CLEVELAND, Miss. -- The Lady Statesmen swimming and diving program is heading into the Spring Semester on a winning streak. A season-long winning streak. As to this date, the 14th-ranked Lady Statesmen have yet to lose a single competition in the pool and are poised for an exciting finish to their season at the conference and national level.
"We have a solid group of young women learning to compete the Delta State way, and they've been able to do a great job competing and winning this season so far," Head Swimming and Diving Coach Dan'l Murray said.
They find themselves in this position after early season dual meet victories against Milsaps College, Rhodes College, and Loyola University. The Lady Statesmen then turned their attention to the DSU Thanksgiving Invite. The Lady Statesmen were able to accumulate 2,006 points en route to a victory. The Lady Statesmen were led to victory behind multiple strong performances from the blocks and the diving boards.
"This was the first time we had a three-day swimming and diving meet at that point of the season, and was the first opportunity for the team to compete in a conference and NCAA championship format," Murray said. Murray said. "I'm proud of how they competed in both the morning and night sessions, and they gained valuable experience at this competition."
Leading the team off the blocks was Freshman Mikayla Kloth. With victories in the 100 and 200 butterfly, 200 Freestyle, and a strong second-place finish in the 50 freestyle. Mikayla would later be named the swimmer of the meet. Other key swimming victories were delivered by sophomore Tristen Fant (50 and 100 Freestyle), Julia Santiago (400 Individual Medley), Dani Solkow (100 and 200 Breaststroke), Jordon Kloth (100 Backstroke), and Jessica Gannon (Mile). The team would also go on to win all four contested relays.
On the boards, the team was led by sophomore Reagan Fulton, who was able to claim victories in both the 1 and 3-meter competitions. With her score tally of 440.20 on 1 meter, Reagan was able to secure a place in the NCAA Qualification meet. Senior Megan Black helped DSU secure a 1-2 finish in the 1-meter competition, and sophomore Carly Marsh helped DSU secure a 1-3 finish in the 3-meter competition.
These amazing performances led the Lady Statesmen into their annual Christmas Invitational, and an opportunity to face many conference foes, and a division 1 program. Though the competition was tough, the Lady Statesmen were able to secure another Invitational meet victory accumulating 1873.5 points, leading from the end of day 1, and never looking back.
"Getting the opportunity to compete against multiple conference teams and a division 1 program, our athletes showed they could compete very well in this environment, from beginning to end," Murray said. "We had many swimmers and divers step up in big moments, and I am proud of their performances."
The team was led by performances from Mikayla, placing second in the 50, 100, and 200 freestyle, before going on to win the 100 butterfly. Her performances led her to once again be voted as the Swimmer of the Meet. The team also secured victories from Gannon (1000 Freestyle), Solkow (100 and 200 Breaststroke), and Santiago (200 Butterfly). The swimmers were also able to win 4 out of the 5 relays contested and qualified for the 200 medley relay for the NCAA Championships.
The divers also were able to produce strong performances, as Fulton placed second in the 1-meter competition. Black would go on to place fourth with a score of 402.55, which would be her first NCAA Qualification standard reached. Fulton would go on to place second in the 3-meter competition with a score of 480.15, which is a new school record at DSU.
After victories over Ouachita Baptist University and the University of Montevallo the Lady Statesmen are now turning their attention to the rest of the season, which begins this Saturday in a competition against Henderson State University. The meet, which will occur at the Ronald G. Mayers Aquatics Center (Noon), is hopefully a springboard to the championship season, and more success for the team.
"This is the fun time of the season. This is where our athletes get a chance to showcase their hard work on the biggest of stages," Murray said. "I believe we will continue to have success and perform well on our way to the conference and national championships."
