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Swimming And Diving To Face Ohio State

Swimming And Diving To Face Ohio State
Posted: Nov 23, 2009

Nov. 23, 2009

Contact: Renee Adam

Complete Release in PDF Format Get Acrobat Reader

SETTING THE SCENE: The men's and women's teams will travel to Columbus, Ohio to face the Ohio State Buckeyes in the Vikings final dual of the 2009 calendar year on Tuesday (Nov. 24) at 5:00 p.m.

REVIEWING LAST WEEK: The men's and women's squads participated in their first invitational of the year when they traveled to Evanston, Illinois for the TYR Northwestern University Invitational. Both teams finished the meet in fourth place, the men with 489.5 points and the women with 311 points.

MEN (10-1): 4th place - TYR Invitational (Evanston, Ill., Nov. 20-22) Mark deSwardt and Jakub Dobies each recorded first place victories for the Vikings, in the 1,650 free (15:27.19) and the 50 breast (25.09) respectively, leading the team to a fourth place finish. The duo also recorded the only second place finishes during the meet, deSwardt in the 200 fly (1:51.16) and Dobies in the 100 breast (55.72). Deni Gasparin was the lone third place finisher in the 200 breast (2:10.03), while Pierre De Waal placed fourth in the 200 fly (1:52.16). The Vikings had a good showing in the relay events with the 400 free (3:04.24) and the 200 medley (1:32.16) both finishing sixth.

WOMEN (9-2): 4th place - TYR Invitational (Evanston, Ill., Nov. 20-22) Joanna Olsson paced the Vikings, setting program records in four individual events over the weekend including the 200 fly (2:03.55-3rd place), 400 IM (4:22.99-4th place), 500 free (4:54.39-3rd place) and the 200 IM (2:05.31-4th place). The team also set CSU records in the 400 free relay (3:31.24-7th place) and the 400 medley relay (3:54.34-6th place). Carys Behn placed eighth in the 500 free (5:02.09) and 12th in the 100 fly (58.42) while Alice Sommerville recorded the third fastest time in program history in the 200 IM (2:10.79).

MEN'S & WOMEN'S HEAD COACH
Wally Morton (Miami, OH, '70)
AT CSU: as men's coach: 251-138-1 (28 years), as women's coach: 12-19-0 (2 years)

THE MORTON FILE: Wally Morton enters his 29th season as the men's swimming and diving head coach and his third with the women's team. During his tenure with the Viking men, Morton's success has been backed up by a 251-138-1 dual meet record that includes nine Penn-Ohio Championships, a pair of MCC titles and one Horizon League Championship. In his second season at the helm of the women's program, the squad recorded the most dual wins since 2005-06, with swimmers earning podium finishes in three different events at the Horizon League Championships. Morton has led five swimmers to the NCAA Championships, including 2009 All-American Jakub Dobies. He has also coached swimmers that have reached the international stage, including Nedim Nisic, who competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China. Two more of Morton's swimmers have also gone on to be Olympic Trials finalists.

PREVIEWING THE WOMEN: Head coach Wally Morton and his staff have brought in an outstanding group of talented newcomers to join the returners from last year's squad that finished sixth at the Horizon League Championships, one of the best finishes in school history. The returning squad is comprised of one senior, three juniors and six sophomores, including the holders of all six school records that were set during 2009. The freshmen are making an impact on the CSU record books as three of the newcomers, Joanna Olsson, Alice Sommerville and Michelle Ferro, have recorded 13 all-time top-10 times this season. Sommerville has the team's top times in the 50 free (23.89), 100 free (52.04) 100 breast (1:05.83), 50 fly (25.69) and the 100 fly (57.75) while Olsson holds the top time in the 500 free (4:54.39), 1,000 free (10:19.16), the 200 IM (2:05.31), the 400 IM (4:22.99) and also the 200 fly (2:03.35), setting CSU records in the 1,000 free, 200 fly, 200 IM and the 400 IM. Ferro leads the team in backstroke and breaststroke events, having top times in the 100 (59.20) and the 200 backstroke (2:06.89), and the 50 (31.47) and 200 breast (2:27.07). Five-time individual school record holder, sophomore Carys Behn, has the team's best times in the 200 (1:52.23) and 1,650 free (17:49.72). Kacey Cummings paces the divers with 250.65 and 271.27 points in the 1-and 3-meter boards respectively. The sqaud has also set CSU records in the 400 free and the 400 medley relays. Sommerville, Behn, Olsson and Jamie Puls recorded the 400 free relay time of 3:31.24 and Ferro, Sommerville, Olsson and Behn recorded a 3:54.34 in the 400 medley relay.

PREVIEWING THE MEN: After a season in which the CSU men's swimming and diving team earned their first All-American, placed first in eight events at the Horizon League Championships and captured Swimmer of the Meet, Athlete of the Year and Newcomer of the Year, the Vikings are prepared to expand on their success with the addition of nine talented newcomers. The newcomers join three seniors, three juniors and six sophomores to complete the 2009-10 squad. 2009 All-American Jakub Dobies has control of the breaststroke events, recording top times in the 50 breast (25.09), 100 breast (55.72) and the 200 breast (2:04.82) at the TYR Invitational. Sophomore Mark deSwardt returns after earning all three league honors for the Vikings last season; Swimmer of the Meet, Athlete of the Year and Newcomer of the Year, swimming top times in the 500 free (4:29.34), 1,000 free (9:27.25), 200 fly (1:50.65) and the 400 IM (3:57.85) and has recorded an NCAA "b" cut time in the 1,650 free (15:27.19). Seniors Stephen Grove and Todd Winchell each hold a time top in butterfly events this season, Grove in the 50 (22.44) and Winchell in the 100 (49.97). Juniors Zvonimir Androic and Deni Gasparin round out the veterans that hold this seasons top times, with a team best 1:52.92 in the 200 back for Androic, a 1:54.56 in the 200 IM for Gasparin. Berry Thompson is one of two Viking newcomers to post a swimming top time this season, holding a 20.89 in the 50 free and a 46.72 in the 100 free, while Pierre De Waal recorded a 1:42.27 in the 200 free. Josh Gonzalez has recorded the best scores for the divers in both the 1- and 3-meter diving events with 262.72 and 306.70 points respectively.

MAKING THE CUT: Mark deSwardt set the first NCAA "B" cut time of the season for the Vikings when he swam a 15:27.19 in the 1,650 free at the TYR Invitational this past weekend. With the time, deSwardt won the race, out touching Charlie Rimkus from Northwestern University by more than seven seconds.

RECORD BREAKER: Joanna Olsson continued to break CSU records over the past weekend at the TYR Invitational, when she set four individual records and was part of two relay records. For the fourth time this season Olsson beat her own time in the 200 fly recording a 2:03.35. She also swam CSU record times in the 500 free (4:54.39), 400 IM (4:22.99) and the 200 IM (2:05.31). She was part of the 400 free relay that set a CSU record with a time of 3:31.24 and the 400 medley relay that finished in 3:54.34, also a program record.

deSWARDT GAINS NATIONAL RANKING: Not only was Mark deSwardt's 1,650 free time good enough for an NCAA "B" cut, it also ranks him fifth in the nation. deSwardt is also nationally ranked in the 400 IM (18th) and the 500 free (27th), with all three rankings being achieved at the TYR Invitational.

...AND SO DOES DOBIES: 2009 All American Jakub Dobies has also made his mark on the national rankings in both the 100 breast and 100 free. He is 21st in the nation in the 100 breast, while he comes in at the No. 36 spot in the 100 free with his leadoff leg of the 400 relay that he swam at the TYR Invitational.

...AND SO DO THE CSU RELAYS: At the TYR Invitational, CSU put five of their relays into the top-50 in the nation. The 800 free relay has the highest ranking at 23rd, while the 200 medley is 32nd and the 400 medley and 400 free are 35th and 37th respectively. The final relay to make it into the top-50 is the 200 free, which is 42nd in the nation.

VIKINGS LIKE NORRIS: The Vikings sure liked the Norris Aquatics Center as they set 35 of the 43 top times of the season there this past weekend. Three freshmen set 83-percent of the women's top individual times at the TYR Invitational, while four freshmen helped set the five relay times. On the men's side four sophomores and juniors set nine top times, while the same group helped set the relay times as well.

CLIMBING THE RANKS: CSU is making an impact on the College Swimming Mid-Major poll as the men sit at the number seven spot with 214.0 points, while the women are ranked 24th with 210.6 points in the first poll of the season. The only other Horizon League school in the ranks is Milwaukee, with the men's team coming in at No. 14 while the women are sitting in the 19th spot. The poll is released monthly with the next one being released on Dec. 23.

2009-10 HORIZON LEAGUE HONORS: Cleveland State has been honored four times by the Horizon League this season. The following CSU athletes have earned either swimmer of the week or diver of the week honors:
Alice Sommerville - Oct. 20 (Swimmer of the week)
Kacey Cummings - Oct. 27 (Diver of the week)
Jakub Dobies - Nov. 4 (Swimmer of the week)
Josh Gonzalez - Nov. 4 (Diver of the week)
Carys Behn - Nov. 17 (Swimmer of the Week)
Mark deSwardt - Nov. 17 (Swimmer of the Week)

NEXT UP: The Vikings will have a few weeks of training before they compete next in the Holiday Invitational on Saturday, January 9, 2010 at a place that is yet to be determined.