Wheaton College swimmer Tess Boyer heads to NCAA Division III championships for 2nd straight year

For two straight years now, just one swimmer has represented the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin, or CCIW, at the Division III National Championships.

For Wheaton College's Tess Boyer, her prowess in the pool isn't the only impressive part of her story. 

Tess Boyer hasn't always been a natural in the water. 

"I started swimming when I was nine, but the summer before that when I was eight, was the first time I put my head under the water. So I was not one of those kids that was loving the water always, but I finally got over that hurdle, got into it, and I found that I liked it and was good at it," she said.

Good is probably not a strong enough adjective to describe Tess's swimming ability now. The Wheaton College junior, off a dominant performance at the CCIW championships, which included multiple meet records, is headed back to the Division III national championships, as the conference's only representative, for a second straight year. 

"I'm really excited. This year, I'm a lot more prepared, and I know what to expect and I have some pretty big goals. Last year, I was more just excited to be there and see what can happen. This year, I'm hoping to finish pretty high in 400 IM and see what I can do in all my events," Boyer said.

"I think the NCAA meet was a big goal for her. Last year she achieved that, and it's kinda like now she wants to go and be somebody at the national meet, not just participating," said coach Meghan Ayers.

Boyer is no stranger to being ahead of the competition. The Kansas native enrolled in college in Wheaton at the age of 16.

"I've just always been young for my grade. I skipped two grades. I went to some very flexible private schools, so it just sorta worked out that I ended up being done with high school at 16, and then I was looking around for schools, and Wheaton was just the perfect fit for me, and my parents were comfortable sending me here at 16. I don't regret it at all," she said.

"I think it's hard to send your child away at any age, 18, 16, you know. As coaches, we feel we're that extra adult on campus that our athletes can come and talk to," Ayers said.

And while Boyer did go off to college literally hundreds of miles away from home at the age of 16, her mom is apparently never too far away.

"My mom, she's come to every single meet except for one in my time here so far. She brings the team cookies or treats every time she comes," she said.

Boyer is also majoring in biochemistry as she chases national championships in the pool. She said it's a challenge, but she's loving it at Wheaton College, and there'll be no skipping ahead this time as she wants to enjoy all four years.

"Yeah, I definitely don't want to cut my time short here," she said.

Boyer is competing in three events in Indianapolis starting Wednesday, including the 400 individual medley, the 200 IM, and the 200 fly. The 400 IM is her best event, where she has the 4th-best seed time in all of D-III.