Season Outlook

Tiger team members show their team spirit during a 2006 home meet.

Coming off one of the best seasons in school history, the Wittenberg men's and women's swimming and diving teams hope to take things to the next level in 2006-07. With a strong veteran nucleus and a large contingent of incoming freshmen, the Tigers have established plenty of lofty goals this season as they aim to improve in the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) standings and qualify more swimmers than ever to the annual national championships in March.

The Tiger men return 12 letterwinners, highlighted by seniors Cody Nicely (Knoxville, Tenn./Bearden), the 2004 NCAC Diver of the Year and winner of multiple All-NCAC honors in his collegiate career, Sean Wolf (White Lake, Mich./Walled Lake Central), a member of two All-NCAC relays as a freshman, and Matt Reiss (Beavercreek, Ohio/Dayton Carroll) and juniors Brian Harris (Harrisonburg, Va./Harrisonburg) and Nick Pierson (Indianapolis, Ind./North Central). Harris, Reiss and Pierson have all been consistent performers and points scorers at NCAC meets for the Tigers in various events and relays.

The 2006-07 team returns a total of 11 swimmers who scored at last year's NCAC meet, where the Tigers moved up one position from the previous year to fifth place. In addition to the swimmers already mentioned, senior Ben Weible (Lakewood, Ohio/Lakewood), junior Jeff Smith (Mansfield, Ohio/Senior) and sophomoresChris Banas (Huntington Woods, Mich./Detroit Catholic Central), Andy Bates (Lawrencesburg, Ind./East Central), Robby McNeese (Cincinnati, Ohio/Turpin)and Ryan Hamilton (Mount Vernon, Ohio/Charisland Academy) are all back in the fold.

The freshman class offers seven new faces, including some of the most accomplished high school and club swimmers the Tiger program has ever successfully recruited. Among the first-year students expected to make significant contributions immediately are freshmen Neil Anderson (Lakewood, Ohio/Lakewood), Matt Erenpreiss (Columbus, Ohio/Centennial) and Taylor Smith (Mansfield, Ohio/Senior).

The Tiger women return 13 letterwinners, led by senior Jenny Mulligan (Cheyney, Pa./Delaware Valley Friends), who has achieved an NCAA "B" Cut in the 100-yard backstroke twice in her career and has finished in the top-eight in the NCAC six times in her career, and junior Courtney Roth (Gurnee, Ill./Lake Forest), the 2006 NCAC Diver of the Year. In addition, juniors Lindsay Smith (Mount Vernon, Ohio/Mount Vernon) and Kaitlin Clark (Wakeman, Ohio/Firelands) were part of record-setting relays a year ago and have scored valuable team points in various events during their careers, and sophomore Mackenzie Yamamoto (Ann Arbor, Mich./Pioneer) was an impact performer in her first year in the HPER Center Natatorium.

The 2006-07 team returns a total of nine swimmers who scored at last year's NCAC meet. In addition to the individuals already mentioned, the list of returning scorers also includes seniors Hillary Clark (Ann Arbor, Mich./Pioneer), Shantel Sechrist (Saltsburg, Pa./Saltsburg) and Katie Spittler (Carlisle, Ky./Lexington Catholic).

One of the largest and most accomplished classes of incoming swimmers promises to bolster an already solid team in 2006-07. Despite the loss of Becca Searcy, one of the school's most accomplished swimmers, who led one of the deepest and most talented senior classes in school history, there is great potential for the Tigers to duplicate last year's school-best third-place finish in the NCAC Championships, which earned Head Coach Natalie Koukis NCAC Coach of the Year honors. Among the top newcomers are Adeline Brym (Mansfield, Ohio/Lexington), Kristin Elber (Brunswick, Ohio/Brunswick), Janna House (St. Thomas, Ontario/Central Elgin Collegiate Institute), Katie Johnson (Springfield, Ohio/North), Amy Prugh (Indianapolis, Ind/North Central), Emily Roesch (Oakland, Mich./Lake Orion),Lauren Stets (Westerville, Ohio/North) and Megan Trainor (McMurray, Pa/Peters Township), all of whom were decorated high school student-athletes.