March 4, 2015
NCAA RELEASE
INDIANAPOLIS (NCAA/SMU) - The SMU women's swimming and diving program will send five individuals to the 2015 NCAA Championship March 19-21 at the Greensboro Aquatics Center in Greensboro, North Carolina. Freshman
Madeline Wainman has also qualified for the Zone D Diving Championship to be held March 9-11 in at the University of Iowa.
Mustang swimmers will compete in 6 different individual events, while also making appearances in the 200-yard freestyle relay as well as the 200- and 400-yard medley relays.
SMU hit the NCAA qualifying standard in the 200-medley relay as Isabella Arcila, Tara-Lynn Nicholas, Marne Erasmus and Nathalie Lindborg posted a 1:37.32 at the American Athletic Conference Championship on Feb. 18. The Mustangs highest seed in the relays, however, is in the 400-medley relay.
Outside of relays, Arcila will compete in the 50-yard freestyle, an event in which she posted the SMU standard with a 22.21 at the AAC Championship and has the 25th fastest time in the country. Arcila also has the top Mustang time in the 100-yard backstroke at 52.90. Her third event at the Championship will be the 100-yard freestyle.
SMU's second representative in the 100-free is Lindborg, who posted a season best 48.72 en route to a second-place finish in the event at conference. Lindborg will also compete in the 50-yard event, and is coming off of a runner-up finish in The American.
Mustang breaststrokers Rachel Nicol and Nicholas will compete in both the 100- and 200-yard events, with Nicholas holding SMU's only individual `A' cut in the 100. Nicholas clocked a 59.12 at conference, good for a school record and the gold medal. Last season, Nicholas earned All-America honors with an eighth-place finish and her time is the NCAA's seventh fastest. Nicol was second in the event, and the two switched places on the podium in the 200-yard distance.
Erasmus, a 2014 All-American in the 100-yard butterfly, will swim the event in addition to her relay duties.
Ursa Bezan (200-free, 500-free, 200back), Erica Donadon (100-breast), Kirsty McLauchlan (200-IM, 400-IM, 200-breast) and Anna Volchkov (100-back, 200-back) all reached the NCAA `B' cut in their respective events as well, but did not make the final qualification list.
Wainman is set to compete for SMU at the NCAA Zone D regional qualifier in Iowa City. At the completion of each of the five regionals, the top divers will be invited to the NCAA Championship. At the 2015 American Championship, she earned all-conference honors as the runner-up in the platform.
Check SMUMustangs.com, `like' the Mustangs on Facebook (/SMUSwimDiveW) and `follow' them on Twitter (@SMUSwimmingW) for more information and ways to follow the Championship.
