Primed And Ready For MIAC Championship Meet
MIAC Swimming and Diving preview courtesy of Matt Higgins
MINNEAPOLIS -- The past four Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Women's Swimming and Diving Championships have all ended the same way - with Gustavus Adolphus College hosting the championship trophy. As the 2014 conference meet begins Thursday, the Gusties will aim to make it five in a row, with the rest of the conference attempting to stand between Gustavus and a half-decade of dominance.
A year ago, Head Coach Jon Carlson and his crew captured their fourth-straight MIAC championship - and sixth in the past seven seasons - behind an impressive performance. And the scary news for the rest of the league is that the Gusties bring almost everyone back, starting with defending MIAC Women's Swimmer-of-the-Year Alissa Tinklenberg.
St. Thomas gave Gustavus a tough test, but in the end the four-time champs pulled away to win with a total of 743 points. The Tommies took second with 691 points, and St. Olaf rounded out a solid top three with 630 points. Saint Benedict (395 points) and Carleton (349 points) both earned spots in the top five, with St. Catherine scoring 238 points to take sixth. Macalester (188) edged Hamline (169) and Concordia (136) for seventh, with Saint Mary's (76) sneaking past Augsburg (74) to grab the final spot in the top 10.
It was a banner year for MIAC women's swimmers and divers across the board, as seven MIAC meet records fell, and six of those stand as all-time conference marks. Tinklenberg and teammate Jenny Strom headlined the record breakers, as Tinklenberg set a new MIAC record in the 200-yard backstroke (1:59.92) and Strom set new conference marks in the 100- (1:03.57) and 200-yard breaststroke (2:19.65). The duo also teamed up with Laura Drake and Katie Olson for a MIAC-record time of 3:51.67 in the 400-yard medley relay.
St. Catherine senior Steff Jurusik won the 200-yard individual medley with a new conference record of 2:06.92, and St. Olaf star senior Meghan Weiss set a new meet record in the 200-yard freestyle, with a time of 1:50.71. The Tommies added a MIAC relay record of 1:44.79 in the 200-yard medley relay, thanks to the teamwork of Hayley Trace, Emily Punyko, Mariann Kukielka and Averi Splinter.
The 2014 meet should be another banner year, as both top individual award winners return for their senior seasons and two conference records have already fallen during the regular season. Tinklenberg and 2013 MIAC Women's Diver-of-the-Year Renee Jordan of Macalester are both back, and Jordan set a new MIAC 1-meter record earlier this season with a score of 485.40. St. Thomas star Mariann Kukielka also set a new MIAC record in the 100-yard butterfly (56.63) breaking her own record of 57.07 from the 2013 championships.
In its pursuit of consecutive title No. 5, Gustavus should again be considered the favorite. The Gusties enter the 2014 MIAC meet holding the top time in 10 of the 13 individual swimming events, and in four of the five relays. The team's talent starts with Tinklenberg, who could repeat as MIAC Swimmer-of-the-Year with another strong performance. She enters as the two-time defending champion in the 100- and 200-yard backstrokes and the defending 400-yard individual medley champ as well. This season, she holds the MIAC's top time in the two backstroke events, as well as the 100- and 500-yard freestyles and was named MIAC Athlete-of-the-Week on Dec. 10.
Strom also returns for Gustavus after her double record-setting performance a year ago. The junior is the two-time defending champ in the 100-yard breaststroke, and will also defend the 200-breast title. She holds the top time in both events this season, and she also has the MIAC's fastest time in the 400-yard IM.
The Gusties have several other swimmers poised for big performances in 2014. Junior Katie Olson holds the league's top time in the 200-yard freestyle (1:55.55), and first-year swimmer Dani Klunk leads the MIAC this season in both the 200-yard butterfly (2:10.56) and the 200-yard IM (2:09.63) and received an Athlete-of-the-Week honor in January. Gustavus is defending titles in the 200- and 400-yard freestyle relays, and the 400-yard medley relay. This season, the Gusties have the top time in all three, in addition to the 200-yard medley relay.
Though Gustavus has a ton of talent back, St. Thomas and its returning stars shouldn't be overlooked. Kukielka returns as the two-time defending champ - and the MIAC and meet record holder - in the 100-yard butterfly, and fellow junior Elise Guenther returns as one of the league's elite distance swimmers. Guenther is the two-time defending champion in the 1,650-yard freestyle.
Both Kukielka and Guenther hold the top times in the respective events this season as well as they aim for three-peats, and Kukielka was the first Athlete-of-the-Week winner in 2013-14. The Tommies are also the defending champs in the 200-yard medley relay and junior breaststroke specialist Emily Punyko is also back for UST. Swimmer Cassandra Panka was also recently honored as the MIAC Women's Swimming and Diving Athelte-of-the-Week.
St. Olaf graduated stars Weiss and Lydia Feldman, but has plenty of talent back to target another top-three finish, and the Oles enter the championships as the defending champ and 2014 top-time holder in the 800-yard freestyle relay. Senior Carolyn Bernhardt is back in the backstroke and sprint freestyle events, and sophomore duo Maddie Lee and Abbey Schnaith are also poised for breakout seasons after strong debuts a year ago.
Saint Benedict enters the MIAC Championships in its first season under Dan Eckberg, and a strong upperclass core has the Blazers eyeing a return trip to the top five. Senior Ellen Dean set the MIAC record in the 200-yard butterfly in 2011 and was the runner up last year, and also excels in the IM events. She teams up with fellow senior Maria Gathje and both Stephanie Bierman and Emily Roberts have both been honored as MIAC Athlete-of-the-Week this season.
Carleton also enters hoping for more success and another top-five finish, and the Knights hope to retain control of the 50-yard freestyle. Defending champion Sophie Pilhofer graduated, but senior Milana Socha enters with the MIAC's top time in the event this season (23.81). Fellow Knight Maria Wetzel was honored as MIAC Athlete-of-the-Week on Jan. 28, junior Alexandra Guy is also back for Carleton after earning All-MIAC honors a year ago.
St. Catherine graduated 200-IM record holder Jurusik, but hopes to continue improving and challenge for a top-five finish. Wildcats swimmer Alex Zuelke was the Nov. 19 MIAC Athlete-of-the-Week, seniors Kathleen VanDeVoorde and Lauren Kranig excel at the backstroke, and sophomore Haley French Krahn is the team's top distance swimmer. Macalester will again be the team to beat on the diving board, with 2013 Diver-of-the-Year-Jordan returning as the 1-meter record holder and defending 3-meter champ. Her top competition will again be teammate Hunter Hedenberg, the 2013 1-meter champ. Maggie McKenna leads the Scots' swimmers after finishing second in the 200-breast as a rookie last season.
Hamline and Concordia both have new coaches - Ryan Hawke for the Pipers and Ron Hehn for the Cobbers - and both hope to show improvement under the new leadership. Hamline has experienced swimmers Marissa Smith and Hannah Hawker back, along with talented diver Dani Waskosky. Concordia will be led by diver Jana Hedstrom, distance swimmer Rachel Aldinger and butterfly expert Emily Erickson in 2014.
Senior Sarah Jansen returns for Saint Mary's as the team's top diver. The Cardinal swimmers will be led by breaststroke/IM senior Anna Smaron and freestyler Anne Raecker. Augsburg first-year head coach Steve Webb is fortunate to have sophomore school record holder Kelsey Knollmueller in his lineup, along with the senior duo of Elianna Bier and Elizabeth Hilgendorf.
The 2014 MIAC Swimming and Diving Championships will take place at the University of Minnesota Aquatic Center Thursday, Friday and Saturday (Feb. 13-15) with two sessions each day. The morning sessions will feature preliminary races and will begin at 10:30 a.m., and the evening finals session will start at 6:30 p.m. each day. The doors open each morning at 9 a.m., and again at 5:30 p.m. for the evening session on Thursday and Friday. The doors will open at 3 p.m. for Saturday's final session.
Spectators are welcome at all six sessions, and there are two different options for purchasing tickets. Single-session tickets will be sold, costing $8 for adults and $4 for students. Fans will also have the option to buy an All-Session Pass for $40 (adults) or $20 (students). Heat sheets are included in the price of admission and will be available at the ticket window. Children 5 and under will be admitted free, and MIAC passes will be honored. No other passes or discounts will be accepted.
If fans can't make it to Minneapolis, there are several ways they can track the action from afar. The MIAC has again teamed up with Webcast America to offer a live video/audio webcast of all six sessions. Webcast America will also offer archives of the sessions on its website for on-demand viewing, or purchase on DVD. There will also be "live" results available online with times and scores updated shortly following each event.
Complete information and coverage of the 2014 MIAC Swimming and Diving Championships can be found on the MIAC's event home page. Throughout the championships, the page will include the event schedules, venue information, ticket information, psych sheets, heat sheets, results, recaps, photo galleries, highlight videos, helpful links and more. Fans can connect throughout the meet via social media, using the official hashtag #MIACSD on Twitter.
Gustavus Adolphus College and Hamline University are serving as the host institutions for the 2014 MIAC Swimming and Diving Championships. Twin Cities Orthopedics will again provide athletic training and medical services. The Commons Hotel is the official hotel partner of the MIAC Swimming and Diving Championships, and Pure Blue Swim provided medals for All-MIAC performers.