CLEVELAND, Mississippi - Coming off of a 2014 season that saw 15 Delta State University swimmers compete at the NCAA Division II Nation Championship, head coach
Dan'l Murray and his staff prepared to exceed the results achieved last season. The Lady Statesmen were crowned New South Intercollegiate Swim Conference (NSISC) Champions for the second consecutive season on the way to a final 12th place ranking nationally, while the Statesmen finished runner-up for the second straight season in the conference standings and ended the year ranked 14th overall. Delta State will travel to Tuscaloosa, Ala. to swim against the University of Alabama Crimson Tide.
Last season saw 27 new school records set - 14 for the Lady Statesmen and 13 for the Statesmen - and only two swimmers from those record setting performances has departed.
The Statesmen have an experienced roster, despite just a pair of seniors.
Yvan Nys finished 13th at the national championship meet in the 100-Backstroke with a time tying for third in school history (48.63) after setting a new mark in the 200-backstroke earlier in the season (1:46.63). Nys also added the backstroke leg on a pair of school record relay teams, 200-Medley Relay and 400-Medley Relay.
Tobias Tombers owns a pair of entries in the career top-10 in the 200-Breaststroke while contributing to relay teams that are top-5 all-time in both the 200-Medley Relay and 400-Medley Relay.
Vlad Zinca returns as a junior after finishing eighth at the NCAA Championship in the 100-Butterfly, an event he holds four of the top-10 times in Delta State history. Zinca added a sixth place finish in the 200-Butterfly nationally, an event where he has recorded the nine fastest times recorded by a Statesman. In the meet from last season held at the DSU Aquatics Center, Zinca picked up Delta State's lone victory against Alabama in the 200-Butterfly.
Fabrice Wendel and
Matteo Fraschi had standout freshman seasons, claiming multiple school records while also placing at the NCAA Championship. Wendel added a pair of 13th place finishes in the 50-Freestyle and 100-Freestyle while rewriting the school record in the 50-Freestyle and 200-Freestyle over the course of the season. Fraschi took home an 11th place finish in the 100-Breaststroke while staking claim to the four fastest times in DSU history in the 100-Breaststroke and 200-Breaststroke. The duo also swam on three of the five record setting relay teams. Wendel was named 2014 NSISC Male Swimmer of the Meet.
Matthew Swaine took home 12th place from 1M and 17th from 3M, as he advanced to the final of the diving competition in both heights. The junior from Ohio now holds all four school records for diving, six and 11 dives from 1M and 3M.
The Lady Statesmen have senior
Dani Meerholz as the most experienced swimmer in the group as a three-year letter award winner. Meerholz earned All-NSISC with three event victories (200-Freestyle, 500-Freestyle, and 1,000-Freestyle) on her way to being selected Swimmer of the Meet. Her winning time in the 200-Freestyle ( 1:50.77) stands as a school record, and she also swam the opening leg on the 800-Freestyle Relay team. The Lady Statesmen set records in all five relay events over the course of last season.
Anastasia Klyarovskaya and
Melanie Tombers each re-wrote the record books as freshman and will look to improve as sophomores. Klyarovskaya has three school records in individual events as well as competing on all five record-setting relays. Klyarovskaya set the school mark in the 100-Backstroke (53.76) to finish third nationally. She followed that up with a sixth place finish in the 200-Backstroke, an event that saw her set a new NCAA record at the Christmas Invitational (1:56.44) before it was eclipsed late in the season. Tombers took home a pair of third place national finished in the 400-Individual Medley and 500-Freestyle. Tombers swam the final leg on both the 200-Medley Relay and 400-Medley Relay school record teams.
Kierstin Page added an 11th overall finish in the 200-Backstroke while entering the top-10 all-time in four events; 100-Backstroke, 200-Backstroke, 200-Individual Medley, and 400-Individual Medley.
Kirsten Stroven recorded the fastest time for the season in the 100-Breaststroke (1:04.97).
Chloe Bennett swam the fastest times in a pair of events during the season in both the 50-Freestyle (23.80) and 100-Freestyle (51.65) with her 100-Freestyle sitting as the number two time in school history.
