Swimming heads to California for PCSC Championship
February 12, 2013
Jamie Foland
907-474-6807
The Alaska women's swim team will have one last chance to secure qualifiers for the 2013 NCAA Championship this week when they travel to the Pacific Collegiate Swim and Dive Conference Championship, which takes place Wednesday through Saturday at the La Mirada Regional Aquatics Center in La Mirada, Calif.
“Last year we tied our best team finish ever at our conference championships,” head coach Scott Lemley said. “We did this by barely edging Cal State East Bay (671 - 601). We were right behind 3rd place Fresno Pacific University by about the same margin. Having lost to CSUEB last semester in a head-to-head home dual meet series I know we'll be battling just to maintain fourth place this year.”
The Nanooks tied their best team finish ever at the 2012 conference meet with a fourth-place showing and will look to stay in the top-four again this year, especially as the conference grows stronger and stronger from year-to-year. UC San Diego won the title a year ago and are clear contenders to reclaim the PCSC crown in 2013.
“Last year we definitely had our best year ever in relay races with three second place finishes, all right behind the dominant team in our conference, UC San Diego,” head coach Scott Lemley said.
No relay could have been closer than the final event of the 2012 championship, the 400 freestyle relay, in which UCSD out touched Alaska by four one-hundredths of a second to win the PCSC championship in that event.
“The whole crowd was buzzing after that finish since the Tritons rarely ever lose a relay, much less are pushed so much by another team,” Lemley said. “We're determined to win at least one relay this year.”
Individually, sophomore Margot Adams (Anchorage, Alaska/Political science) became just the second conference champion in program history last year as a rookie when she won the 100 butterfly. Junior Bente Heller (Hamburg, Germany/Communication) took second, third and fourth in the three sprint freestyles as well as a sophomore.
As far as this year is concerned, these two have had their best regular seasons to date and Lemley believes the best is yet to come. There are also quite a few Nanooks seeking bids to the NCAA Championship this week.
“This year Bente is focused on winning at least one of those events while Margot wants to repeat as conference champion in the 100 fly,” Lemley said. “Several Nanooks are looking at making qualifying times for NCAAs at the meet. Dani Lyons is focused on the 200 and 400 individual medleys and 200 free while Gabi Summers (who already has "B" cuts in the 200 and 500 frees) has been training to make qualifying times in the 400 IM and 100 free.”
Live results will be available on Swim Phone and the PCSC website.
“We couldn't ask for better competition to prepare us for nationals than the teams we have in our own conference,” Lemley said.