Simpson College alumna Kayla Cary is making waves at Simpson again, but this time as the head coach of the men’s and women’s swimming and diving team.
Cary officially began her head coaching position on Monday, Oct. 20, two days after the team’s first meet of the season.
Cary competed on Simpson’s swimming and diving team from 2016 to 2018 while earning her degree in English. She specialized in the 100m and 200m butterfly events, and also competed in medley races. Cary set and still holds the college’s record for the 200m butterfly in 2018 with a time of 2:18.07, but she thinks it’ll be broken soon.
“The 200 hundred fly, I think, is still standing as of now, but I don’t think it’ll be standing by the end of the season, and that is actually really cool,” Cary said.
Since graduation, swimming has continued to play a role in her life as she coached club teams around the West Des Moines and Oskaloosa areas. One of her friends sent her the information for the head coach position, and she saw it as perfect timing.
“I’ve been looking for a career change anyway, and so when this suddenly popped up, I thought the timing was totally right,” Cary said.
Former head coach Adam Cvetich notified the team Aug. 21 of his offer to coach at Ankeny High School. Adam did what he could to keep the team afloat during preseason as the Simpson administration searched for his replacement.
The team first met with Cary on Oct. 9, and during the meeting, she surprised them with the news of her new position.
During the transition, the team captains and upperclassmen had to step up and take the reins.
“It was an added layer of stress that nobody was equipped to handle,” said senior Jared Oosterhuis. “We all have really full plates, so when we got ‘voluntold’ to lead our team while managing our own lives, it was really hard.”
Junior team captain Brett Snyder said the transition put their leadership to the test.
“It’s just been hard to try and keep the team together, but I’m very lucky because I’ve had a great support system from the other upperclassmen,” Snyder said.
Nonetheless, the swimmers took this challenge head-on and made the most with the cards they were dealt. Going through this change together has made the team stronger, which Coach Cary quickly noticed.
“It is a much more cohesive team than when I was swimming, which I am a little jealous of, to be honest,” Cary said.
Even in her first week, Cary said she could tell the group was dedicated and excited to be there.
“They are a unit and have each other’s backs; they encourage each other and push each other to work hard,” she said.
The team has big goals and aspirations once their season is in full swing. Last year, the men’s team placed fourth in the conference behind Loras College, Nebraska Wesleyan University and Luther College. Snyder said this year their goal is to improve their conference standing.
“We want to beat Loras and place third at conference,” Snyder said
While Oosterhuis wants to see the team succeed, he’s also chasing a few personal goals this season.
“I want to get an individual record in my sprint freestyle and butterfly,” he said. “I hope (Cary) pushes us and supports the team by tailoring practices to fit each person’s skills and goals for their events.”
Snyder believed the team is ready to build on its strong foundation under Coach Cary’s leadership.
“As a team, I hope she can keep pushing us,” Snyder said. “Adam pushed us hard, and we are in a great spot. As much as I dislike it during practice, getting pushed is good for us.”
Cary shares the same passion for growth and success. As both an alumna and a coach, she is eager to see what the team can achieve.
“Adam has built a really good team and program, and I am hopeful that I can continue to build on that and bring in some more goods and see where we can go from here,” Cary said. “They’re a great group of kids, and I just want them to have an amazing season.”
The Storm kicks off their second meet of the season at the Monmouth Invite in Illinois at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 1.
