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Women's swimming and diving is back in action Thursday to open a two-day dual meet at No. 25 Minnesota.

Thursday action is slated to begin at 5 p.m. CT, while Saturday is scheduled for 11 a.m. Live results can be found on SMUMustangs.com, DiveMeets and the Meet Mobile App.

Last Time Out
Nicole Stambo helped lead the Mustangs at the SMU Classic with her first NCAA Zone score of the season. The senior placed fourth on 1 meter with a six-round 265.85. It was the fourth career NCAA mark for Stambo on 1 meter. Jenna Watson posted three career-best performances en route to American Athletic Conference Swimmer of the Week honors.

The Competition
Minnesota is 2-0 to open the 2022-23 season and ranked No. 25 in the first CSCAA Division I Poll. The Golden Gophers have dual meet wins over Nebraska and South Dakota. Minnesota finished sixth at the 2022 Big Ten Championships and sent nine student-athletes to the NCAA Championships.

Leaders Of The Pack
The Mustangs have selected Jenna Watson and Julia Yakushi as captains for the 2022-23 season.

Conference Favorites
Jenna Watson was named the AAC Swimmer of the Week for her performance at the SMU Classic. Watson posted three career-best times in Championship Finals to help lead the Mustangs at the event. The honor was the first of her career. In 400 IM action, Watson finished fourth at 4:18.58. She posted her second career mark on day one to finish sixth in the 100 breast in a time of 1:03.13. During day two action, she bested her career time in the 200 breast, coming in at 2:16.29 for fifth.

The Mustangs swept AAC weekly awards three of four possible times in 2021-22, picking up eight of nine possible honors. Gabi Grobler had a conference-leading three honors.

Feb. 1 Gabi Grobler
Jan. 18 Ilektra Lebl, Nicole Stambo
Nov. 23 Ilektra Lebl, Nicole Stambo
Nov. 2 Gabi Grobler, Johanna Holloway
Oct. 12 Gabi Grobler

Making The Cut
Seven swimmers produced a total of 12 individual NCAA B cuts in 2021-22.

Valentina Becerra | 100 fly
Gabi Grobler | 100 breast, 200 breast, 200 IM, 400 IM
Olivia Grossklaus | 200 fly
Johanna Gudmundsdottir | 50 free, 100 free
Ilektra Lebl | 500 free, 400 IM
Frederica Kizek | 1,650 free
Valentina Becerra | 100 fly
 
On the diving side, all four Mustangs – Hannah Craley, Jaclynn Fowler, Johanna Holloway, Nicole Stambo – qualified for the NCAA Zone D Diving Championships.
 
All-American Returners
Eight members of the SMU women's swimming and diving program, including four returners, earned College Swimming and Diving Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) Scholar All-America honors for their work in the pool and the classroom last season.

To be selected as a member of the CSCAA Scholar All-America first team as an individual, swimmers and divers must have achieved a grade-point-average of 3.50 or higher and have participated in their respective NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships. Honorable mention selections have similarly achieved a GPA of 3.50 and achieved a "B" time standard or competed at their respective qualifying meets.

2021-22 CSCAA Selections
Valentina Becerra // Major: Spanish; Minor: Educational Studies
Johanna Gudmundsdottir // Major: Applied Physiology and Sport Management (Sport Performance Leadership)
Frederica Kizek^ // Major: Biological Sciences; Minor: Chemistry, Neuroscience 
Nicole Stambo^^ // Major: Biological Sciences; Minor: Chemistry, Neuroscience

^ Previous HM Selection

The Mustangs also earned Scholar All-America Team honors, boasting a 3.6 GPA for the spring, up from a 3.45 GPA in the fall. The GPA also placed the Mustangs in the top 30 of the 172 DI women's programs that earned the honor, and was the highest mark in the American Athletic Conference.

Welcome To The Hilltop
The Mustangs welcomed 10 student-athletes to the program for the 2022-23 season. The 2022-23 signing class included student-athletes from three different countries and four different states across the U.S.

Anne Lauren Bellah | Maryville, Tennessee | Maryville | Backstroke/Freestyle/IM
Avery Fuhr | Spring, Texas | Klein Oak | Breaststroke/Sprint Freestyle
Jimena Leguizamon Leal | Bogota, Colombia | Maria Inmaculada School Colombia | Backstroke/IM
Hannah Lockyer | Danville, California | Monte Vista | Breaststroke/IM
Lucrezia Napoletano | Bisceglie, Italy | Leonardo Da Vinci | Sprint Freestyle
Natalie Neugent | Wichita, Kansas | Andover | Sprint Freestyle
Sophia Rivas | Leander, Texas | Rouse | Sprint Freestyle
Carlotta Scarpitti | Rome, Italy | San Giuseppe del Caburlotto | IM/Butterfly
Kirsten Schlortt | San Antonio, Texas | Saint Mary's Hall | Backstroke
Caroline Sullivan | Austin, Texas | St. Andrews Episcopal School | Breaststroke

Mustangs Go International
Three Mustangs represented a pair of countries at the 2022 Bolivarian Games in July.

Jimena Leguizamon Leal, who also became the first Colombian in history to make a semifinal at the FINA World Championships, posted a pair of gold medal performances. As an individual, she won the 200-meter back and joined Valentina Becerra on the champion 4x100 medley relay team.

Leguizamon Leal also earned bronze medals in the 200m IM and the 100m back. Becerra picked up a second gold as part of the 4x100 mixed medley relay, and came away with bronze in the 100m fly.

The duo helped propel Colombia to the top of the medal count in swimming, finishing the event with 39 total medals.

Julianna Penner, who arrived on the Hilltop as a transfer during the 2021-22 season and represented Venezuela, competed In the 1,500m freestyle and 200m fly finishing fourth and sixth, respectively.
 
Holt Hickman Outdoor Pool Is Coming To The Hilltop
With a $2.5M gift from the Hickman family, SMU broke ground on a new eight-lane, 50-meter by 25-yard outdoor pool, with 1- and 3-meter diving boards. The $11M project will also include a 20-foot by 40-foot instructional pool that will be used for lessons and rehab/therapy. The addition of the outdoor pool will complete the Robson & Lindley Aquatics Center, making SMU the only University in the country with both indoor and outdoor Olympic pools in one facility, further cementing SMU's swimming and diving facility as one of the finest in college athletics.

Standing In The Hall Of Fame
SMU and SMU Athletics, in conjunction with the SMU Lettermen's Association, have announced the newest class of the SMU Athletics Hall of Fame. The inductees include Bobby Mills, Berit Puggaard, Katie Swords and Robert Weir. The inductees will be recognized at the annual Hall of Fame Banquet and Induction Ceremony on Friday, November 4 in Armstrong Fieldhouse at the Indoor Performance Center.

Berit Puggaard – Women's Swimming & Diving 1992-96
Puggaard was a four-time NCAA Champion, 13-time Southwest Conference Champion and 25-time All-American and from 1992-96. She helped the Mustangs finish in the top four at the NCAA Championships all four seasons, including a runner-up finish in 1996. Puggaard was a two-time Olympian for Denmark, competing in Barcelona in 1992 and Atlanta in 1996. She also won a bronze medal at the European Championships in 1991 and 1997.

Read about her time at SMU here.

SMU Athletics Launches New Student-Athlete Success Department
As part of its goal of Shaping Champions and preparing students for life, SMU Athletics proudly announced the creation of a new Student-Athlete Success Department. This new department encompasses all student-development-centered efforts such as Life After Ball, SAAC and community service initiatives. Additionally, it will house NIL Education and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programming. Due to a generous donation from Suzanne and Glenn Youngkin, SMU Athletics will be able to grow staffing in these critical areas in our support of our student-athletes.

SMU Athletics Celebrates Record Fundraising Year
The SMU Mustang Club broke the all-time fundraising record with $73 million in gift receipts and new commitments for the 2022 fiscal year, which ended May 31. The totals represent an increase of nearly $47 million from the previous fiscal year. It is the first fiscal year in which cash donations and commitments have eclipsed $70 million since the Mustang Club was founded in 1935. Through the generosity of Mustang donors, cash gifts rose 71% from fiscal year 2021 and totaled $36 million. The best-ever performance resulted from the contributions of 3,105 donors.

Mustang Student-Athletes & NIL
SMU student-athletes benefit from Name, Image, Likeness (NIL) opportunities through SMU Athletics' conference-leading BOLD NIL program. SMU topped the AAC for NIL Deals among INFLCR partners, ranking No. 1 in Total Transactions, Total Transaction Value and Average Transaction Value. To date, SMU student-athletes overall have nearly 250 total transactions totaling over $572,000 with an average transaction value of just over $2,300.

Up Next
The Mustangs host UIW and Oklahoma Christian in double-dual action on Oct. 29.