CMC sophomores Amy Fuller, Lauren Kristensen, and Lisal Smith will represent CMS athletics at the women's NCAA Division III championships Thursday, March 10-Saturday, March 12, hosted by Hope College at the Holland Community Aquatic Center in Holland, Mich. Fuller will compete in the 200-yard individual medley, the 400 individual medley, and the 200 butterfly; Kristensen will compete in the 50-yard freestyle, the 200 freestyle, and the 100 freestyle; Smith, the 2004 NCAA champ in the 400 individual medley event, will swim the 200 individual medley, the 400 individual medley, and the 200 backstroke.
The following week, two CMS athletes also will travel to Holland, Mich., for the men's NCAA Division III championship, scheduled Thursday, March 17-Saturday, March 20. CMC junior Christian Wolfgruber will swim the 500, 200, and 1650 freestyle events; Andrew Cox '08 (HMC), will compete in the 50, 200, and 100 freestyle events.
As qualifiers for the NCAA championships, these CMS student-athletes are among the top 200 female or male swimmers representing 4,000 student-athletes in NCAA D-III sports, says CMS head swimming coach Charlie Griffiths.
Of the women's NCAA championships, Griffiths says the three Athenas representing CMS each made finals individually or in relays last year. And as veterans of the NCAA process, "they really have come through as All-Americans," he says. "We are looking to produce season-best times at Nationals, and that should put us in the position to score points in most of our events."
Anticipating the men's NCAA championships next week, Griffiths says Wolfgruberalso an NCAA veteranhas proved himself the fastest and most consistent distance swimmer in the SCIAC by winning the 500- and 1650-yard freestyles three consecutive years at the SCIAC championships, and for holding meet records in both events. Cox, he said, "is a talented sprinter and will be competitive in all of his events, as well."
For national information: http://www.ncaasports.com/swimming/womens/schedules/diviii