Cody Nicely
The Wittenberg men's and women's swimming and diving teams
turned in strong performances at the annual North Coast Athletic
Conference championship meet last weekend in Canton, Ohio. The
Tiger men finished fifth and the Tiger women wound up fourth,
behind only three of the top five teams in the nation.
The women compiled the most points in school history with 957,
eclipsing last season's 942. Three swimmers bettered NCAA Division
III B Cuts, putting themselves in position to reach the national
meet next month. Just one woman earned All-NCAC honors, which
require a top-three finish, but the Tigers showed depth coupled
with strong performances by their top swimmers, led by sophomores
Betany Yeakley (Wilmington, Ohio/Wilmington) and
Becca Searcy (Shelbyville, Ky./Shelby County) and
freshman Jenny Mulligan (Cheyney, Pa./Delaware Valley
Friends).
Searcy earned third place in the 400-yard Individual Medley with an
NCAA B Cut time of 4:36.62 to All-NCAC for the second time in her
career. She added fourth place in the 500 freestyle in an NCAA B
Cut time of 5:09.03 and fifth place in the 1650 free in an NCAA B
Cut time of 17:31.19.
Yeakley turned in three personal-best, NCAA B cut performances as
she finished sixth in the 200 IM in 2:12.26, fifth in the 100
backstroke in 59.65 and sixth in the 200 back in 2:09.73. Her time
in the 100 back broke a 15-year-old school record.
Mulligan, who also has an NCAA B Cut this season, finished sixth in
the 100 back in 1:00.09 and 11th in the 200 back in 2:12.40, both
personal-best marks. Senior Nicole Kinzeler (Centerville,
Ohio/Alter) had a pair of ninth-place finishes and
personal-best times in the 200 butterfly and the 200 free.
Other individuals who turned in notable performances included
freshman Hillary Clark (Ann Arbor, Mich./Pioneer),
who finished eighth in the 200 free in 1:59.48 and had three
personal-best times, and sophomore Amy Conner (Noblesville,
Ind./Noblesville), who finished seventh in both the 100
and 200 breaststroke events in 1:10.18 and 2:32.87, respectively.
In addition, freshmen Katie Spittler (Carlisle,
Ky./Lexington Catholic) and Shantel Sechrist
(Saltsburg, Pa./Saltsburg) posted three personal-best
times each and divers Mary Workman (Medina,
Ohio/Cloverleaf), Holly Erickson (St. Paul,
Minn./Central) and Laura Stapula (Highland,
Mich./Milford) had top-eight finishes.
The Tiger women were a respectable, and consistent, fourth place in
all five relay events. Yeakley, Kinzeler, Clark and senior
Courtney Galliger (Eagan, Minn./Eagan) competed in
the 200 free relay; Yeakley, Conner, Mulligan and Galliger raced in
the 400 medley relay; Mulligan, Conner, Kinzeler and Galliger
teamed up in the 200 medley relay; Yeakley, Kinzeler, Clark and
Searcy were the foursome in the 800 free relay; and Yeakley,
Kinzeler, Clark and Galliger combined in the 400 free relay.
On the men's side, the Tigers were on short end of a near dead-heat
for third place, finishing less than 100 points behind Wabash and
Wooster. Senior Steve Rader (Concord, Ohio/St.
Ignatius) was the Tigers' lone individual champion, taking
first place in the 200 fly in a national qualifying time of
1:53.35. Rader also finished second in the 200 IM in an NCAA B Cut
time of 1:53.54 and second in the 100 fly in an NCAA B Cut time of
50.83. He finished his career with two individual NCAC titles and
eight All-NCAC awards (not counting relays).
Senior Alex Berger (Findlay, Ohio/Findlay) chipped
in with a fourth-place finish in the 100 breast in an NCAA B Cut
time of 58.92, and he added a 12th place finish in the 200 breast
in 2:12.74. Junior Blake Troxel (Bluffton,
Ind./Norwell) had a 10th-place finish in the 200 breast in
a personal-best time of 2:11.99, one of three such individual
finishes for him on the day. Senior Kyle Dunaway (Warren,
Ohio/Howland) broke the school record in the 400 IM as he
finished 10th in the event in 4:17.18.
In addition, sophomore Sean Buchan (Akron,
Ohio/Revere), senior Paul Miller (Middletown,
Ohio/Middletown), freshman Ben Weible (Lakewood,
Ohio/Lakewood), sophomore Kevin McAninch (Canal
Winchester, Ohio/Lancaster), freshman Mark O'Brien
(Shavertown, Pa./Dallas Area) and freshman Matt
Reiss (Beavercreek, Ohio/Dayton Carroll) all posted three
individual personal best times.
Four of the five men's relays finished in the top-four, including
two All-NCAC finishes. Rader, freshman Sean Wolf (White
Lake, Mich./Walled Lake Central), Berger and senior
Scott Olmsted (Castle Rock, Colo/Cherry Creek)
took third place in the 200 free relay and junior Jonathan
Newcomer (Valencia, Pa./Mars Area), Berger, Rader and Wolf
took third in the 400 medley relay. Newcomer, Berger, Rader and
Olmsted finished fourth in 200 medley relay and Rader, Olmsted,
Berger and Wolf wound up fourth in the 400 free relay.
Saving perhaps the best for last, freshman diver Cody
Nicely (Knoxville, Tenn./Bearden) earned NCAC Men's Diver
of the Year honors after finishing first in the 1-meter diving
competition and fourth in the 3-meter despite leg injuries that
have hobbled him for several weeks. Also finishing strong in the
diving events was junior Alex White (Columbus,
Ohio/Centennial), a football player turned diver who
finished sixth in the 1-meter event.
While Nicely was picking up accolades for his athletic
accomplishments, Tiger diving coach Ian Hershey
was garnering recognition for his expertise. He was named NCAC
Men's Diving Coach of the Year.
Next: 2/21 at Case Western Veale Invitational