Season in Review
The Wittenberg University men's and women's swimming and diving program continues to show improvement despite competing in the rugged North Coast Athletic Conference, and 2002-03 was another step in the right direction.
April 1, 2003
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Head Coach Leslie Ramsey shouts instructions during
the NCAC Championship Meet.
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Setting the Scene:
Setting the Scene: The Wittenberg University men's and
women's swimming and diving program continues to show improvement
despite competing in the rugged North Coast Athletic Conference,
and 2002-03 was another step in the right direction.The Tigers finished with dual records of 5-6 for the men and 5-5 for the women despite taking on some of the best teams in the nation in Kenyon, Denison, Case Western and Wooster, as well as NCAA Division I Wright State. In addition, Wittenberg competed well at the NCAC Relays in October and against a loaded field at the DePauw Invitational in December before taking fifth and fourth place respectively in the conference championship meet in February. Three of the top women's teams in the nation were involved in the NCAC meet, as well as three of the top 20 men's teams.
NCAC Championships:
Head Coach Leslie Ramsey (North Carolina
'95) was named NCAC Women's Swimming and Diving
Coach of the Year after her team posted the most points in school
history at the conference championships. In addition, the men's
team, even though it had a lower overall finish, placed more
individuals on the All-NCAC rolls than last year.Wittenberg, which finished ahead of Wooster and Wabash in the swimming events, placed five athletes on the all-conference rolls (top three in any event). The leader was junior Steve Rader (Painesville, Ohio/Cleveland St. Ignatius), who finished second in the 200-yard Individual Medley. Rader actually finished with a better time (1:54.11) in 2003 and made an NCAA B cut in the event despite losing claim to the title he won in 2002.
Three men's relays took top-three finishes, accounting for the other four individuals who made all-conference. In the 200 freestyle relay, the quartet of Rader, juniorScott Olmsted (Castle Rock, Colo./Cherry Creek), junior Alex Berger (Findlay, Ohio/Findlay) and junior Matt Werbach (Painesville, Ohio/Hawken) finished third in a time of 1:27.10. In the 400 medley relay, Rader, Berger, Werbach and juniorJonathan Newcomer (Valencia, Pa./Mars Area) finished third in a time of 3:35.00. And rounding things out, the 200 medley relay foursome of Werbach, Berger, Rader and Olmsted claimed third-place finish in a time of 1:36.40.
Considering the strength of the NCAC, top-eight finishes are very strong. Rader turned in a fifth-place finish in the 100 butterfly in a time of 51.00 and a fourth in the 200 fly with an NCAA B cut time of 1:53.19. Berger made the first NCAA B cut of his career with a time of 59.04 in the 100 breaststroke, good for sixth place. Berger also finished eighth in the 200 breast with a time of 2:10.63. Junior diver Colin Donegan (Darien, Conn./Darien) finished eighth in 1-meter diving.
On the women's side, freshman Rebecca Searcy (Shelbyville, Ky./Shelby County Bloomington) improved NCAA B Cut times in the 500 free, 1650 free and 400 IM. She finished fifth in the 500 free with a time of 5:07.37, fourth in the 1650 free in 17:39.54 and third in the 400 IM in 4:36.63. The latter time was a school record and earned Searcy her first All-NCAC honor.
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Freshman Leslie Banas competed well in the distance
freestyle events at the NCAC Championships.
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Freshman Betany Yeakley (Wilmington,
Ohio/Wilmington)finished eighth in the 200 IM in
2:13.57, sixth in the 100 backstroke in an NCAA B cut time of
1:00.39 and fourth in the 200 back with an NCAA B cut time of
2:10.34. In addition, freshman Amy Conner
(Noblesville, Ind./Noblesville) took a
sixth-place finish in the 200 breast in a time of 2:29.19, which
was just a fraction off the NCAA B cutoff.
Rounding things out for the Tiger women were
freshman Leslie Banas (Huntington Woods,
Mich./Mercy) with a seventh-place finish in the
1650 free in a personal-best 18:13.00 and
sophomore Catherine Gray (Ft. Thomas,
Ky./Highlands), who was the second women's
competitor to claim All-NCAC honors with a third-place finish in
the three-meter diving.
NCAA Division III Championships:
The 2002-03 swimming and diving season ended with two
fantastic performances at the NCAA Division III Championship meets.
Steve Rader earned All-America honors as he matched his best
performance ever with a pair of fourth-place finishes at the NCAA
Division III Men's Swimming and Diving National Championships at
Emory University March 20-22. Also a two-time All-American in 2002,
Rader finished fourth in the 200 IM and fourth in the 200 fly, the
latter in a school record 1:51.48. In addition, Rader finished 12th
(Honorable Mention All-America) in the 100 fly in a school-record
50.57. As a team, Wittenberg posted a school-record tying 35
points, all scored by Rader, en route to 21st place. His times in
the 200 IM and 200 fly were both good for NCAA "A" cuts and
qualified Rader for the prestigious U.S. Open meet in December 2003
in Federal Way, Wash.Rebecca Searcy finished 10th in the 400 IM in 4:34.42, 11th in the 1650 free in 17:26.93 and 23rd in the 500 free in 5:07.37 at the NCAA Division III Women's Championships at Emory March 15-17. All three finishes were a result of personal-best times by Searcy - and were NCAA "A" cuts - with the first two being good for Honorable Mention All-America honors. As a team, Wittenberg finished 40th nationally with 13 points, all scored by Searcy.
The Coach:
Leslie Ramsey has been at the helm of the Tiger program since
August 2001 after five years as an assistant coach at the
University of Kentucky. She took over a solid program and has
managed to build on past successes. Each of the last two seasons
have featured one male and one female swimmer in the NCAA Division
III championships, and dozens of school and pool records have
fallen as swimmers reach new personal bests.Ramsey is a native of Yorktown, Va., a former standout for the Coast Guard Blue Dolphin Club Team and was an All-American at the University of North Carolina.