Eighteen Wolverines Headed to U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- A total of 18 members of the 2000-01 University of Michigan men's and women's swimming teams will represent the Wolverines at the 2000 United States Olympic Swimming Team Trials Aug. 9-16 in Indianapolis, Ind. The Michigan men's team will send 12 current team members, while six Wolverine women will compete.

The trials are an eight-day format with preliminaries, semifinals and finals. The top two finishers in each event will qualify for the U.S. Olympic Team which will compete in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, in September.

Members of the men's team who are scheduled to compete are:

Name	Yr.	Hometown/High School
Justin Drake	So.	Phoenix, Ariz./Arcadia HS
Ryan Earhart	So.	Cincinnati, Ohio/St. Xavier HS
Paul Ely	So.	Beaverton, Ore./Sunset HS
Josh Hack	So.	Chelsea, Mich./Chelsea HS
Jeff Hopwood	Jr.	Palo Alto, Calif./Palo Alto HS
Tony Kurth	So.	Toledo, Ohio/St. Francis de Sales HS
Jason Mallory	Jr.	Granger, Ind./Penn HS
Garrett Mangieri	So.	Closter, N.J./Mercersburg Academy, Pa.
Chris Thompson	Sr.	Roseburg, Ore./Roseburg HS
Jordan Watland	Jr.	Excelsior, Minn./Minnetonka HS
Scott Werner	Sr.	Haymarket, Va./Paul VI HS
Eric Wilson	So.	Portland, Ore./Sunset HS

Thompson had an outstanding junior season, capturing All-America honors with a third-place finish in the 400-meter freestyle at the NCAA Championships. Thompson also won the 500-yard freestyle and 1,650-yard freestyle at the Big Ten Conference Championship. Hopwood and Werner earned honorable mention All-America status at the 2000 NCAA Championships. Hopwood was 10th in the 100-meter breaststroke, while Werner was 12th.

Junior Tim Siciliano (San Marcos, Calif./San Marcos HS), the NCAA champion in the 400-yard and 400-meter individual medley in 1999 and 2000, respectively, qualified for the Olympic Trials but will not participate due to injury.

Representing the women's team will be:

Name	Yr.	Hometown/High School
Erin Abbey	So.	Cleveland, Ohio/Mayfield HS
Lindsay Carlberg	Jr.	Carmel, Ind./Carmel HS
Jen Crisman	Sr.	Grand Rapids, Mich./Jenison HS
Jenay Karlson	So.	San Diego, Calif./Torrey Pines HS
Melissa Sugar	Sr.	Newburgh, Ind./Evansville Day School
Traci Valasco	So.	Rochester Hills, Mich./Rochester Adams HS

Crisman is a Big Ten champion in the 100-meter backstroke, 200-meter freestyle relay and the 400-meter freestyle relay. Crisman and Sugar were members of the 200-meter freestyle relay team that finished sixth at the NCAA Championships, granting them All-American status. Karlson and Carlberg earned honorable mention All-America status for their performance on the 200 and 400-meter medley relay teams, where they finished 10th and 11th respectively.

Michigan fans will also recognize former Wolverine standouts Tom Dolan (1994-96), Tom Malchow (1996-99) and Jennifer Arndt (1997-2000). Dolan is a former Olympian who won gold in the 400-meter individual medley at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. While at Michigan, Dolan was a nine-time NCAA Champion and a five-time Big Ten Conference Champion. Malchow, an equally decorated athlete, brought home a silver medal in the 200-meter butterfly from Atlanta in 1996. While at Michigan, Arndt was an NCAA All-American and two-time Big Ten champion in the 800-meter freestyle relay.

Earlier this summer, three former Wolverines qualified for the Canadian Olympic Team. Mike McWha (1997-2000, 800-meter freestyle relay) and Owen von Richter (1995-98, 400-meter IM) made the men's team, while Shannon Shakespeare (1997-2000, 400- and 800-meter relays) will swim on the women's squad.