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The
Smith Student-Athlete Experience
By
Joy Zazzera
Before entering Smith College
four years ago, Mariel Finucane had never swam competitively.
In her first semester at Smith, her focus was solely on academics.
In her first conference meet as a walk-on member of Smith’s
swim team that year, all she aimed for was to swim the backstroke
heat in 30 seconds or less, a mark that had eluded her.
With every stroke she took, Mariel was encompassed by encouraging
voices of both coach Kim Beirwert and her teammates echoing
throughout the pool. Upon her final touch of the pad, without
even a glance at the scoreboard and with her coach and teammates
there to greet her, she knew she had accomplished her goal.
Since then, Finucane has become a devoted, valued and enthusiastic
member of the swim team, being named captain this year and
regarded as a team leader. Eating meals together as a team
is common, as are the daily workouts.
 Student-athletes
at Smith gain a perspective through their athletic competition
and team camaraderie that is not easily found through other
pastimes, she says. “Athletics provides an immediate
sense of belonging,” she says. “The sense of support
is amazing and your teammates, coaches and administrators
truly care about you as a person, and not just an athlete.
With Swimming and Diving being an individual sport as much
as a team sport, everyone on our team is aware of each other’s
individual goals, and are fully supportive of each other.”
For Finucane, it’s not as if math and swimming are divergent.
Her athletic competition and swim team membership are essential
aspects of her overall Smith experience. Indeed, she’s
hard-pressed to say which is more important to her: her membership
on the swim team, or her dedication to mathematics, her major.
“Math and swimming are both important to me, both different,
yet at the same time they complement one another,” she
says. “Swimming gives you the energy back to continue
with the mentality necessary to accomplish all of your academics.”
Still, given the time she puts in on the swim team, her attention
to math and other courses, and her various co-curricular activities
such as founding the group Students for Social Justice and
Institutional Change, Finucane must maintain a disciplined
schedule.
“I truly have a structured schedule except when I’m
not in season,” she explains. “By participating
in athletics, it forces you to prioritize your schedule.”
During her undergraduate career, Finucane has traveled to
Greece, working for their Sea Turtle Protection project, has
spent time teaching in Costa Rica, and pursued AIDS research
in Capetown, South Africa, finding a time and place to swim
in all three environments. She plans to combine her interests
in math and social justice after her graduation from Smith,
with plans to attend graduate school, perhaps with a focus
on biostatistics. Ultimately, she aims to work for an organization
such as UNICEF or the United Nations’ International
Health Organization.
As for swimming, while Finucane will miss the encouraging
voices of her coach and teammates, there is no doubt she will
continue to swim. If she listens closely enough, Finucane
will be able to hear those voices resonating, as they once
did in the pool, as she looks to accomplish new goals on land.
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Mariel
Finucane ’05
