VERMILLION, S.D.—At the 2018 Summit League Swimming and Diving Championships, sophomore Sabrina Sabadeanu helped the women's team finish fourth after placing in the top-three and earning All-Summit League honors in three relays and one individual event. In addition, she finished fourth in two other events, earned an NCAA B Cut time in the 100-yard backstroke and broke five school records. But for Sabadeanu, there was no time to celebrate as she needed to start preparing for her stint competing for Team Romania.
 
With Sabadeanu's times throughout the season and through family connections, Sabadeanu got in contact with Laura Sachelarie, former coach of Diana Mocanu, the Romanian Olympic gold medalist in the 100-meter and 200-meter backstroke at the 2000 Olympic Games in Australia. Sabadeanu and Lachelarie arranged for the Coyote to travel to Cluj-Napoca, Romania, after the school year ended to start training for the Romanian International Swimming Championships held in Bucharest, Romania, at the end of May.
 
Sabadeanu prepared on her own in the DakotaDome pool from the end of the Summit League Championships up until she turned in her last final of the semester. She had two days back in her hometown of Commerce City, Colorado, before leaving for Cluj. Once in Cluj, it was all business.
 
"I'd wake up early every morning and walk to the pool for practice," Sabadeanu said. "I would have practice from 6-8 in the morning, have a break and then come back in the afternoon for another two hours. Besides that, I would stay in my room, get rest, eat well and prepare for another day."
 
She continued this routine for the duration of her stay, up until the Romanian International Swimming Championships. At the championships, there were nine countries represented made up of over 400 athletes. She was an athlete representing team Romania in the 50-meter butterfly, 50-meter freestyle, 50-meter backstroke, 100-meter freestyle, 100-meter backstroke and the 200-meter backstroke. Sabadeanu qualified for the A-finals in a majority of her events and took the bronze in the 200-meter backstroke. In Sabadeanu's eyes, her performances were good for the short amount of training time and the variation in pool size.
 
"The hardest part about this meet was that I wasn't prepared," Sabadeanu said. "Our season ended in February and we go from training 20 hours to eight which is a big step down. And I did a lot of the training by myself before leaving for Cluj, which is kind of mentally draining.
 
"We also competed in an Olympic size pool which is 50 meters where here in the United States we train 50 yards. The pool length was much more and it was harder because in order to do well you have to train those distances."
 
Now having competed in an international meet against a wide variety of competition, she has a better understanding of what she needs to do to achieve a couple of her goals: making the NCAA Championships in the United States and represent team Romania at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.
 
"Coming back, it gives me insight to how much harder I have to work and what events I have to work on more," Sabadeanu said. "There were a lot of good, fast swimmers there with a number of them being Olympians. It was nice to see how they prepare and their technique. I started making notes that I could use for next season to better myself."
 
Sabadeanu has two seasons left as a Coyote swimmer, giving her some time to work on her stroke and improve her times in the hopes of a shot at an incredible dream.
 
"When I was younger, I always wanted to compete at the Olympics," Sabadeanu said. "But when I got to college, I started to really pursue that dream.
 
"I have a lot to do in two years to really prepare myself, because the times I have to achieve are hard. Knowing that I have this opportunity and not many other people do, I am going to take it."