June 17, 2020 at 11:09 a.m.
Kiah Francis' role evolves entering senior year with Liberty swim program
Kiah Francis' role evolves entering senior year with Liberty swim program
"I really want to enjoy it and make the most of the opportunity give to me," Francis said, looking ahead to her senior season at the NCAA Division-I school in Lynchburg, Va. in a recent interview with the River News. "As far as times go and just like the performance side of swimming, I've really come to a point where it's been difficult separating my identity from swimming. That's been a really crucial part in my growth as a Christian, a friend, a daughter and overall as a person. I have so much more to offer the world than just swimming."
Francis has come a long way since capturing WIAA Division 2 state championships in the 200-yard individual medley and the 100 breaststroke for the Rhinelander High School girls' swim team in 2016. She qualified for the A final in the 200 breaststroke and 400 IM, and the B final in the 200 IM at this past winter's Coastal Collegiate Sports Association (CCSA) Championships. She finished seventh in the conference in the 400 IM, eighth in the 200 IM and 13th in the 200 IM. Francis has made the A finals at the CCSAs seven times during her collegiate career, with her best finish coming in 2018 when she took second in the 400 IM.
Still, Francis said she has reached the point where results no longer define her, and she's ready to offer much more the Flames' program in the role of captain, which she will share with teammates Abigail Egolf Jensen and Emily Zimcosky.
"It's a title that I'm really honored to accept that role and I'm really looking forward to experiencing the team in a new way," she said. "I see it as a point of communication between the swimmers and the coaches. We are all called to be servant leaders in this world. I have two other co-captains, Abigail Egolf Jensen and Emily Zimcosky, and I think they're going to be awesome. I've just looked up to all of the leaders on this team over the years. We all such an influential part of the team culture here.
"I think now that I'm a senior pouring into these freshmen - we have a lot of incoming freshmen - I think that's going to be really important to give back to the program in the way I was poured into freshman year. I'm really looking forward to getting to know everybody, establishing relationships with everyone. Everyone has their own, unique gifts. We call them spiritual gifts and everybody is able to bring something to the table on the team. I think it's a team effort and I'm really excited to see how everybody fits into their role of the team culture this year."
Francis likes to take big challenges head on. Not surprisingly, she finished her undergraduate program in three years with a major in strategic communications and a minor in business and she plans to begin a master's program in business this fall.
She and so many other high school and collegiate student-athletes have faced an entirely different challenge as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Francis' competitive season was basically over by the time of the pandemic's onset in mid-March, but it has thrown many for a loop, especially in the sport of swimming, which is predicated on year-round in-water training.
"It's definitely unstructured," Francis said, noting that she returned home in May before heading back to the Lynchburg campus. "This is something where everyone is in the same boat. We've got these athletes that have been used to training year-round their whole lives and, suddenly, that's pulled (from) beneath their feet and they don't know what to do. Thankfully, we've had so many amazing resources here. Our strength coach, Henry Barrera, has been amazing at just giving us workouts to do online. We're able to use past workouts. No organized team activities, that's against NCAA rules, but we're able to pair up with roommates and different things to keep each other accountable."
The quarantine shut down pools across the country, meaning swimmers like Francis have had to rely on dryland training to stay in shape for when they return to the water.
"We're doing lots of fun things. We're going on lots of hikes, long walks, doing circuits in our backyard. It's a good time, just trying to keep our aerobic capacity up. We have a friend's pool that's open, but you can only get in about four strokes before you have to flip. I think all swimmers across the country are having to find make-shift pools these days, but we'll take what we can get."
Through it all, Francis said she is taking the challenge in stride.
"With the quarantine and everything going on, the pandemic, I've really been in an attitude of gratitude and just been really grateful about everything that's been given to me over the past three years, and everything that the sport has brought into my life," she said. "I wouldn't have wanted it any other way."
That leads her into her senior year in which Francis expects to be a key member of the team.
"What I'm looking to get out of this season is to just build relationships with people, appreciate the moment and put in hard work, knowing that I might not get anything out of it, but it's the principle of the thing," she said. "I've been given this opportunity and I'm going to put 100% in. I want to give this program everything that I have because they've given so much to me.
"I love the sport so dearly and I absolutely love training and I love my coaches. I wouldn't be the person I am today without my coaches. I don't think I'd be swimming still if it wasn't for my coaches in college. They've just really guided me through and helped me the ups and down and challenged me, encouraged me and be there cheering me on since Day 1."
All the while, Francis has been keeping tabs as her younger siblings make waves as well. Her brother, Nolan, scored two victories and two runner-up finishes at the WIAA D2 state championships in February 2019 before completing a successful freshman season for Grand Canyon University in Phoenix. Her sister, Malia, also captured a pair of state titles for the Hodags on the girls' side last November, knocking Kiah's name off the RHS record board in the 100 butterfly and 100 backstroke.
"The only thing that changes there is a letter," Kiah quipped about being replaced on the record board by her sister. "I'm so excited. I expected nothing less. She hoped she'd get some of those records. She's a hard worker and really focused on her goals. She deserves all of that and I'm really proud of her. I think she's got a really great college career ahead of her.
"Nolan is having a blast down there at Arizona. He's really enjoyed his freshman year, even though it was cut a little short. He's going to do amazing. He's already become a leader with that program. I expect nothing less. He's an amazing brother and I'm so proud of them both."
Francis noted the college recruiting process is just getting underway for her younger sister. Naturally, the eldest sibling has put in a plug for her soon to be alma mater.
"I keep telling her, 'Hey, you won't find a program like Liberty University, the swim and dive program at Liberty University anywhere else.' We've got an incredible culture and that's something you've got to consider before going to a state school," she said.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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