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Freshmen Spotlight: Holley Dennis & William Christenson
8/22/2020 1:25:00 PM | Men's Swimming & Diving, Women's Swimming & Diving
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QUICK SPRINTS
Favorite Music Artist: Rae SremmurdFavorite Restaurant: The Cactus Club French Toast, Pancakes, or Waffles: French Toast Favorite TV Series: Sex Education Favorite Race to Swim: 400-meter IM Favorite Color: Green Scale of 1-10, how good of a singer are you?: Five Favorite Book: The Outliers Favorite Animal: Snake Game Show You'd be Best at: Family Feud Qdoba or Chipotle: Chipotle Favorite Superhero: Ironman Dogs or Cats: Dogs Ideal Superpower: Aquaman-like powers over the ocean Favorite Music Artist: 5 Seconds of Summer Favorite Restaurant: Little Holly's French Toast, Pancakes, or Waffles: Pancakes Favorite TV Series: Avatar the Last Airbender Favorite Race to Swim: 100 Breast Scale of 1-10, how good of a singer are you?: Three Go-To Karaoke Song: Party in the U.S.A. Coffee, Tea or Hot Chocolate: Hot Chocolate Favorite Animal: Wolf Game Show You'd be Best at: Family Feud Qdoba or Chipotle: Qdoba Favorite Video Game: Mario Kart Dogs or Cats: Dogs Ideal Superpower: Aquaman-like powers over the ocean |
Next up on the docket comes two impressive swimmers from the west: William Christenson and Holley Dennis. Christenson brings his talents to the Maroon and Gold from the Evergreen Swim Club in Olympia, Wash. where he was a four-time participant at the Winter Junior National Championships. As a three-time Scholastic All-American and the 2020 Thurston County Boy Sports Star of the Year, Christenson plans to boost the Gophers both academically and athletically.
A native of Denver, Colo. and former member of the University of Denver Hilltoppers club team, Dennis knows what it's like to compete at the highest level, swimming the butterfly leg of the fastest 400 medley relay time in the country for 15-16 year old girls in 2019. After taking home bronze at last year's 5A Colorado State Championships in the 100 breaststroke, Dennis hopes to take her successes even further at the collegiate level.
GopherSports: Why did you choose Minnesota?
Christenson: "The reason I chose Minnesota has got to be the team atmosphere. When I went there, the people and especially the teammates were just incredible, super kind, great people. The coaching staff was super inviting as well. I'd say that they really helped guide me, and showed me a lot of things that I didn't see at other universities. I also felt that Minnesota as a school was a place where I could grow. I wanted a place where I wouldn't be restricted, I didn't feel like I was going to be pigeonholed, and I felt like I could do whatever I needed to do to be the best version of myself."
Dennis: "I have two really close friends that I grew up with here in Colorado who really encouraged me to look at Minnesota, so it was one of my top picks in the recruiting process. Then, when I started talking to all the coaches, they were all really friendly and inviting of everyone, and I just really fell in love with the staff and the team. They were all super nice and welcoming, and I just really loved the team atmosphere and the environment that Minnesota has. They're just all so close, it's a great working team, and I loved how connected everyone is. Everyone helps each other out, and there's a give and take with everyone on the team, but you're always giving more than you're receiving and I loved that."
GS: When did you first start swimming/diving, and how did you get started?
Christenson: "I first started swimming on a swim team at the age of five, and joined my first competitive team when I was 10. I first got into swimming right after I finished swim lessons because I loved the water so much. My parents would tell me stories about how hard it was to get me to leave after my lessons, so it made sense for me to just join a local swim team."
Dennis: "I started swimming recreationally around the age of four and competitively at eight years old, and it just kind of took off from there. I started out on a little club team, then a bigger club team, and just kept taking each step from there on up. I met a bunch of friends along the way, made some great connections, learned so much from swimming at all these different places, and got all these great opportunities to meet amazing people and swim at such a high level. I've always wanted to swim collegiately because my mom played college tennis at Michigan, and I always wanted to follow in her footsteps. I realized that it's a lot of hard work, and I wanted to push myself to achieve the great things that come with collegiate swimming. Also, she has always told me how great the team atmosphere is and how many friends you make just from doing a sport, and I've always wanted to have that great close group of friends that you're with 24/7 just training your heart out."
GS: Who has been your biggest influence/inspiration throughout your career?
Christenson: "I'd have to say my coach, Randy Trowbridge, has been the biggest influence for me. I started swimming with him when I was in middle school, and that was when my swimming really took off. He's always guided me, helped me, encouraged me and taught me a lot about myself and how to not be just a great swimmer but how to be a great person as well. I've been able to learn a lot from him, inside and outside of the pool. He was really excited when I told him I was coming to Minnesota. He's from Washington, but he coached in Wisconsin for a long time, so he's had a lot of swimmers that went to the University of Minnesota over the course of his coaching career. He was just really excited and thought this would be a great place for me."
Dennis: "It's definitely my mom. She's always pushed me to be the best person both academically and athletically that I can be, and she's always been there for me through thick and thin. She's helped me navigate, but at the same time taught me how to figure everything out on my own, and has definitely made me the person I am today. When I told her I was coming to Minnesota, she was really excited. She was really close with me when I was going through the whole recruiting process. She told me, "I don't want anything to do with it, but I just want to have some updates." She was really excited because it was Big Ten, and it was her conference. She said, "It's a great conference, you're going to have so much fun," and she was just ecstatic."
GS: What is your most memorable moment of your swimming career?
Christenson: "I'd have to say the 2019 Junior Nationals in Palo Alto, Calif. this past summer. My club is a pretty small club, so I was able to go with one of my good friends and teammates, and the whole experience was really positive and exciting. I had a really good meet maybe two weeks before that, so when I came there I wasn't expecting to do particularly great, but I ended up dropping time in one of my events and was really excited about that. The whole experience was just awesome. I remember I'd seen a lot of Gophers there, so that was exciting because I'd already committed. Also, when I swam my 400m free, I dropped a whole bunch, and I remember one of my good buddies was in the heat right after me. He also swam a great time, so I was just really excited because we were able to talk about it. It was just that moment of us being really excited about how well we did that made it a really cool experience."
Dennis: "That's a tough one. I have so many experiences that they're all great in their own way. If I had to choose though, I would say this past year's 2019 Juniors. I was on my club team's 'A' 400 medley relay team, and we were coming in seeded first. Just before the race, my three other teammates and I got in a little huddle, and we're like "It doesn't matter what place we get, we just want to swim our hearts out and do everything we possibly can for each other. Don't do this for anyone outside this little huddle right here; this is for you and for us to all work together to accomplish something great." I remember being so incredibly nervous, and my friend, who was the breaststroker, said "Holley calm down, it'll be alright. Just focus on what our coach told you to do, and everything will take care of itself." I just loved the feeling of swimming for more than myself, and we ended up winning which was so amazing. We were all so happy, and I just remember all the laughing, hugging and smiling. That was the best part of the experience. Everyone being excited for each other and how it was a team effort. It wasn't all individual. You got that team aspect in doing something greater than yourself in an individual sport."
GS: What is something, outside of the water, that you think you are elite at?
Christenson: "My family and I play a lot of card games and board games, so I'm pretty good at those. It's been a family thing for the last decade or so, and I've gotten really good at those. We've all gotten pretty good at the same rate, so I wouldn't say there are any games I'm sure to win, but in terms of card games, I'm pretty good at hearts. I wasn't great at first, but I've gotten a lot better. I'd say just any board or card game."
Dennis: "I would say I'm elite at baking. Every meet, I have this pumpkin bread that I make. It's like the week before, either the Thursday or Friday before the meet starts, I'll bake the pumpkin bread and that's my thing. I'm really good at baking other things too, but pumpkin bread is my specialty."
GS: Do you have any pre-meet or pre-race rituals?
Christenson: "I have my typical things like stretching or shaking my hands out as I get ready for my race. In terms of a pre-meet ritual, I've swam a lot of my meets here at the same pool in King County, and so a lot of the time when I get up to go to the pool early in the morning, my mom and I will swing by Panera Bread and get a breakfast sandwich. That's something we started and it's just become a habit at this point."
Dennis: "The pumpkin bread before each meet. I started that when I was little, and it just continued through. Before every race, I go through a set of stretches and warm up exercises to get loose. Then, right as I'm stepping up to the blocks, I focus on just relaxing, my breath, and getting zoned into the race."
GS: Being a Gopher is about more than just scoring points in the pool. What is a quality you will bring to Minnesota that you think will bolster this Gopher culture?
Christenson: "I think there are two main things. First off, I'm really proud of my academics, so I think I can really help the Gophers in the classroom. Just keeping it strong, and making sure the team is supported well academically. I like to help people out whenever I have the chance to, so if anyone had questions I'd do my best to help. Secondly, I have a really positive attitude, especially with my teammates. I try to be the person that anyone on the team can talk to. I don't want to come across as the guy who's kind of quiet and reserved, so I would say just my personality, and being able to be around anybody. If anybody needs anything, I'm always happy to help, and I'm always there to talk to anybody if they're having issues."
Dennis: "My determination and hard work ethic because they go hand-in-hand with each other. I'm not always the most talkative person, but I like to think that my actions speak for themselves, so I would rather push someone in the pool to get better. I'd also like to cheer them on, but I'm better at pushing them one on one in the pool when we're racing. I just like to use what I do in the pool to show what type of person I am, and hopefully better the team by putting my best effort into every practice, every set, and every meet."
GS: What is something you are looking forward to in your time as a Gopher?
Christenson: "I would definitely have to say the people. I'm super excited for the team, and everyone are just awesome people, so I'm really excited to meet my teammates, especially since I know a lot of the people in the 2024 class. Getting to know everyone on a more personal level, and getting to train and swim with all these great people, it's just something that I've been looking forward to ever since I committed a year ago. For example, on my official visit, Tommy Barr was the person who showed me around, and he was awesome. When you arrive sometimes, I think people can be really intimidated, especially on an official visit because these people are a good two years older than you and you're just never really sure. Tommy was super positive though, and a great influence. He was super excited, really treated me like I was an equal, and so that really got me really excited about being there and made it really comfortable and easy to talk to the Gophers that were there."
Dennis: "I'm really looking forward to getting to know everyone on the team, making so many new friendships, meeting all these new people and getting to train with everyone. Just getting the whole Minnesota swimming experience. I'm looking forward to dual meets also. Just having that team atmosphere of everyone cheering you on and pushing for each other, I can't wait."
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