The 1999-2000 Mary Washington College swimming teams are both facing challenges this winter, but to varying degrees. The Eagle men are bent on returning to the top of the Capital Athletic Conference after finishing second at the conference' championships in 1999; the women, one of the top 25 programs in the nation for the past several years, are looking to ascend to the next level on the national scene after receiving four All-America performances from a three-member contingent at Nationals last winter.
Success and achievement traditionally have been the standard for MWC swimming. That tradition continued in 1998-99, as the MWC women won their ninth consecutive Capital Athletic Conference championship en route to a top-25, finish at the NCAA Division III National Championships. The Eagle men took second at the league championships, failing to claim the top spot for just the third time in nine years. In the past four years under Coach Kinney, MWC swimmers have earned 35 All-America awards.
This winter's edition of the Eagle women will again be one of the better programs in the nation, with the return of 1999 All-Americans Kim Myers and Mariah Butler. Myers, a three-time All-America winner in '99, set the school records in the 50-,100-,200-, and 500-yard freestyle last year, showing her skill and versatility. The 1999 CAC Female Swimmer of the Year, Meyers, plated fourth in the 200-yard freestyle at nationals, with a school record time of 1:53.01, and also took twelfth in the 100-yard freestyle (school record time of 52.96) and fifteenth in the 500-yard freestyle (5:07.58). In doing so, Myers became the first-ever MWC woman to win three All-America awards in individual events in one year.
Joining Myers on the national scene is rising senior Mariah Butler, who has been an All-American in each of her three years at MWC. A year ago, Butler finished eleventh in the 400-yard individual medley, with a time of 4:38.17. The winner of the 200 and 400 yard-1M and the 200-yard butterfly at the conference championships, Butler will attempt to become the first ever four-year All-American at MWC in 1999-2000.
The third member of MWC's1999 National Championship qualifying contingent is rising junior Lindsey Taggart, who qualified for nationals in the 100-yard backstroke. Other top performers returning this winter include CAC Champions Whitney Raven (100 yard butterfly - 1:01.65) and Diana Hansen (100 yard breaststroke - 1:11.24 and 200 yard breaststroke - 2:32.32).
The Eagles lose two seniors to graduation: All-Conference freestylers Carson Wasserman and Caroline Stender.
The men’s team must also replace several top departed seniors in order to return to the elite of the conference. Graduated butterfly/freestyler Nate Zaleski won both the 100- and 200-yard butterfly events at the conference meet and qualified provisionally in both events for nationals. Classmate Jeff Dehart took first in the 100-yard backstroke and second in the 200-yard backstroke at the CAC meet, aiming his second consecutive conference crown in the 100 event. Freestyler Karl Anderson, a member of three conference champion relay teams, also will be missed this winter.
A strong core of returnees for the men includes conference finalists Barak Carter (freestyle), Andre Lapar (breaststroke), Andrew Neiburg (distance), Eric Richko (breaststroke/freestyle), Tim Riley (freestyle), Mike Salpeter (freestyle), and Sean Young (individual medley/butterfly).
With one of the top recruiting classes ever at Mary Washington, and an exciting schedule with top opponents like the University of Richmond, James Madison University, and Virginia Military Institute, both of the Mary Washington College swim teams will have ample opportunity to prove their wares against some quality Division One teams, in addition to top Division III squads like Gettysburg College and Johns Hopkins University. With the mix of talented veterans and outstanding recruits, MWC should remain one of the top programs in the nation again this winter.