The future is bright for the Colorado State swimming & diving program. Following the team’s best dual-meet record in a half-decade, CSU is building off of last year’s success, earning wins over Nebraska Omaha, Idaho and New Mexico State during the season’s opening half.
“The first half of the season went great,” Head Coach Christopher Woodard said. “We are sitting at .500, and all in all I think our girls have done a great job in training and in their race strategy. We feel pretty good; now it is time to push the pedal for the rest of the season.”
CSU is 3-3 through the fall portion of it season, but the most exciting part for Woodard and his staff is that the team’s top performers are all underclassmen. CSU’s freshmen and sophomores hold the team’s top spot in nine of 14 individual events on the season, an impressive number for these first-time collegiate athletes.
Florida native Katie Kicklighter is one of several freshman swimmers to win individual events this season. She currently holds CSU’s top times in the 50 and 100 Freestyle events, and in November at the prestigious Georgia Tech Fall Invitational, was just 13-hundredths of a second away from qualifying for the NCAA Championships.
“Kicks is a stud this first half of a season, and I believe this is just sliver of what she is capable of doing,” Woodard said.
While Kicklighter has made an immediate impact, she is far from the only one. Also leading the way for the freshman class is Colleen Olson, Gianna Salanitro and Hailey Spratte. Each have top performances for the Rams and are making huge waves in pool during their first year.
“The attitude and discipline the freshman class brings is just outstanding,” Woodard said. “They perform the sets as written, if not better. They have showed a lot of professionalism and brought a lot of hype to our team.”
The Rams returned to the pool All-Mountain West backstroke swimmer Jessica Shepard, who again aims for a top time at the Mountain West Championships, in addition to others. With top times in the 100 and 200 Backstroke, Shepard is well on her way to making a big impact at the Championships again this spring.
During the fall season, the one meet that stands out from all the rest is the Georgia Tech Fall Invitational. The Rams had more than 60 of their top performances of the season in 21 different events at this competition. It was a real confidence booster for the team after finishing in 10th place among 17 of the top teams from all around the country.
CSU’s strength, though, remains on the boards. Three divers have qualified for NCAA Zones already this early in the season. Divers Ariana Milone, Mary Kate Hardy and Emily Williams will represent CSU in March. Hardy and Williams have taken tremendous strides from last season, while Erin Taylor has made an impact as a freshman. Milone, though, is the clear-cut leader, holding the Rams’ top scores on both springboard events – including a personal best of 322.50 on the 3-Meter boards, second-best in CSU history, and 288.45 in 1-Meter, fourth-best.
“The divers have done really well, especially at Georgia Tech,” Woodard said. “I am really pleased with where they are at. They have been marching in the right direction all season long, so I am very excited to see what they will do in San Antonio.”
While there has been plenty of success in the opening half of the 2014-15 season, Woodard and his student-athletes believe it is just a glimpse into what this team is capable of doing. The Rams have three dual meets remaining on the schedule, and hope to use those events to make a strong push toward the Mountain West Championships and further.
“We will go hard at it the second half of the season,” Woodard said. “New Mexico, our first meet back, will be tough for us, but we need to get the job done and get a win down there. We need to go into their house and try and take it from them.
The spring season begins Jan. 17 at New Mexico, and on Jan. 28, CSU will honor its seniors during the team’s final home meet, against Northern Colorado. The Mountain West Championships will take place Feb. 18-21 in San Antonio, Texas, before NCAA Zones and the NCAA Championships in March.
College Swimming News is courtesy of Colorado State Swimming and Diving.
