Courtesy: Liberty Athletics
The Liberty swimming & diving team (4-1, 1-0 CCSA) will host Campbell (4-3, 1-2) and UNC Asheville (6-0, 4-0) in a tri meet, Friday and Saturday at Liberty Natatorium. The TYR Senior Celebration Meet will begin at 6 p.m. on Friday and will conclude with an 11 a.m. session on Saturday.
How to Follow the Lady Flames
This weekend’s meet will air live on ESPN+ video streaming service. Live results will also be available, both online and through the meetmobile app.
Liberty’s CCSA Award Winners this Season
So. Maddie Freece – CCSA Women’s Diver of the Week (Oct. 26, Jan. 11)
So. Chloe Harris – CCSA Women’s Swimmer of the Week (Oct. 26)
So. Genna Joyce – CCSA Women’s Swimmer of the Week (Dec. 7)
So. Abbie Shaw – CCSA Women’s Swimmer of the Week (Jan. 11)
Team Notes
• Liberty will honor 10 seniors with a senior day ceremony on Saturday morning. The Lady Flames’ seniors to be honored are: Lauren Chennault, Abigail Egolf-Jensen, Shelby Haines, Emma Hazel, Sophia Miller, Chloe Rippey, Olivia Robinson, Ashley Sennett, Allison Van Milligan and Amelia Wickham.
• During the past four years, the Lady Flames have posted a 35-4 record in dual meets, including 15-0 against CCSA competition. This senior class has combined for 17 individual podium finishes at CCSA Championships.
• Liberty defeated UNCW 156-144 on Jan. 8 in it last action. Liberty turned in its best performances of the season in the following events: 1000 free (Grace Isaacs – 10:31.71); 200 butterfly (Chloe Harris – 2:03.40); one-meter diving (Maddie Freece – 276.53); three-meter diving (Maddie Freece – 279.83); 400 IM (Grace Isaacs – 4:23.47).
• In total, 13 different Lady Flames have won at least one individual event in 2021-22, led by Chloe Harris’ six wins. Abbie Shaw has won the 100 backstroke four times out of five meets this season, while Maddie Freece has three three-meter diving victories and Genna Joyce has won the 200 breaststroke three times.
• Liberty sophomore Genna Joyce and freshman Sydney Stricklin earned national-level experience on Dec. 3-4 at the 2021 Toyota U.S. Open at Greensboro Aquatic Center in Greensboro, N.C. Joyce earned a ninth-place finish in the 200 breaststroke, the second-best placing for a Lady Flame in a USA Swimming-sponsored national meet. Joyce is the fifth USA Swimming national scorer in program history.
• The Lady Flames hosted the TYR ’85 Invite, Nov. 19-21, to wrap up the fall portion of the season. Liberty finished second overall and posted six individual-event victories on the weekend. Abbie Shaw (100 backstroke) earned Liberty’s first B cut time of the season, winning in 53.88. Liberty claimed one-meter diving (Lauren Chennault), three-meter diving (Maddie Freece), 50 freestyle (Heather Gardner), 400 IM (Grace Isaacs), 100 backstroke (Abbie Shaw) and 200 backstroke (Emma Hazel).
• Liberty, hosting the CCSA Championships for the second time, won its fourth-ever CCSA title in 2021, and third in a row. The Lady Flames and FGCU finished in a tie for the conference championship, as both teams finished with 1,748.5 points.
• 12th-year Head Coach Jake Shellenberger has led the Lady Flames from the program’s inception. He has posted a 117-33 dual-meet record, being named CCSA Women’s Swimming Coach of the Year three times (2012, 2014, 2019). His teams have gone 62-14 all-time against CCSA competition.
• Last year at the CCSA Championships, the Lady Flames registered 21 podium finishes and seven event victories, to go along with four NCAA B cuts and one program record.
• Liberty placed four athletes on the 2021 VaSID All-State University Division Women’s Swimming & Diving team. Seniors Lindsey Cohee and Payton Keiner, along with junior Lauren Chennault and freshman Maddie Freece, were all named to the second team. Meanwhile, Freece was named State Co-Rookie Diver of the Year.
• A total of 11 current Lady Flames have posted CCSA podium finishes in their career, led by six each from Lauren Chennault and Emma Hazel. Eva Suggs has earned five top-three placings, followed by four from Jessica Schellenboom. Olivia Robinson (3). Maddie Freece (2), Chloe Harris (2), Abigail Egolf-Jensen (1), Chloe Rippey (1), Abby Strohmeier (1) and Emily Zimcosky (1) have all podiumed as well.
Student-Athlete Notes
• Abbie Shaw holds the fastest time in the CCSA in the 100 backstroke this season (NCAA B cut 53.88).
• Sophomore Maddie Freece had a record-setting freshman season in 2020-21, being named CCSA Women’s Diver of the Year. She won both one-meter and three-meter diving at the CCSA Championships, and went on to earn finals appearances on both boards at the NCAA Zone Championships. Freece finished ninth in three-meter diving at Zones, the first Lady Flame all-time to finish in the top 10 in an event at NCAA Zone Championships. She is Liberty’s current record holder in one-meter diving (293.15).
• Freece earned her spot at the 2022 NCAA Zone Diving Championships, scoring 276.53 in one-meter diving on Jan. 8 against UNCW. She finished just shy of the Zone qualifying standard of 280 in three-meter diving versus UNCW, scoring 279.83.
• Senior Lauren Chennault, the 2020 Co-Outstanding Women’s Diver of the CCSA Meet, has finished on the podium in both one-meter and three-meter diving at each of the last three CCSA Championships. That includes a conference title in one-meter diving as a sophomore. Chennault is currently the program record holder in three-meter diving (317.85).
• Junior Eva Suggs, the 2020 Most Outstanding Female Newcomer of the CCSA Meet, posted three podium finishes as a freshman and two last February. She won the 200 freestyle at the CCSA Championships in both 2020 and 2021, leading a 1-2-3 Liberty podium sweep both times. Suggs currently ranks third in program history in the 200 freestyle (1:47.82).
• Senior Emma Hazel is a three-time runner up at the CCSA Championships in the 200 backstroke and finished second in the CCSA 200 freestyle in 2021. She is tied with fellow commercial aviation major Lauren Chennault for the most podium finishes (six) among active Lady Flames. Hazel also ranks third in program history in the 200 back (1:56.53).
Matchup Highlights
• Liberty is 18-2 all-time against Campbell in swimming & diving, with the Lady Flames winning each of the last 18 meetings. Campbell is Liberty’s most frequent opponent in program history. The Lady Flames defeated the Camels 142-115 on Oct. 2 in Buies Creek, N.C. Liberty holds a 6-0 all-time record versus UNC Asheville in head-to-head dual meets.
• Liberty is 15-1 all-time in dual meets at Liberty Natatorium, with its only loss at the facility coming to Penn State Oct. 29-30, 2021.
• Liberty has won 25 straight CCSA dual meets. The last time Liberty lost a conference dual meet was Jan. 7, 2017 at FGCU.
• Liberty won its third CCSA Championship in a row in 2021 with 1,748.5 points. UNC Asheville finished fourth with a program-record 1,012.5 points, followed closely by Campbell (996) in fifth.
Up Next
Liberty will host the CCSA Swimming & Diving Championships, Feb. 16-19 at the Liberty Natatorium. The Lady Flames, hosting the CCSA Championships for the third time in the last four years, are aiming for their fourth straight CCSA title.
Order of Events
Friday, Jan. 21 – 6 p.m.
400 Medley Relay
500 Free
100 Breaststroke
50 Free
3-Meter Diving (Full Break)
400 IM
200 Free
100 Back
200 Fly
200 Free Relay
Saturday, Jan. 22 – 11 a.m.
1-Meter Diving to run concurrent with swimming
200 Medley Relay
1650 Free
100 Free
200 Back
200 Breaststroke
100 Fly
10-Minute Break
200 IM
400 Free Relay
