Perfect 10: 'Munchkin' stands tall as Cats' best-ever swimmer

Many iconic swimmers were once Wildcats 

The Hillenbrand Aquatic Center pool can be pretty intimidating.

So many of the biggest names in swimming history — collegiate, Olympic and professional — swam there, preparing for both collegiate and international competition. 

Just look at the credentials of the women’s swimming and diving program:  

• The Wildcats have 110 swimmers and divers in the UA hall of fame. Yes, one hundred and ten.

• The UA has won 28 individual NCAA titles and 24 NCAA relay titles.

• In 2008, as a team, the UA won the national championship.

•  In 1998, 2000 and 2007, Arizona was the NCAA title runner-up.

• Former Wildcats have won a combined 26 Olympic medals, 19 of them gold.  

'Munchkin' tops the list 

To be the best at a program like this is quite an accomplishment. 

Fittingly, our pick for the women’s top swimmer of all-time, for what she accomplished in college, came short in stature — that is, Whitney Myers, a 5-foot-5 dynamo who longtime UA coach Frank Busch used to call “Munchkin.”

It wasn’t an easy choice. Lacey Nymeyer, a Tucsonan and Mountain View High School product, deserves consideration for her two individual NCAA titles and two Pac-10 Athlete of the Year awards. Oh, and Nymeyer finished in the top-five at the NCAA Championships 22 times.

Crissy Ahmann won two gold medals and one silver at the 1992 Olympics in the midst of her Wildcats career, which also included two individual NCAA titles and four Pac-10 titles.

Lara Jackson is an American record holder, Margo Geer is Arizona’s most recent superstar and Annie Chandler was the 2011 Pac-10 Woman of the Year.

For a while, Amanda Beard was one of the biggest stars in swimming, winning Olympic medals seven times. She made our list, but just barely. 

In the end, though, Myers stands tall.

“She's a special person,” Busch said about Myers in 2006. “She's not just one of the best collegiate swimmers. She's one of the best in the world." 

Why Myers? 

For starters, she won five NCAA titles, three individual, and was a star in the 200 and 400-yard individual medleys.

She finished in the top-five at the NCAA Championships 25 times, and won one Pac-10 title and holds Arizona’s record in the 200 IM.

It gets better.

Myers was first the 2006-07 Pac-12 Athlete of the Year, and then the 2007 NCAA Woman of the Year, something at the time only accomplished by one Wildcat ever and since then, just two — both swimmers, Nymeyer and Justine Schluntz.

"I envisioned doing this," she said in 2006. "If you don't aim high, if you don't believe in yourself, you can't get the best from yourself. My college career has been the best.”

Here's the list:  

10. Amanda Beard 

Years at UA: 2000-01

Accomplishments:

• 2001 NCAA title (200 breaststroke)

• 2000 NCAA runner-up (200 breaststroke)

• 6-time All-American

• 1-time Pac-10 champion

• Eight top-five finishes at NCAAs

• Won bronze medal at 2000 Olympics 

9. Lara Jackson 

Years at UA: 2006-08

Accomplishments:

• Holds two individual UA records (50 freestyle, 100 butterfly)

• Nine-time NCAA champion (two individual, seven relays)

• 2007 NCAA runner-up (50 freestyle)

• 10-time All-American

• Three-time Pac-10 champion

• Holds Pac-10, NCAA and American record in 50 freestyle 

8. Trina Jackson 

Years at UA: 1996-2000

Accomplishments:

• Four-time NCAA champion (two individual)

• Three-time Pac-10 champion

• Holds two UA records (1,000 freestyle, 1,650 freestyle)

• Eight Top-5 finishes at NCAAs

• 16-time All-American 

7. Ashley Tappin 

Years at UA: 1995-97

Accomplishments:

• Four-time NCAA champion (two individual)

• Two-time Pac-10 champion

• Two-time NCAA runner-up (50 free, 100 free)

• 16 Top-five finishes at NCAAs

• 16-time All-American 

6. Annie Chandler 

Years at UA: 2007-11

Accomplishments:

• 2011 Pac-10 Woman of the Year

• Seven-time NCAA champion (one individual)

• 14-time All-American

• Holds Pac-12 record (100 breaststroke)

• Holds two UA records (100 and 200 breaststroke)

• Won two gold medals at Pan American Games

• Finalist for 2011 NCAA Woman of the Year award

• Won gold medal at World University Games

• Five top-5 finishes at NCAAs 

5. Beth Botsford 

Years at UA: 2000-03

Accomplishments:

• 2000 NCAA title (200 backstroke)

• 16-time All-American

• Three-time Pac-10 champion

• 2000 Pac-10 freshman of the year

• Eight top-5 finishes at NCAAs 

4. Margo Geer 

Years at UA: 2011-14

Accomplishments:

• Three-time NCAA champion

• Two-time NCAA runner-up

• Two-time Pac-12 champion

• 2014 Pac-12 Athlete of the Year

• 24-time All-American

• Holds one UA record (100 free)

• 23 top-5 finishes at NCAAs 

3. Crissy Ahmann 

Years at UA: 1990-93

Accomplishments:

• Two-time NCAA champion

• One-time NCAA runner-up

• Four-time Pac-10 champion

• 10-time All-American

• Member of 1991 U.S. World Championship team

• Co-captain of Olympic team in 1992, where she won two gold medals and one silver.

• 10 Top-5 finishes at NCAA Championships 

2. Lacey Nymeyer 

Years at UA: 2005-08

Accomplishments:

• 2009 NCAA Woman of the Year

• Nine-time NCAA champion (two individual)

• Five-time NCAA runner-up

• 23-time All-American

• 21 Top-5 finishes at NCAA championships

• Two-time Pac-10 Athlete of the Year

• 1-time Pac-10 champion 

1. Whitney Myers 

Years at UA: 2003-07

Honorable mention: 

• Emily Mason (2002-05)

• Diane Johnson (1977-82)

• Sarah Tolar (1998-2002)

• Justine Schluntz (2008-10)