Carter's Corner: Gators Swimmer Autumn Finke Eyes Home Stretch

Gators senior Autumn Finke has goals in mind in her final stretch at UF. (Photo: Jim Burgess/For UAA Communications)

Carter's Corner: Gators Swimmer Autumn Finke Eyes Home Stretch

Tuesday, February 14, 2017 | Women's Swimming & Diving, Scott Carter

The UF senior, preparing for this week's SEC Championships at Tennessee, has shared a passion for the pool with her family since she was 7

By: Scott Carter, Senior Writer

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Autumn Finke knows a thing or two about home stretches.

A distance specialist for the UF women's swim team, Finke's top event is the 1,650-yard freestyle, aka the mile. Once she dives into the pool, Finke knows that for as long as it takes most of us to gulp down lunch, she'll churn away in the pool lap after lap.

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A year ago at the SEC Championships, Finke placed fourth with a time of 16 minutes, 11 seconds. Some people have trouble walking that long without a breather.

However, the home stretch Finke currently faces is a new one for the UF English major. This week's SEC Championships at Tennessee and next month's NCAA Championships in Indianapolis serve as her goodbye to collegiate swimming.

"It's the last time I'm going to be swimming really for the Gators,'' she said. "So I'm going to give it everything I have and leave it all in the pool."

Of course, Finke's story is not unlike that of many other swimmers packed into the Allan Jones Intercollegiate Aquatic Center this week. That's life as a college student-athlete. Every year many say goodbye as others say hello.

Still, swimming is life for Finke and her family. She grew up in Clearwater and blossomed as a young prospect at the Northshore Aquatic Complex in St. Petersburg. Her mom Jeanne, who swam at Ball State University, inspired the rest of the family to take up the sport.

Joe Finke, Autumn's father, has served as a coach with the St. Petersburg Aquatics, which produced 2016 Olympic gold medalist Melanie Margalis and other world-class swimmers under the direction of head coach Fred Lewis.

Summer Finke and Bobby Finke, Autumn's younger siblings, followed her into the pool and later as standouts at Countryside High. Summer started her college career at Florida State. Bobby is perhaps the best of the Finke bunch, a rising junior in high school.

Ask Autumn when she first started swimming competitively, she immediately states when she was 7. You just don't forget some things.

Jeanne shared her background with the rest of the family.

37109 — Florida senior Autumn Finke, holding flowers, is joined by her family and Gators head coach Gregg Troy, far right, on Senior Day. (Photo: Jim Burgess/For UAA Communications)

"She still swims every now and then. She loves to swim,'' Autumn said of her mom. "She put us in swim lessons and we'd just go swimming every day. My dad got into it and my whole family swims now."

Swimming meets all over the state and country have been family affairs for the Finke clan.

Autumn has high hopes this week. Her first individual competition is Wednesday in the 500 free. She goes in the 200 free on Thursday and the 1,650 free on Saturday.

A trip to the medal stand would be a perfect way to cap her conference career.

"The mile is pretty stacked,'' she said. "I think there's eight to 10 girls who could potentially win it. I've definitely got my eye on that."

Finke isn't ready to look too far past the end of her collegiate career next month.

"It's pretty scary to think about,'' she said.

She is considering continuing training until June for the World Championship trials. She also is contemplating life outside the pool.

Jeanne Finke is a middle school teacher and Autumn began college as an education major. She eventually changed to English and can often be found with a book in her hand.

"A lot of reading. That kind of comes with the major,'' she said. "It's everything from 18th Century literature to Harry Potter."

Since Finke grew up in Clearwater and spends a lot of time in the water, it felt natural to ask if she had seen the blockbuster movie "Dolphin Tale." If you don't know the movie, it's about an injured dolphin rescued on the Tampa Bay coast and rehabilitated at Clearwater Marine Aquarium.

Morgan Freeman, Harry Connick Jr., Ashley Judd and Kris Kristofferson form a strong cast. The rescue team named the dolphin Winter and it now lives as a tourist attraction at the aquarium.

Has Autumn visited Winter?

"No I haven't,'' she said. "A funny story is my sister has really bad dolphin kicks, so my coach calls her Winter."

That seems a fine way to end this story about a swimmer named Autumn.