from getting another top 3 finish in the 400 medley relay, but Shane raced hard in his 50 free individual and won the B-final with a 19.87. At NCAAs, Austin anchored the 6th place finishing 200 medley relay for PSU with a 19.22 anchor.
Despite never having competed in the big heat at Big Tens or NCAAs for an individual event, Shane Austin has a wealth of experience due to the strong support of his teammates and due to his own ability to outrace those around him. His multiple appearances in scoring heats at Big Tens have surely helped him approach the biggest of races, and he has already demonstrated that he is capable of outpacing his competitors at night with his consolation final win last year in the 50 free. With seniors traditionally contributing some of the biggest legs in relays in recent years (Iowa’s Paul Gordon in 2012, and Michigan’s Miguel Ortiz in 2013 for example), and a strong supporting cast with John Hauser, Nate Savoy, and Shane Ryan amongst others, Austin could bring something extra special to Michigan’s Canham Natatorium for the Nittany Lions in his last conference appearance.
Best Times (SCY/LCM):
50 free: 19.80/23.31
100 free: 43.85/50.78
200 free: 1:37.90/1:55.69
100 fly: 49.27/54.95
School Major/Degree: BS in Genetics and Developmental Biology
Favorite Event:100 free
Favorite Hobby/Hidden Talent: Really good at Tony Hawk Pro Skater 2
Favorite Movie: Fast and furious 5
Role Model Growing Up/ Person You’d Like to Meet: Arnold Schwarzenegger and Aziz Shavershian (R.I.P.)
Favorite Food/ Pre-Race Meal: Depends what meal. Eggs, yogurt, fruit and potatoes for breakfast, burger and fries for lunch, pasta and chicken dinner.
At what age did you become involved with swimming? How did you get into it?
Around 4. My brother joined the local swim team, so my parents wanted me to learn too. The pool also potty trained me, my parents said I wasn’t allowed to go in the pool so I had to get out to go.
What is your favorite collegiate swimming memory and why?
400 medley relay at Big Tens my sophomore year. It was just a really exciting race, and came out with highest finish at big tens to date.
The Nittany Lions have had a fair share of success in the relays over the past few years, especially in the medley relays where you guys have fielded top 8 relays at NCAAs in both distances in consecutive years. Having anchored these relays multiple times, is there something special about those relays to you?
The first time I was on it was my sophomore year, and after a pretty unimpressive freshman season, it was really exciting to get to anchor it. The atmosphere at the end of the race is always pretty overwhelming because it is always tight between a bunch of teams. I like having that pressure on me, it builds my confidence and helps me swim that much faster.
Sprint speed has been a forte for Penn State for a few years now, especially in the 50 free. With Shane Ryan and John Hauser both sitting at 20.0 or faster already this season, and you having broken 20 seconds multiple times in the past two years, can you shed some light on what the training atmosphere is like within the sprint group at Penn State?
The team underwent a coaching change at the end of the summer and beginning of the fall, and the new coaches brought a different sprint philosophy from the previous years. We focused a lot on explosiveness, having every aspect of a race being absolutely perfect, and sprinting when our muscles and lungs were hurting. The atmosphere in the sprint group is always an enjoyable one. It is made up of a bunch of really close guys that are able to joke around while still focusing on whatever Tim and Pat tell us to do. It was a really fun year.
Where did the team go for training trip this year? What was it like?
We have gone to Naples, Florida every year that I have been a part of Penn State. It was tough as always, but the team is really close and we were able to make it more bearable. Plus there was a beach pretty close.
What/who do you think has been the single most important catalyst to your swimming career?
Both my brother and a extremely competitive spirit. My brother was three years older than me and also swam for Penn State, so I was always comparing my times to his at my age and always trying to beat them. I also hate getting beat at anything physical, so if a teammate or friend does something impressive, I always try to beat them.
What are you most excited for at this year’s Big Ten Championships?
The team that we put together is probably the strongest that we have had since I began my career at penn state, so I am looking forward to how everyone does as a whole. Also, I am looking forward to performing well after not doing what I wanted last year. I want to prove to myself that I am faster than what I believe I am.
What should we look forward to from Penn State as a whole at this year’s Big Ten Championships?
Being ready to race. Every meet we have had this year, we have stepped up and been competitive, several times when people thought that we shouldn’t have been. We have pushed each other as a team hard this year, and we are all ready to do great things next week.
You forgot to ask him about his JO Crystals. I hear he upgraded from the Big Maxxx Triple 12 Threat Crystal from the waters of Lake Minentoka, for a Mass GirthXXX 2012 Rail Hammer. They say he had to dive to the bottom of Mud Mucca Bay and was blind for two days because it glowed too bright when he charged it the first time (too many chill bros with him).
He needs to be tested