March 4, 2009
CLEVELAND, Ohio - -
Contact: Julie Farr DeLima
Freshman Mark deSwardt has enjoyed immense success during his first season with the Cleveland State Vikings and at the end of the regular season he was rewarded by the Horizon League in unanimous fashion.
At the conclusion of the 2009 Horizon League Championships on Feb. 28, deSwardt was unanimously presented with all three of the major awards for swimmers - Outstanding Swimmer of the Meet, Athlete of the Year and Newcomer of the Year. It was the first time one athlete has won all three honors in a single season.
"Mark is quietly but confidently a great athlete with an excellent work ethic and a positive power to succeed," head coach Wally Morton said. "His enthusiasm is contagious. I have never coached a swimmer that, without hesitation, will do everything to follow your instructions in workouts. Even with his success this year, he has room for improvement in the coming seasons. I'm looking forward to seeing how fast he is capable of swimming."
With success at literally every turn in the pool this season, deSwardt led all Horizon League swimmers with 60 points at the championships and won all three of his individual events. A five-time league Swimmer of the Week in 2009, he excelled at the league championships by setting three league and two school records. He won the 500 free in league record time of 4:26.00, the second-fastest time in Cleveland State history. His 1,000 title came in 9:08.01 and also set CSU and league records. During the 1,650 swim, he broke his own record in the 1,000 by hitting the turn at 9:01.64 and went on to win the mile in 15:02.06 in NCAA "B" cut time. He also swam the leadoff leg of the Vikings' fifth-place 800 free relay team (6:48.52).
The Vikings earned five NCAA "B" cuts this season and deSwardt picked up the first with a sixth-place finish at the Ohio State Invitational in December. He finished sixth in the first mile swim of his college career, finishing in 15:20.75. His newest mile "B" cut from the league championship race came in 18 seconds faster than his December swim.
During the regular season duals, deSwardt won all three of his events in six different meets and recorded at least one win on all 12 dual dates. Of the dual races he competed in, he won 29 of the 34 swims. He was undefeated in the 1,000 free during dual meets, winning all 10 tries and also collected nine of the 10 wins in the 500 free. His only 500 free loss came to Ohio State.
deSwardt will use a trip to the Ohio State Last Chance meet on March 8 to give himself one last chance to improve on his times and guarantee himself a trip to the NCAA Division I Championships later this month. The NCAA Championships, held at Texas A&M, begin March 26.
