Jan. 18, 2005

Cleveland State junior Kirsty McKechnie has been named the Horizon Leauge women's swimmer of the week, the league announced on Tuesday.

McKechnie received the honor after swimming to a CSU record-setting time of 10:27.29 in the 1,000 freestyle against Duquesne, Saint Francis and Xavier on Saturday (Jan. 15). Her first-place time in the event was nearly five seconds swifter than the previous mark of 10:32.24, set by Jen Henshaw in 1999.

The Durban, South Africa native also posted a first-place finish in the 500 freestyle (5:08.52) and second-place in the 200 butterfly (2:12.03).

"I'm really happy for Kirsty," head coach Mike Lehto said. "She really has put forth the effort to get better this year. She knows that she belongs at the top of the league in distance events, and she has been working hard ever since last year's championship to get there. She's really looking forward to proving herself at the championships this season."

McKechnie was honored by the league for the first time this season. Samantha Jones and Marianne Lionell have garnered the recognition for the women while Pieter Pelser, Bjorn Schantz and Luke Wilkens have been honored for the men's team.

The women's swimmers will remain idle until Jan. 28 when they host Valparaiso in the CSU Alumni meet beginning at 2:00 p.m. in Busbey Natatorium.