Women's Swimming & Diving Travels to Maine for America East Championships
Audio Interview with Head Coach Josh Willman
DURHAM, N.H. – The University of New Hampshire women's swimming and diving squad will travel to the University of Maine on Thursday for the America East Championships held at the Stanley M. Wallace Pool. The four-day event starts on Thursday, Feb. 14 and concludes Sunday, Feb. 17.
Schedule of Events
Thursday 11:00 a.m. Women's 3 M Trials
5:30 p.m. Finals Begin
Women's 3 M
800 Free Relay
200 Medley Relay
Friday 10:00 a.m. Prelims
500 Free
200 IM
50 Free
2:00 p.m. Women's 1 M Prelim
3:45 p.m. Women's 1 M Finals
6:00 p.m. Finals
500 Free
200 IM
50 Free
200 Free Relay
Saturday 10:00 a.m. Prelims
400 IM
100 Fly
200 Free
100 Breast
100 Back
6:00 p.m. Finals
400 IM
100 Fly
200 Free
100 Breast
100 Back
400 Medley Relay
Sunday 10:00 AM Prelims
200 Back
100 Free
200 Breast
200 Fly
~2:00 p.m. 1650 Prelims
5:30 p.m. Finals
1650
200 Back
100 Free
200 Breast
200 Fly
400 Free Relay
In 2012, the Wildcats swam to a third place finish at the event and picked up a host of awards and honors in the process. Katie Mann (Prince George, British Columbia) shattered a pair of records on the weekend en route to earning the Women's Rookie of the Year as well as the Most Outstanding Swimmer awards. It was the first time in America East history that a swimmer earned both awards.
The Rookie of the Year award was the fourth in the last five years for the Wildcats as the Outstanding Swimmer of the Year was the 21st (16 America East, 5 ECAC) in head coach Josh Willman's career. Here is a complete list of the conference awards earned by Wildcats:
America East Swimmers of the Year
1995 - Denise Leckenby & Jeremy Hutchinson
1996 - Denise Leckenby & Ian Smith
1997 - Denise Leckenby & Frank Reeves
1998 - Denise Leckenby
1999 - Kristen Zeimetz & Ian Smith
2000 - Brian Lucey
2003 - Shannon Daly
2005 - Melissa Lague
2006 - Kary Goodman
2007 - Kary Goodman
2008 - Amy Perrault (Rookie of the Year)
2009 - Jessica Little (Rookie of the Year
2010 - Amy Perrault
2011 - Lauren McCandless (Rookie of the Year)
2012 - Katie Mann (Swimmer/Rookie of the Year)
America East Scholar-Athletes of the Year
1993 - Mike Dix
1994 - Dan Bailey
1996 - Denise Leckenby
1998 - Denise Leckenby
1999 - Kristin Latourelle
2012 - Lauren McCandless
America East Senior High Point Award
2006 - Shannon Daly
2008 - Kary Goodman
2011 - Amy Perrault
ECAC Swimmers of the Year
1996 - Denise Leckenby
1998 - Denise Leckenby
2004 - Shannon Daly
2006 - Kary Goodman
2011 - Amy Perrault
Additionally, New Hampshire was tabbed as the America East Coaching Staff of the Year for the third consecutive year and for the 12th for Willman.
WEEKLY HONORS: Three different Wildcats have taken home individual weekly conference honors a total of five times this season. Pelletier took home the first honor as America East Women's Diver of the Week (Oct. 16), followed by a pair of consecutive Swimmer of the Week wins by Jenni Roberts (Springvale, Maine) (Oct. 23, Oct. 30). Mann was the next student-athlete to be honored as Swimmer of the Week (Nov. 13) while Roberts was honored for the third time on Jan. 22. Mann and Pelletier swept the women's awards on Feb. 5 in the most recent voting.
MAKING THE CUT: Katie Mann achieved an NCAA provisional mark in the 200-yard breaststroke at the Brown Invitational on Dec. 2. She blazed through the water and finished with a time of 2:14.63.
TOP TIMES: Multiple Wildcats have had tremendous success in the pool this season. In total, New Hampshire swimmers own the top-conference times in 12 individual events and one relay event. Sydney Tribou holds the top times in the 100 free (52.12) and the 500 free (4:57.67). Jenni Roberts is the owner of the top performances in the 200 free (1:50.76), the 100 back (57.15), the 200 back (2:02.81), the 100 fly (55.74), the 200 fly (2:02.05) and the 200 IM (2:03.18). Katie Mann is tops in a trio of events, including the 100 breast (1:04.81), the 200 breast (2:14.63) and in the 400 IM (4:22.58). Ellen Pelletier recorded the top score in the 1-meter dive in UNH's most recent meet, diving to a score of 277.35. Roberts, Tribou, Shelli Reed and Jenna Bull collectively own the best time in the 800 free relay, working together for a time of 7:34.71.
ALL AROUND THE WORLD: UNH swimmers come to the Wildcats from all around the globe. Nicole Anderson (Dover) and Jane Tighe (Windham) hail from the Granite State, while Bernadette Byrne (Braintree) and Nicole Zahka (Medway) come from Massachusetts. Jenni Roberts (Springvale) and Kathryn Violette (Portland) are from Maine while Emily Magnavita (South Glastonbury) and Ellen Pelletier (West Hartford) are from Connecticut. Kyle Bonus (Philadelphia) and Lauren McCandless (Macungie) each hail from Pennsylvania as Katie Keefer (Waynesboro, Virginia) and Sydney Tribou (Orlando, Florida) are the lone representatives of their states. A trio of student athletes came to N.H. from the opposite side of the country in California. The Morales sisters, Adria and Allison, hail from Santa Clarita while Shelli Reed comes from Hollister.
Outside of the United States, Jenna Bull, Katie Manna and Megan Suffel all come from Canada. Bull from Woodstock, New Brunswick, Mann from Prince George, British Columbia and Suffel from Cornwall, Ontario. Bettina Caspersen came to New Hamphire from Lyngby, Denmark as Oneida Cooper arrived from Johannesburg, South Africa.
THE WILLMAN FILE: Head coach Josh Willman has become the America East Conference's most highly honored coach. He has been selected America East Coach of the Year 11 times in the past 18 years (1993, 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2010, 2011 and 2012) and ECAC Coach of the Year twice (2003 and 2011). New Hampshire swimmers are the most highly decorated athletes in the America East, winning 33 major conference awards including 21 Swimmers of the Year (16 America East and 5 ECAC), six America East Scholar-Athlete of the Year, four Rookie of the Year and two Senior High Point Coaches awards. During Willman's tenure, 334 swimmers have been crowned America East Champions and 98 have been named ECAC Champions. In total, Wildcat swimmers have broken over 224 school records, 75 America East records and 17 ECAC records.
COACHING CREW: The UNH swimming and diving coaching staff consists of four personnel. Josh Willman (Miami '84) is in his 20th season at the helm of the squad while associate head coach Jarrod Zwirko (New Hampshire '04) is in his fifth season with the program. Diving coach Carol Stevenson (Connecticut '82) returned to the Wildcats for her second stint with the team while her first tenure was from 2001-07. Volunteer assistant Jared Felker (Virginia '00) is in his second season with the team and works primarily with the sprint and stroke groups.
For more information on the swimming & diving program, be sure to visit www.UNHWildcats.com.
