If all things happen for a reason, sophomore swimmer Julianna Prim was meant to be part of the Wolfpack.
After garnering All-American accolades and winning four state titles for Starmount high school, Prim was heavily recruited by N.C. State, as well as Florida State and Maryland, but opted to attend the much smaller Pfeiffer University where her older sister swam for four years. Prim had an excellent freshman season with Pfeiffer and was named an All-America selection in the 200 butterfly. But something was still missing.
“Pfeiffer was nice but it was just a little smaller than what I expected,” Prim said of the 1,500-student university. “I just wanted to swim in the ACC and compete with the best.”
And compete with the best she has. The Yadkinville, N.C. native has made an effortless transition to the ACC, owning four all-time top-10 swims in Wolfpack history in her first season with the program. She is second all-time in the 200 butterfly, sixth in the 100 butterfly, seventh in the 200 freestyle and ninth in the 100 freestyle.
However, her success should come as no surprise. Prim first started swimming competitively when she was six years old. Her father has been the biggest influence on her career, coaching Prim until her senior year in high school. And Prim said he still does a little coaching from the stands.
“I miss having him right there coaching me, but I know he’s always watching from a coaching perspective,” Prim said. “If he sees something I’m doing wrong that the coaches miss, he will tell me.”
Prim was not doing much wrong in the Pack’s meet against Georgia Tech on Senior Day. She won both the 200 freestyle and 100 freestyle, as well as anchored State’s two first-place relay teams en route to being named the ACC Performer of the Week.
Although quiet by nature, Prim has settled right into place with the Pack and has all of her teammates eager to see how well she does when the ACC Championships take place Feb. 16-19.
“She’s been doing awesome this year,” freshman Casey Cooper said, who is also roommates with Prim. “I’m really excited to see how she does at ACC’s. She’s been working really hard and I think everyone knows she’s going to do really well.”
Associate head coach Chris Woodard said there is no ceiling for Prim and her motivation sets her apart.
“The sky is [the] limit,” Woodard said. “I laid out my plans for her but she is an extremely motivated individual. Whatever I lay out, she tries to do one better that. So her expectation is to be All-ACC and put herself in a position to go to the NCAA’s.”
One of the biggest changes in coming from a school with an enrollment of 1,400 students to one with over 30,000 is increased fan support. Prim said she was not only shocked by the overwhelming support in the Pack’s victory on Senior Day, but also the support when the team lost to rival North Carolina.
“The fans have been great this year,” Prim said. “The Georgia Tech meet was our first big home meet and I had never been to a swim meet at a school where it was so crowded. It was exciting. Even when we lost to North Carolina, a lot of fans stuck around and cheered us on.”
Prim and the Wolfpack (7-2 overall, 3-2 in ACC) will look to carry momentum from the Old Dominion meet as Virginia pays a visit Saturday at 11 a.m.
