Weekly Release #4
11/9/2004 12:00:00 AM | Women's Swimming & Diving
Upcoming Schedule
Fri., Nov. 12 -- vs. Ohio State (Canham Natatorium), 5 p.m.
Fri-Sun., Nov. 19-21 -- at Indiana Invitational (Bloomington, Ind.), All Day
This Week
The No. 17 University of Michigan women's swimming and diving team (1-1) returns home to Canham Natatorium to host Big Ten rival Ohio State this Friday (Nov. 12) at 5 p.m.
Scouting the Opponent
Ohio State -- The Buckeyes (2-0) head into Ann Arbor with an undefeated record after earning a pair of non-conference victories over Bowling Green and Cincinnati in their home pool to start the season. Ohio State returns 13 letterwinners from last year's team, which finished with a 9-5 record and an eighth-place finish (196 points) at the Big Ten Championships. OSU is lead by sixth-year head coach Jeanne Fleck, who holds a career record of 32-34-1 at the school. Michigan holds a commanding 14-1 record in the all-time series against the Buckeyes. The Wolverines edged Ohio State 153.5-146.5 in the last meeting in Columbus, Ohio on Nov. 14, 2003. Ohio State on the Internet: www.ohiostatebuckeyes.com.
Last Time in the Pool
Michigan had a strong showing at last weekend's Boilermaker Challenge (Nov. 5-6) in West Lafayette, Ind., as the Wolverines placed fifth among eight teams ranked in the CSCAA Top 25 with a two-day total of 460.5 points. Sophomore Susan Gilliam (Los Angeles, Calif./Bolles HS) highlighted the U-M performances with a pair of NCAA automatic qualifying times in the 500- and 1,650-yard freestyle events. The Wolverines also achieved six NCAA provisional cuts during the meet.
Gilliam Named Big Ten Swimmer of the Week
Susan Gilliam earned her second career Big Ten Swimmer of the Week honor on Tuesday (Nov. 9) following her performance at the Boilermaker Challenge. Gilliam secured a trip to the NCAA Championships as she notched an NCAA 'A' standard in only the team's third meet of the season, swimming a time of 4:45.02 in the 500-yard freestyle on the first night of competition. She then followed that performance with an automatic qualifying mark of 16:20.85 in the 1,650-yard freestyle to close out the meet.
Mueller Continues to Make Strides
Freshman Justine Mueller (Monroe, Mich./Monroe HS) continued her stellar freshman campaign at the Boilermaker Challenge, as she achieved two NCAA 'B' standards in a pair of runner-up finishes in the 200-yard (2:01.90) and 400-yard (4:19.14) individual medley races.
Brady Making Cuts
Sophomore Kaitlyn Brady (Wilmington, Del./Mount Pleasant HS) turned in an impressive performance during the Boilermaker Challenge, as she finished fourth in the 50-yard freestyle with an NCAA consideration time of 23.42, and seventh in the 100-yard backstroke with a 'B' standard of 56.10. Brady nearly met the provisional time in the 100-yard butterfly (55.36) with her third-place time of 55.84.
Smith Meets the Standard
Sophomore Lindsey Smith (Dexter, Mich./Dexter HS) met an NCAA 'B' mark in the 200-yard freestyle at the Boilermaker Challenge, touching in at 1:49.38 for fourth place. Smith nearly made the provisional cut in the 50-yard freestyle (23.56), finishing in at 23.70 for sixth place.
Get Well, Get Well Soon, We Want You To Get Well
Three-time NCAA All-American Amy McCullough (West Bloomfield, Mich./Mercy HS) will sit out part of the season with mononucleosis. McCullough, the Big Ten champion in the 100-yard freestyle in 2004, will be cleared by doctors to return to the pool after a full recovery.
2003-04 Season in Review
The Wolverines finished last season with a 13th-place showing at the NCAA Championships after claiming their 14th Big Ten Conference title on Feb. 21, 2004. The Maize and Blue also finished with a remarkable 8-1 record during the regular season. In additon, seven school records were broken throughout the course of the year.
In one of the most exciting championships in recent history, Michigan placed first in the meet's final event, the 400-yard freestyle relay, to clinch the team title over Penn State, 604.50-590-50. Graduated senior Anne Weilbacher (2000-04), Amy McCullough and Lindsey Smith won individual conference championships, while U-M won Big Ten titles in the 400- and 800-yard freestyle relay. Following the meet, Jim Richardson was named the Big Ten Swimming Coach of the Year for the sixth time in his career.
Following Big Ten's, Michigan finished with 114.5 points at the national meet behind All-American performances in the 400-meter medley and 800-meter freestyle races. Susan Gilliam was Michigan's top individual finisher with an eighth-place showing in the 400-meter freestyle. In addition, Michigan swimmers earned a total of 10 All-America honorable mention accolades at the championships.
Outside of the pool, eleven Wolverines earned Academic All-Big Ten distinctions, while the College Swimming Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) selected six athletes as Academic All-Americans and two as honorable mention Academic All-Americans.
Olympic Dreams ...
Eight current and former members of the Michigan women's swimming and diving team took part in the 2004 U.S. Olympic Team Trials (July 7-12) at the Long Beach Swim Stadium, but none was able to secure a spot on the national roster for the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece. Graduated senior Kelli Stein (2001-04) was the only Wolverine to move past a preliminary round, as she placed 16th in the 200-meter breaststroke with a time of 2:34.06 to reach the semifinals. Stein, who earned NCAA All-America honorable mention and was the Big Ten Conference champion in the event in 2003, was unable to advance to the finals after placing 15th (2:33.41) in her second swim later that evening.
Welcome to Ann Arbor
Michigan welcomes 15 newcomers to its 2004-05 roster. Ginn Choe (Troy, Mich./Troy HS), Danielle Eibler (Pinckney, Mich./Pinckney HS), Kayla Hack (Chelsea, Mich./Chelsea HS), Erica LaBont (Amherst, Mass./Amherst Regional HS), Elyse Lee (Albion, Mich./Albion HS), Ashley McLaughlin (Monroe, Mich./Monroe HS), Samantha Montroy (Trenton, Mich./Trenton HS), Justine Mueller, Kaitlin Roach Centerville, Ohio/Centerville HS), Wendy Shieh (Ann Arbor, Mich./Huron HS), Carolina Sierra (Medellin, Colombia/Colegio Palermo de San Jos), Valeria Silva (Lima, Peru/Alexander von Humboldt), Katie Skendrovic (Spring Lake, Mich./Spring Lake HS), Katie Smith (Plano, Texas/Hebron HS) and Michelle Uhlig (Boalsburg, Pa./State College Area HS) all join the U-M swimming and diving program this season.
Introducing the Captains ...
The Wolverines have named three captains for the 2004-05 season. Fifth-year senior Erica Watts (Carmel, Ind./Carmel HS), senior Alexis Goolik (Highland, Ind./Highland HS) and junior Abby Seskevics (Grand Haven, Mich./Grand Haven HS) have been elected by their teammates to lead the team as tri-captains in 2004-05. Watts, Michigan's most experienced swimmer at the butterfly position, will be looked upon for leadership during her final season as a Wolverine. Goolik, Michigan's most accomplished returning diver, is serving her second straight season as captain. Seskevics, a freestyle specialist, is carrying the honor for the first time after collecting one NCAA All-American nomination and four NCAA Honorable Mention All-America awards during her first two seasons in Ann Arbor.
The Leader of the Wolverines
Michigan head swimming coach Jim Richardson is entering his 20th year at the helm of the Wolverines. Over that time, his teams have dominated the Big Ten, winning 12 consecutive league titles from 1987-98 and adding the team's 13th in 2001 and 14th last season. Since taking over the program in 1985-86, Michigan has finished in the NCAA top 10 all but eight years. In 1995, U-M finished in second place as a team and followed that in 1996 by hosting the NCAA Championships and finishing third. He holds a career record of 139-46 in dual meet competiton, including an impressive 90-11 mark in Big Ten action.
Richardson has coached seven individual national champions, 120 NCAA All-Americans and 149 Honorable Mention All-Americans. On the conference level, he has guided 135 individual and relay champions and has been named the Big Ten Coach of the Year six times. A two-time NCAA Coach of the Year (1993, '95), Richardson's athletes have excelled in the classroom as well as the pool, with 20 CSCAA Academic All-Americans and 170 Academic All-Big Ten nominations.
On the Horizon ...
Michigan will travel to Bloomington, Ind., to compete in the three-day Indiana Invitational, Nov. 19-21, at the Counsilman Billingsley Aquatic Center.
Contact: Marc Ressler (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
