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Leaving your head coach speechless after a career performance is never a bad sign. Leaving your head coach in awe at the NCAA Div. III Championships is a whole other level.
Tom Hungerford, as a freshman, did just that to then-head coach and now director of athletics at The College of Wooster, Keith Beckett.
“It was, without a doubt, one of the best races I have ever seen in my career as a college coach,” Beckett commented after Hungerford placed sixth at the 1990 national meet, shattering the previous school record by nearly 25 seconds with a time of 16:06.49. “I don’t know where Tom found the race.”
From 1991 to 1993, Hungerford went on to achieve All-America status three more times in addition to two all-North Coast Athletic Conference citations as one of the top individuals among a powerhouse league in Div. III swimming and diving.
Still a holder of four top-10 times in the program’s record books – including two school records – Hungerford stands tied for seventh in program history with four All-American certificates attached to his name. Additionally, the standout distance specialist is one of five Fighting Scot male swimmers to earn at least four individual All-American certificates.
Whether in training or competition, Hungerford’s energy radiated beyond any individual acclaim.
“Tom, whose leadership capacity was evident from day one, was vital in returning the men's program to the national scene and was an important leader as a two-year team captain,” Beckett recalled. “His ability to post four consecutive All-American performances is a testament to both his work ethic and passion, and it was a true honor to coach someone who possessed the type of leadership and commitment qualities that Tom harbored.”
Looking back, Hungerford recalled that “he felt at home at Wooster” after visiting a number of campuses, and judging by his performance in the pool, it would be a difficult argument to counter.
To say Hungerford came in hot would be an understatement. En route to his sixth-place national finish as a freshman, it wasn’t just the end product of standing alongside other collegiate greats at the podium that drew attention, it was also the way he qualified.
“This is the first time in more than 10 years that a male swimmer at Wooster has made the cut before shaving and tapering,” Beckett commented in 1990 after Hungerford bested the NCAA qualifying time by nearly five seconds at the Indianapolis Invitational in January.
Arguably, it was more straightforward to qualify for nationals than it was to earn all-conference honors for Hungerford.
With perennial national champion Kenyon College in the conference alongside continual contender Denison University, it was by no means an easy task to qualify among the top three individuals at the annual meet.
In 1991, Hungerford qualified for nationals in the 1,650 freestyle by early December, relieving any extra pressure. Come conference meet time, he garnered his first all-conference certificate, placing second in the 1,650 freestyle before participating at the national meet in the same event, where he took home seventh-place with a time of 16:08.42.
As a junior, Hungerford qualified for his third consecutive trip to the national meet while lowering his own school records in the 1,650 and 1,000 freestyles in addition to contributing to the then-school record breaking 800 freestyle relay team at the NCAC Championships. At the national meet, Hungerford turned in his best finish, fourth, behind a 16:06.56 1,650 freestyle effort.
During his senior campaign, Hungerford garnered his second career all-conference performance in the 1,650 freestyle, placing second at 16:09.22 before advancing to the national meet for the fourth and final time, swimming the same distance in 16:08.28 en route to seventh-place while also posting a life-best in the 500 freestyle (4:44.4) to finish 19th.
After graduating with a degree in communications, Hungerford worked in a variety of sectors before going back to school and earning his master’s in addiction studies.
Today, Hungerford lives in Osceola, Wis., where he works as an addiction counselor at the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation.