Freshman Kenzi Dickhudt is a walk-on for the Hillsdale swim team and has been swimming since she was seven years old. A native of Detroit, Mich., Dickhudt loves the strong community at Hillsdale and plans on majoring in economics.
How long have you been swimming?
I have been swimming since I was seven. I was on club teams in the summer, and then I was on a winter club team for two years, but mostly I swam in the summer.
What do you love best about swimming?
Definitely the end-of-the-year meet. It’s where we taper and rest up and really work, and it’s all the years’ preparation going into a couple races. You usually drop a lot of time and it’s really exciting and sometimes you make cuts…that’s why I love it, because finally all your hard work comes into a specific time and you can see it visibly – you made your goal, or you even surpassed your goal.
What do you like best about the Hillsdale swim team?
The community. All the girls are so nice and so supportive and really encouraging, and not just about swimming, but about your tests, homework, professors, classes, everything. They want to really help you, and it’s not just the sophomores and the juniors, it’s the seniors too. I just think it’s so cool to have that area where you get upperclassmen mentoring freshmen and also just having a blast doing something we all like to do and sometimes we all hate, but it’s like that common love and common hate at the same time.
How does Hillsdale compare to teams you’ve been on in the past?
It’s definitely more intense, by far. But I mean it’s college, and we’re DII, which is really, really cool. Teams I’ve been on in the past have been all age groups, so sometimes we’d have seven-year-old kids swimming in the same meet as 18-year-olds. [Hillsdale] is just girls, and it’s a lot more intense.
Do you get a lot of support from your family?
Yes, so much. They’ve been to every single one of my home meets. That’s been so great. They’ve been so supportive throughout the whole process, saying, “Hey, I don’t care if you get on the swim team or not, whatever you do, I’m still here for you and still supporting you.” Even one time, when working with the NCAA, I wasn’t able to swim because I hadn’t gotten all my paperwork filled out. My mom still came up and said, “Yup, I’m still here to see you, I don’t care that you’re not swimming.”
What are you thinking about majoring in?
I’m thinking about majoring in economics. We’ll see – I really like my economics classes so far, but who knows. I really want to intern in Washington, D.C.
What’s your favorite part about Hillsdale so far?
The people. It’s so true that motto, “it’s the people.” It’s so cliché, but it’s so true. The professors are great, the classes are great, but the majority of your time is spent with your fellow students – having amazing people encouraging me and challenging me to grow spiritually, emotionally, and in classes as well. It’s very competitive, yet an encouraging environment, where everyone is striving to be the best and to encourage everyone else to be the best as well.
-Compiled by Kate Patrick
