It's the invitation of a lifetime.
Freshman swimmer Melani Costa-Schmid knows what she needs to do in the next few days but at the same time is aware that this meet will be like no other. As a native of Spain, she is not used to swimming measured in yards, but at the NCAA Championships, she will have to do just that.
Thursday through Saturday will be a challenge for her and 18 other UF women who have received an invitation to the competition in College Station, Texas. The meet is the culmination of the season for the Gators women (9-2).
Divers Monica Dodson and Kara Salamone, who qualified for the NCAAs last weekend at the Zone B Diving Championships, will be representing the Gators in the 1-meter, 3-meter and platform dives.
"I'd love to be a finalist on all three boards," Salamone said. "I think I have a good chance. I have been training really well."
Costa-Schmid will be competing in the 200-, 500- and 800-yard freestyles. Though she says she is enjoying her experience at UF, her adjustment to a U.S. school and athletic program has not been easy. Her long-term goal is to improve for the Olympics, but she is choosing to live in the moment.
"I'm happy about making it, but it's weird for me. I'm lost in the American meet," Costa-Schmid said.
"But I will do what my coaches say to do and the most I can do."
UF will bring more competitors to the NCAAs than any other school.
Freshman Shara Stafford was invited to the Championships but will not compete due to an injury.
"We're going to need someone to step up and make an impact in the freestyle events without Shara's presence," coach Gregg Troy said. "She was a potential scorer in three individual events and in all of our relays."
The Gators will start preliminaries at 11 a.m. and finals at 7 p.m. each day. Last year, they left with a sixth-place finish.
