Background
Alexandra van Dorsten strives for success in everything she does. She has maintained a 4.0 GPA for both years as a collegiate athlete while contributing crucial points to the Bulldog swim team.
Van Dorsten grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina with her parents and standard black poodle, Bella. While attending Raleigh Charter High School, she was an asset to the swim team. Van Dorsten qualified and swam at NC High School State Championships all four years, racing to a third place finish in the 200 free her senior year. Her high school was named champion of the state meet three out of the four years she attended Raleigh Charter.
In the classroom, van Dorsten excelled at her studies. As a member of the National Honors Society, National Spanish Honors Society and High Honor Role, van Dorsten had her choice of colleges to choose from. In the end, van Dorsten saw herself representing the Asheville Bulldogs as a collegiate student-athlete.
Freshman Year
Van Dorsten made an impact on the young Bulldog program in every event she swam. She won the 200 freestyle at five dual meets and was the top point scorer at three additional dual meets. Furthermore, van Dorsten raced to first place finishes in the 100 freestyle at four dual meets. She was a member of the 400 medley relay team at a dual meet against Radford University that propelled the Blue and White to an exciting win. At the Bulldogs mid-season invite, van Dorsten scored sixth place points or better in all of her four individual events, including a first place finish in the 100 freestyle with a time of 53.24. At the 2014 Coastal Collegiate Swimming Association Championships, van Dorsten scored essential individual and relay points. She dropped two seconds in her 100 freestyle, racing to the wall at 52.35 and qualifying for the B final. Her participation on the 800 freestyle relay, 400 freestyle relay and 400 medley relay scored valuable ninth place points or better. Van Dorsten finished the season in excellent academic standings. She was a member of the Honors Program, recipient of the Hardest Worker and Highest Team GPA Awards and honored with CCSA All-Academic Honors.
Sophomore Year
Van Dorsten continued to excel in the classroom and pool her sophomore year. She remained a member of the Honors Society while also participating in Biology Club. In the regular season, van Dorsten scored first place points in the 200 freestyle at three dual meets and was the top point scorer in an additional two dual meets. She was the highest point scorer for the Bulldogs in the 100 butterfly at five dual meets. Van Dorsten scored essential relay points for Asheville as a consistent member of the 200 medley and 400 medley relays. At the Blue and White’s mid-season invitational, van Dorsten was the top point scorer for Asheville in the 200 freestyle, touching the wall in twelfth place. Van Dorsten rode that wave of success all the way to the 2015 CCSA Championship meet. She swam a personal best time in the 200 freestyle with a time of 1:53.58, qualifying for the B final. Van Dorsten also swam a personal best time of 58.56 in the 100 butterfly. Finally, her season best time in the 100 freestyle qualified her for the C final. Her participation on the 800 freestyle relay, 400 freestyle relay, 400 medley relay and 200 freestyle relay helped the Bulldogs score all new varsity records.
Junior Year
The Bulldogs utilized van Dorsten’s versatility for the 2015-2016 season. She consistently scored second and first place points in the 200 freestyle, 100 freestyle and 100 fly during the regular season. Van Dorsten was also a member of numerous relays throughout the season. At the 2016 Coastal Collegiate Swimming Association Championships, van Dorsten saw incredible success and was a vital member of three relays. As a member of the 800 freestyle relay and 200 freestyle relay she helped the Bulldogs set new Varsity Records in both events. She anchored the 200 free relay clocking in at 23.21, the fastest 50 freestyle in Bulldog history. She was also apart of the 400 freestyle relay, helping Asheville earn valuable 6th place points in the event. Individually, van Dorsten swam to a season best time in the 200 freestyle. She touched the wall at 24.oo in the 50 freestyle and 52.25 in the 100 freestyle, both of which were personal best times and qualified van Dorsten for finals.
Top Times
200 freestyle 1:53.58
100 freestyle 52.25
50 freestyle 24.00 (23.21 – fastest split in Asheville’s history)
100 fly 58.56
800 free relay 7:32.59 (Rulevich, Sanchez, Broido, van Dorsten) Varsity Record
400 free relay 3:32.56 (van Dorsten, Sanchez, Murray, Ireland) Varsity Record
400 Medley relay 3:53.05 (Sanchez, Troncoso, Werth, van Dorsten) Varsity Record
200 Free relay 1:35.46 (Rulevich, Jackson, Kennedy, van Dorsten) Varsity Record
Volunteering/Community Outreach
Future Bulldogs Program
Rocky’s Readers Program
Asheville City Half Marathon Water Station
Martin Luther King Junior Day of Service
Room at the Inn (homeless drug abusers stay at churches)/
Bio Club-Super Saturday Science Education Sessions for middle school children/
Volunteer Asheville Catholic School Swim Coach
Student Athlete Advisory Committee
National Girls and Women in Sports Day
Manna Food Bank Food Packaging Day
