LEBANON, Ill. - McKendree University men's and women's swimming and diving programs will send a total of 22 individuals to compete at the NCAA Division II Swimming & Diving National Championships in Indianapolis, Ind., on March 7-11 at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis. 11 women and 11 men qualified from each McKendree team.
The 11 women mark the highest number of swimmers and divers to qualify for the national championships in McKendree women's swimming and diving history. The McKendree swimmers include fifth-year senior Abigail Rumpp, junior Alexis Kachkin, sophomores Karley Sonnenberg and Sarah Gormley, redshirt freshman McKenzie Fazio, and freshmen Jocelyn Zgola, Gabriela Novais Lima, and Ana Cecilia Carvalho. Three McKendree divers, senior Andrea Menard Cordoba, junior Regan Gubera, and freshman Taylor Seibert, are also provisionally qualified for the championships which will begin with qualifying diving round on Tuesday.
Along with the 11 women's swimming and diving athletes, 11 men's swimmers qualified for the championships. The Bearcats swimmers include fifth-year senior Gregg Lichinsky, senior Caleb Law, juniors Filipe Pinheiro and Chance Conde, sophomores Alireza Yavari, Arthur Souza, Patryk Rozenek, Jackson Lustig, Abram Hagedorn, and Leo Gandaria-Hernandez, and freshman Mario Perez Torrado.
Combined with the women, the 22 total athletes mark the highest number of Bearcats to qualify for the NCAA championships. Three athletes from the women's team and five from the men's team are repeat qualifiers.
Last season, the McKendree women's team finished 19th overall while the men's team finished fourth at the championships.
WOMEN'S QUALIFIERS
Carvalho – 1000 Freestyle, 200 Freestyle, 500 Freestyle, 1650 Freestyle
Fazio – Relays
Gormley – 200 Individual Medley, 400 Individual Medley, 100 Breaststroke, 100 Freestyle
Gubera – 1 meter diving, 3 meter diving
Kachkin – Relays
Menard Cordoba – 1 meter diving, 3 meter diving
Novais Lima – 50 Freestyle
Rumpp – 50 Freestyle, 100 Freestyle
Seibert – 1 meter diving, 3 meter diving
Sonnenberg – 50 Freestyle, 200 Freestyle
Zgola – 200 Freestyle, 500 Freestyle, 100 Freestyle
MEN'S QUALIFIERS
Conde – 1000 Freestyle, 200 Freestyle, 500 Freestyle, 1650 Freestyle
Gandaria-Hernandez – Relays
Hagedorn – 100 Backstroke
Law – 50 Freestyle, 100 Breaststroke, 100 Freestyle
Lichinksy – 50 Freestyle, 100 Butterfly, 100 Freestyle
Lustig – 200 Individual Medley, 100 Butterfly, 200 Butterfly
Perez Torrado – Relays
Pinheiro – 100 Breaststroke, 200 Breastroke
Rozenek – 100 Butterfly, 100 Backstroke, 200 Backstroke
Souza – 50 Freestyle, 200 Freestyle, 100 Freestyle
Yavari – 200 Individual Medley, 200 Freestyle, 100 Freestyle
The NCAA Division II Swimming and Diving National Championships begins on Tuesday, March 7 and continues through Saturday, March 11.
