Contact: Jeff Sattora
SETTING THE SCENE: The Cleveland State Vikings enter their final weekend of regular season competition as they head to UIC for Horizon League action Saturday at 2:00 p.m. ET. The men enter the meet 12-3-1, while the women are 11-4 on the year.
LAST TIME OUT: The women's squad was on their own this past weekend as they traveled to Akron University to take on the Zips on Saturday. Unfortunately for CSU they were unable to come away with the win, falling 144-156 in a close match-up.
THE WOMEN: Jodi Turk led the way for the Vikings, not only picking up two victories, but also setting her first school record.
Turk, the phenomenal freshman, has been swimming incredibly well all year long for CSU, and continued that Saturday with her record-breaking day. In her first event of the day she not only picked up a dominating 30 second win, but set a new school record at 17:16.68 in the 1,650 freestyle. The record surpassed the 17:19.10 that teammate and junior Nikki Kolis set last season in 2012. Following her record-setting performance she was also able to bring home a win in the 500 freestyle (5:06.17).
Along with Turk's performance, senior Alice Sommerville also shined for CSU, winning three events on the day. Sommerville took home first place in the 100 breaststroke (1:04.95) and 200 breaststroke (2:22.87), as well as the 100 butterfly (56.63).
Other individual winners on the afternoon included Alexandra Johansson in the 100 backstroke (57.85), Joanna Olsson in the 200 IM (2:07.39), and Christine Kopackoin the 100 freestyle (53.00).
The Vikings were also able to pick up one relay win as Kopacko and Johansson teamed up with Jamie Puls and Amanda Pallija to win the 400 freestyle relay in a time of 3:32.64.
SPECIAL SENIORS: The 2013 senior class for the Cleveland State Vikings is one of the most accomplished in program history. In the past four years the women have compiled a 52-16 dual meet record, while the men have compiled a 49-14-2 record. The class has combined for 11 individual school records and 12 individual Horizon League Championship wins.
STREAKING: Both the Cleveland State men's and women's teams had dominating winning streaks in the middle of this year. The men had a stretch of five straight wins, and have won seven of their last nine meets. On the women's side they completed a seven meet win streak, and have won 10 of their last 12 dual meets.
AWARDS ALL AROUND: Multiple Vikings have been awarded this season as Horizon League 'Swimmer of the Week' or 'Diver of the Week' this season on both the men's and women's sides. These winners were-
Men
Al Shillito -- Swimmer of the Week -- Oct. 15
Al Shillito - Swimmer of the Week - Week of Nov. 19
Danny Roberts - Diver of the Week - Week of Nov. 19
Justin Kermack - Swimmer of the Week - Week of Dec. 3
Berry Thompson - Swimmer of the Week - Week of Jan. 14
Danny Roberts - Diver of the Week - Week of Jan. 14
Danny Roberts - Diver of the Week - Week of Jan. 21
Women
Joanna Olsson -- Swimmer of the Week -- Week of Oct. 15
Sammie Sposet - Diver of the Week - Week of Nov. 12
Alexandra Johansson - Swimmer of the Week - Week of Nov. 19
NATIONAL ATTENTION: The CSU Viking men earned national recognition in November performing alongside top collegiate athletes and Olympians at the AT@T Winter National Championships in Austin, Texas. On the individual side, junior Justin Kermack finished in the top ten nationally for the second straight season in the 200 butterfly. Following a ninth place finish last season Kermack jumped up to sixth this season, while also breaking a school record at 1:46.50.
A Cleveland State relay also made a mark nationally with a seventh place finish in the 4x50 relay at the AT@T Winter National Championships this past week. The group, consisting of Berry Thompson, Jordan Hill, Alex Lewis, and Al Shillito, was the first relay in Vikings' history to race in the final championship heat at a National Championship event. Following an eighth place finish in the preliminaries the group moved up to seventh in 1:21.60 in the finals.
FAB FRESHMAN: The Cleveland State Viking freshmen seem to be mixing in seamlessly with the veteran groups on both the men's and women's squads. Two freshmen have jumped right in and are currently leading the Vikings on the diving side of things. Danny Roberts has the top 1-meter (306.65) and 3-meter (328.95) diving scores for the men, with Sammie Sposet doing the same for the women at 1-meter (258.37) and 3-meter (258.75) dives. In the pool for the women freshman Jodi Turk has the team's top time in the 500-yard freestyle (5:06.26), 1,000-yard freestyle (10:26.94), and 1,650 freestyle (17:16.68). The 1,650 time is also a new school record for Turk.
UPPERCLASSMEN LEADING THE WAY: Seniors and juniors have led the way this year on both the men's and women's sides. Multiple upperclassmen are currently leading events for CSU.
On the men's side senior Berry Thompson currently has the team's top time on the year in both the 50 and 100 freestyle. A second senior, Mark De Swardt, currently has the team's top time in both the 500, 1,000, and 1,650 freestyles. Juniors Brian Ferro, Justin Kermack, and Al Shillito are other swimmers that lead the team in multiple events on the young season. Ferro leads in the 50 and 200 breaststroke, Kermack leads in the 200 butterfly, 200 IM, and 400 IM with Shillito leading in the 50, 100, and 200 backstroke, and the 200 freestyle.
Looking at the women, there have also been a variety of juniors and seniors leading the way. Senior Alice Sommerville leads that class with multiple top times for CSU. Sommerville currently has the team's top time in the 100 and 200 breaststrokes, and the 200 IM. Juniors Alexandra Johansson and Nikki Kolis also hold top times individually as upperclassman for CSU. Johansson has the team's top time in the 50 and 100 freestyle, 50 and 100 butterfly, and 100 backstroke. Kolis has the team's top time in the 50 backstroke.
RECORD-BREAKING WEEKEND: With both teams swimming strong at the first annual Magnus Cup Invitational, it's no surprise that Cleveland State school records were able to fall. Junior Al Shillito led the way for CSU, with two record-breaking performances. First Shillito set the 100 backstroke school record Friday, which he then broke again on Saturday (49.13). Sunday was also a record-breaking day for the junior as he then set the 200 backstroke record (1:47.04). The women's team wasn't left out of the record-breaking performances as two women also brought home school records. Junior Alexandra Johansson broke the school record in the 100 backstroke (55.67), while senior Alice Sommerville broke the 200 breaststroke record by two seconds in 2:19.89.
LEAGUE LEADING MEN: The Viking men's swimming team currently has multiple top times on the Horizon League leader boards according to collegeswimming.com. The men dominate the Horizon Leagues' current rankings, leading multiple categories on collegeswimming.com. Senior Berry Thompson has the leagues' top time in the 50 and 100 yard freestyles, Mark De Swardt has the leagues' top times in the 500, 1,000 freestyle, and 1,650 freestyle. Al Shillito leads the leagues' backstroke categories with the top times in both the 100 and 200 backstroke. Nathan Grant has the leagues' top time in both the 100 and 200 breaststroke, withJustin Kermack leading in the 200 butterfly and 200 and 400 IM. Looking at the relays, the Vikings currently have the top times in the 200 freestyle relay, and the 200 and 400 medley relays.
...AND LEAGUE LEADING WOMEN: The Cleveland State women's Vikings team also has a high number of league leaders in different swimming events. Alexandra Johansson has the leagues' top times in the 50 and 100 freestyle, and 100 butterfly. On the relay side, the Vikings currently have the top times in the 200 and 400 freestyle relays, and the 200 medley relay.
NEXT UP: The Viking men and women will be off from competition for close to a month following Saturday's meet. CSU will not compete again until February 27th through March 2nd when they participate in the Horizon League Championships in Chicago, Ill.
