Completed Event: Women's Swimming and Diving versus Summit League Championships on February 18, 2026 , , 4th of 7 Teams — 458 Points
/
FINAL
Women's Swimming and Diving
(4th of 7 Teams — 458 Points)
vs Summit League Championships
South Dakota State University Athletics
Saturday, October 2
Lincoln, Neb.
11:30 a.m.
South Dakota State University
at
Nebraska
Photo by: SDSU Athletics
WOMEN'S SWIM OPENER SATURDAY AT NEBRASKA
10/1/2021 2:30:00 PM | Women's Swimming and Diving
| MEET 1: South Dakota State (0-0) at Nebraska (0-0) |
| When | Saturday, Oct. 2 | 11:30 a.m. | |
| Where | Devaney Center Natatorium | Lincoln, Nebraska | |
| TV | Huskers.com | |
| Results | Huskers.com | |
| Meet Notes | See below | |
| Social Media | Twitter | Instagram | |
The South Dakota State University women's swimming and diving team is scheduled to open the 2021-22 season Saturday with a dual at Nebraska.
Competition is slated for an 11:30 a.m. start at the Devaney Center Natatorium in Lincoln, Nebraska.
The Jackrabbits are coming off a successful, albeit an abbreviated, 2020-21 campaign. SDSU went undefeated in dual competition with a 5-0 record and registered a runner-up finish at the Summit League Swimming and Diving Championships.
Nebraska posted a 1-3 in duals last season and later finished in the middle of the pack at the Big Ten Swimming and Diving Championships, placing seventh out of 13 teams.
SEASON PREVIEW: Seven all-Summit League performers, including one returning conference champion, return to the Jackrabbit women's lineup after a second-place effort at the Summit League Swimming and Diving Championships last spring.
"I'm really happy with where we've started. We have a very deep group of girls that are talented," head coach Doug Humphrey said. "Because everybody came in in good shape, everybody came in ready to continue the path we've gone over the last two years, I'm very excited about the direction we're headed."
Leading the Jackrabbits is junior Elisabeth Timmer, the school-record holder in the 50-yard freestyle. Timmer was a consistent performer throughout the 2020-21 season, earning Summit League Swimmer of the Week honors three times before finishing second in the 100 freestyle and third in the 50 freestyle at the league championships.
Other top sprinters include junior Grace Witherspoon and Katie Drezen, as well as sophomore Emma Bachelder. Witherspoon qualified for the finals in a pair of events at the Summit League Championships, recording a fourth-place finish in the 50 freestyle and seventh-place mark in the 100, while Drezen placed sixth in the 50 free.
Bachelder placed eighth in the 50 freestyle and also was a finalist in the 100 IM, placing sixth, at her first Summit League Championships.
The distance freestyle crew includes fifth-year senior Rori Conners and sophomore Zoey Ahrens. Conners has previously earned all-Summit League honors in the mile.
The lone SDSU women's swimmer to win an individual championship last season, sophomore Sianne Downes is back to defend her 100 backstroke title. The South Africa native also placed fourth in the 200 backstroke and finished 12th in the 200 individual medley at the league meet.
Joining Downes in the backstroke events is fellow sophomore Emma Walz, who also impressed during the 2020-21 campaign. Walz reached the finals in both backstroke events at the Summit League Championships, placing fourth in the 100 and fifth in the 200.
Kelsey Kocon was leading the team's backstroke and IM swimmers until suffering a late-season injury that prevented her from competing at the league championships. She is expected to be back at full strength to start the season and also will be counted on to help lead the Jackrabbits in the butterfly events this year.
Senior Samantha Frigard was a finalist in three races at last season's league championships, including both breaststroke events. She recorded seventh-place finishes in the 100 breaststroke and 100 IM, as well as an eighth-place effort in the 200 breast.
On the diving front, senior Abbi Rouse and junior Aleni Stoakes will look to build on breakthrough seasons in which each turned in a fifth-place performance at the league championships. Rouse placed fifth on 1-meter board and eighth in the 3-meter competition, while Stoakes notched a fifth-place score in the 3-meter finals.
SUMMIT PRESEASON POLL: The South Dakota State women's swimming and diving team is picked to finish second in the 2021-22 Summit League, according to preseason polls announced Tuesday.
The Jackrabbit women are coming off a second-place finish at last season's Summit League Championship and received one first-place vote in this year's survey among the league's six head coaches.
Defending champion Denver received the five other first-place votes to finish with 25 points. SDSU was second with 20 points, followed by South Dakota with 18 points. The remainder of the poll consisted of Omaha (13 points), newcomer St. Thomas (8 points) and Eastern Illinois (6 points).
In addition, SDSU had a pair of representatives on the list of Summit League Swimmers and Divers to Watch as Elisabeth Timmer and Kelsey Kocon were recognized.
Timmer, a junior from Savaneta, Aruba, was honored as the Summit League Women's Swimmer of the Week three times last season en route to earning all-league honors in the sprint freestyle events and four relays. She is the school record holder in the 50 freestyle and also is a member of the Jackrabbits' record-setting 200 freestyle relay.
Kocon, a sophomore from St. Michael, Minnesota, was a top performer in the backstroke events last season before being hampered by an injury.
The 2022 Summit League Swimming and Diving Championships are slated for Feb. 16-19 in West Fargo, North Dakota.
HENDRICKS TAKES ON NEW ROLE: Former Jackrabbit swimmer Cassie Hendricks has been promoted to assistant coach for the South Dakota State men's and women's swimming and diving teams.
A Brookings native, Hendricks served the past two seasons as a graduate assistant coach for the Jackrabbits. She also fills the role of the program's recruiting coordinator.
Hendricks earned all-Summit League honors in 2016 and recorded top-10 times during her Jackrabbit career in the 100 backstroke, 200 backstroke and 50 freestyle.
She also serves as the head coach of the Brookings Swim Club.
COACH HUMPHREY: Doug Humphrey begins his fifth season as head coach of the South Dakota State men's and women's swimming and diving teams.
Last season, the Jackrabbits recorded runner-up finishes at the Summit League Swimming and Diving Championships in both the men's and women's divisions, continuing an upward trend in the standings. SDSU had previously finished third in the men's race in each of Humphrey's previous seasons on deck with the Jackrabbits, along with a pair of third-place performances on the women's side.
Prior to SDSU, Humphrey served as the head women's swimming and diving coach at Northern Iowa for five seasons. His Panther squads showed steady progression in the Missouri Valley Conference, including posting back-to-back third-place finishes at the conference championship his final two seasons in Cedar Falls.
Humphrey served as the assistant swimming coach at the University of Nebraska from 2000-12 under Olympic gold medalist Pablo Morales. He swam for the Huskers from 1991-96 and later served as a graduate assistant coach at his alma mater.
A LOOK AHEAD: The Jackrabbits are slated to open the home portion of their schedule Oct. 8, hosting Augustana in dual action. Start time is 5 p.m. at the Stanley J. Marshall Center Pool, with the men's squad also in competition that day.
-GoJacks.com-
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