Men's Swimming | 1/15/2015 3:00:00 PM

Wingate, N.C.----The nationally-ranked Wingate University men's and women's swimming teams will celebrate Senior Day Saturday as the Bulldogs host NCAA Division I UNC Wilmington at the WU Natatorium (first event at 2 p.m.). The four Bulldog men's swimming seniors shared Senior Reflections with the Wingate Sports Information department. The transcript of their reflections follows…
 
David Collum
Senior, DeLand, Fla.
 
When I look back at the four years I spent at Wingate, I spent A LOT of my time swimming back and forth endlessly staring at a black line at the bottom of the pool; however, it is not just about the laps, but with the people with whom I swam those laps. It is not just about the friends I made, but the brothers I have made who have helped me get this far.
 
The teammates I have had over the years are now lifelong friends. These are the guys who have pushed me through practice when I didn't even want to push myself. These are the guys that I have spent countless hours playing video games with talking nonsense, but just enjoying the good life. The first time I visited another country was with some of these guys on my W'International trip. It is crazy to think I have spent almost four years at Wingate, but the four years will be irreplaceable and I will remember them forever.
 
My relationships with my coaches have gone deeper than I ever thought they could have gone in such a short amount of time. Coach Sanocki has taught me lifelong lessons in and out of the pool. He has instituted values into my well being and not only made me a much better swimmer, but a much better person. While we have not always seen eye-to-eye (like the time I got kicked out of practice for goofing around my sophomore year), he is someone that I can talk to for life about any situation. I truly value the advice he gives and I will miss those times when he would jump in the pool after we won our Bluegrass Mountain Conference championship.
 
While I won't necessarily miss the brutal practices, I will miss the camaraderie between the team and adrenaline from competition. Nothing gives me more adrenaline than stepping up on the blocks to race, at the Conference level and especially the National Championships. While saying goodbye won't be fun, I am excited for what the future will bring.
 
Sam Knapp
Senior, Madison, Ala.
 
To be honest, I had no idea what to write about in this reflection. As I stared at the blinking black line on my Microsoft Word document I reminisced over the past four years and the people and places that have played such an important role in getting me to this point today. I'd have to say that the three most influential places over my four years at Wingate have been the pool (obviously), Cook-Out (those trays though) and my bed (for those days when there was no recovery from practice except to curl up and hope it was just a bad dream).
 
From walking onto the Wingate pool deck as a scared 17-year-old freshman to now being a senior captain, the past years have been full of twists and turns, ups and downs and (so far) three conference championships. The experiences that I've had, the good and the bad…me and my teammates have walked through these things together, holding each other up when one of us is down and being the first to congratulate when things go good.
 
Every time I remember something else that happened during my career here, it always involves my teammates. From the funny experiences, like losing all of our foreigners on their first trip to Wal*Mart (which happens to just about all of them)…to those times when it feels like my body is about to give out, but I know that the person in the lane next to me feels the same way, so there is no possible way I'm giving up…the past four years with these people I can now call family have been some of the best of my life.
 
Chris Morris
Senior, Millville, N.J.
 
My four years at Wingate University have gone by so quickly, but I have had so many great experiences during this time. One of my greatest experiences attending Wingate is having the privilege of being a part of the best swimming program I have ever been a part of and being with a great group of people on the team. I have made lifelong friends and I am part of not just a team, but I am a part of a family. Being a part of this team has provided me with many learning experiences and has provided me with plenty of stories to tell in the future. I remember my freshman year when the other freshmen swimmers and I were walking to Helms and talking about how we can't wait to go to conference meet and now I am on my fourth conference meet. This memory seems like yesterday to me.
 
Even though time has gone by so quickly, the one thing that I will always cherish and remember forever is the feeling of winning that conference championship and the excitement of the meet. One of the great stories I think was when Coach Sanocki said he would finally jump in the pool with us when both men's and women's team won the conference title. The very same year, both of the teams won that conference title and (he) finally jumped in the pool to celebrate with us.
 
Being a part of this swim team isn't about just winning meets; this team is about improving our work ethic and learning from our mistakes we have made not just in the pool, but also in the classroom. Being here at Wingate has taught me to excel to my best ability, even if I struggle along the way, I've been taught to get back up and keep trying. Wingate has become my home during these four years and I will miss it greatly. Wingate University and the Wingate swim team have taught me more than I could ever imagine and have done a great job preparing me for my future.
 
Issam Zeraidi
Senior, Brussels, Belgium
 
As an international student, leaving my family, my home and my friends behind to come to study and swim in the U.S. was not an easy thing to do at first. It was August 2011, when my friend talked to me about her experience in the States. This really motivated me to start applying to universities in the U.S.

I came to Wingate half-way through the year in January 2012. Everything was new to me; the American culture, its people and its landscape. Although I was enjoying my time here at Wingate University, the feeling of being away from home was catching up on me. But there is one little thing that Wingate provided me: a new family.
 
Being part of the swim team has definitely marked my experience at Wingate. Whether it was in or out of the pool, I have pretty much shared everything with them. We shared three conference titles in the past three years. I had this incredible opportunity to go to NCAA nationals and share this experience with some of them. One of the most memorable moments I had was our trip to Singapore with some of the seniors as part of Wingate's W'International program.
 
These past three years have taught me a lot, whether it was in class or in the pool. I believe that Wingate has prepared me for what is coming up next for me, such as finding a job and starting my career in the financial world. When I think about my freshman year, Wingate has definitely changed me into being a more mature and responsible (individual).
 
Swimming had also played a big role in my life. It taught me to never give up when situations gets tougher, like when I tore my ACL (end of sophomore year). It also taught me to manage my time efficiently between classes, practices and homework. For this, I would like to thank Coach Kirk Sanocki for giving me the opportunity to come here to the U.S. and experience something that would forever be unforgettable, but also for helping become a better person.
 
WINGATE UNIVERSITY
 
Wingate University, ranked as the 10th "best value" in the South by U.S. News & World Report, serves more than 3,000 students on three campuses in Wingate, Charlotte and Hendersonville, N.C. Founded in 1896, the University offers 35 undergraduate majors, 37 minors and career concentrations, numerous pre-professional programs, graduate degrees in business, accounting, education, physician assistant studies and sport administration, and doctorates in pharmacy, physical therapy and education.
 
With a 14 to 1 student/teacher ratio, Wingate students gain the tools and support needed to excel in academics and apply that learning toward an extraordinary career and life. To view current news, video and story ideas, visit www.youtube.com/wingateuniversity. 
 
In addition to a robust intramural athletics program, Wingate student athletes compete in 22 NCAA Division II sports. The University has won the South Atlantic Conference Echols Athletic Excellence Award for the past eight years. For more information, go to www.wingate.edu.
 
Wingate is first among NCAA Division II Academic All-America®-producing colleges in the 2000's with 72 selections. Among North Carolina's colleges and universities, Wingate's 72 Academic All-America® honorees are number one during this millennium. Wingate's 81 lifetime Academic All-America® picks are tops among all SAC schools. For more information on WU athletics, go to www.wingatebulldogs.com.