Jennie Gardner

Position:
Freestyle
Height:
5-11
Class:
Senior
Hometown:
Matthews, N.C.

Career Best Times: 51.89, 100 Free; 1:50.51, 200 Free; 4:56.56, 500 Free.

General: Valuable three-time letter winner…a strong contributor to the Tar Heel freestyle corps...was named to the U.S. Swimming Scholastic All-America Team for three years while a prepster...one of the top Tar Heel student-athletes...maintains a 3.761 GPA…National Collegiate Scholar.

2000-2001: At the 2001 ACC Championships, she placed 19th in the 500-yard freestyle, 16th in the 200-yard freestyle and 15th in the 200-yard backstroke...achieved a perfect 4.0 GPA for both semesters of the 2000-2001 school year…was a consistent performer all year long in the freestyle…garnered Dean’s List honors both fall and spring semesters…also named to the prestigious Atlantic Coast Conference Academic Honor Roll.

1999-2000: Continued to be a force for the Tar Heels in the freestyle…at the 2000 ACC Championships she swam career bests in the 100 free (51.89), 200 free (1:50.51) and 500 free (4:56.56)…Dean’s List student…achieved a GPA of 3.94 for the 2000 spring semester…2000 ACC Academic Honor Roll member.

1998-99: At the 1999 ACC Championships she finished ninth in the 1650-yard freestyle, 11th in the 500-yard freestyle and 16th in the 200-yard freestyle...named to 1999 Atlantic Coast Conference Academic Honor Roll...selected for Dean’s List in spring semester of 1999.

Prep: Was the 1998 valedictorian of East Mecklenburg High School in Charlotte, N.C....graduated June 5, 1998...a National Honor Society member...winner of the IBM Watson Scholarship...member of the Spanish National Honor Society...a North Carolina Academic Scholar as well as a Charlotte-Mecklenburg scholar...chief marshal...winner of the Presidential Academic Excellence Award...member of high school team for two years as freshman and sophomore...competed for Mecklenburg Aquatic Club throughout high school in the middle distance freestyle (200, 500, 1000) events and the 200 backstroke...was the 1996 silver medallist in the 200-meter freestyle at the Junior National Championships...was also the high school silver medallist in the 200 and 500-yard freestyles...was member of Mecklenburg Aquatic Club women’s national team champions in winter of 1997...member of MAC’s junior national championship team in summer 1996.

Personal: Given name is Jennifer Dawn Gardner...born January 2, 1980 in Fort Collins, Colo....has one sister...is the daughter of Bill and Debbie Gardner...hobbies include watching television and eating soft batch chocolate chip cookies...athletes she most admires are U.S. Women’s Soccer Team members...biggest sports thrill was winning the 2000 ACC championship...says she thought it was hilarious watching Coach Comfort stand on the diving board wearing a Superman cape after the team won the championship...says that one of her favorite things to do is sing along to the radio in the car...claims she once sang so loudly that she lost her voice for a week...has a double major in Spanish and political science...says that right now she plans to go to law school but that honestly she can’t think that far ahead.