Maine Swimmer Shines at Penn State: Taking on the Nation’s Best!

Audrey Cohen, named the 2023-24 Maine Interscholastic Swim League’s Swimmer of the Year, represented Penn State University at the TYR Pro Series Toyota US Open, recently held in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Organized by USA Swimming, the TYR Pro Series draws many of the country’s premier and leading swimmers.

The 2024 Greely High graduate, the sole freshman among the four PSU women competing for the Nittany Lions during the four-day trials and finals event, participated in the 100 and 200 yard breaststroke competitions.

In the 200 yard breaststroke, Cohen secured sixth place (2:14.15), five-tenths quicker than her qualifying time. Maine’s interscholastic record holder in the 100 yard breaststroke finished 11th in the 100 breaststroke (1:01.97), just a tenth slower than her qualifying time of (1:01.88). Both her qualifying and final swims surpassed her Maine interscholastic record of 1:03.27.

Cohen’s breaststroke performances, outperforming the times she anticipated for this stage of the season, aligned with her broader season objectives.

“Achieving the goals has boosted my confidence,” she mentioned.

Cohen, among 15 swimmers in PSU’s sprint group, trains from 6-7:30 a.m. four mornings a week, followed by a daily afternoon swim practice from 3-5 p.m. Furthermore, her sprint group also engages in strength training several mornings each week.

“I enjoy all aspects of it,” she stated.

Despite the demands of her rigorous training and class timetable, the pre-med major, who was an active volunteer during her school years at Greely, contributes her time to THON, a student-led philanthropic organization on campus dedicated to raising funds for children impacted by childhood cancer.

During the TYR competition, the 2023-24 Maine interscholastic champion in the 200 individual medley (2:08.37) participated in time trials for both the 50 yard and 100 yard freestyle events, clocking 23.42 and 51.04, respectively. Her 50 free time was over a second faster than her lead-off leg (24.21) in the 200 free relay at last year’s Maine Interscholastic State Meet.

“I was quite surprised by my 50 free,” Cohen remarked.

With two of her three individual events scheduled for the Big Ten Championship in February, hosted by Ohio State, Cohen indicated that she and her coaches may consider the 50 free alongside the 200 individual medley and 100 butterfly as a potential third event.

“It has been a fantastic season. I am accompanied by such extraordinary teammates and fast swimmers,” stated the 2023 National Interscholastic Swim Coaches All American.

Last season, after Cohen was honored as Swimmer of the Year, Greely High Coach Rob

Hale emphasized Cohen’s commitment to her team.

“She swims for the team. She is very team-focused,” he commented.

Swimming for the Nittany Lions, Cohen continues to exhibit a strong team spirit.

Her breaststroke training partner recently achieved a personal best. Cohen shared her thoughts on her training partner’s success.

“Seeing her achieve a best time after two years of hard work was truly thrilling. I could not perform at a high level without my teammates,” Cohen expressed.

In an email for this article, Hale conveyed confidence in his former swimmer and acknowledged her ongoing influence on Greely High swimming.

“Audrey’s advancement has not taken me by surprise. It seems she has adapted to the next level both physically and mentally. No challenge is too daunting for her. She continues to inspire us from a distance.

She stays connected with the team and celebrates our accomplishments,” Hale wrote.

Penn State will return to competition on Jan. 11 against Northwestern University and the University of Chicago in Evanston, Illinois.