JACKS PREPARE FOR SUMMIT CHAMPIONSHIPS

Thursday, February 23

Minneapolis, Minn.

10 a.m./5:30 p.m.

South Dakota State University

Summit League Championships

Men's and Women's Swimming Teaser, 11-16-2022

2/21/2023 5:55:00 PM | Men's Swimming and Diving, Women's Swimming and Diving

SWIMMING & DIVING MEET: South Dakota State at Summit League Championships

When	Wednesday-Saturday, Feb.22-25 Event Schedule \| Order Tickets CHAMPIONSHIP HOME PAGE
Where	Jean K. Freeman Aquatic Center \| Minneapolis, Minnesota
Live Video	TheSummitLeague.org (subscription required)
Live Results	Meet Mobile Women's Season Performance List \| Men's Season Performance List
Meet Notes	See Below \| The Summit League
Social Media	Twitter \| Instagram

MINNEAPOLIS — The South Dakota State swimming and diving teams begin postseason competition this week by vying for conference titles at the Summit League Swimming and Diving Championships.

The four-day meet is scheduled to begin at 12:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Jean K. Freeman Aquatic Center located on the University of Minnesota campus and runs through Saturday. Evening sessions begin at 5:30 p.m. each night, with preliminary sessions starting at 10 a.m. Thursday through Saturday.

This year's championships will feature eight teams in both the men's and women's divisions following the additions of Lindenwood and Southern Indiana as affiliate members

Denver is the defending champion in both the men's and women's divisions. The Jackrabbit men recorded a third-place finish at the 2022 Summit League Championships, while SDSU placed fourth out of six teams in the women's division.

HIGH MARKS: Heading into the Summit League Championships, six Jackrabbits hold top-five individual times or marks in various events.

Senior Elisabeth Timmer holds four different top-five marks between the freestyle events and 100 individual medley on the women's side, while Rafael Negri leads the men's squad with three top-five marks in the freestyle and backstroke events.

Men

Eric Anderson – 50 freestyle, third, :19.83;
Aiden Carstensen – 100 backstroke, third, :48.86; 200 backstroke, 1:47.77;
Rafael Negri – 50 freestyle, fourth, :20.11; 100 freestyle, fifth, :44.57; 100 backstroke, second, :48.20;
Austin Smith – 100 individual medley, fourth, :50.53

Women

Marissa Branham – 100 individual medley, fifth, :58.42;
Elisabeth Timmer – 50 freestyle, fourth, :22.77; 100 freestyle, fourth, :50.63; 200 freestyle, fourth, 1:50.85; 100 individual medley, second, :57.49

ALL-LEAGUE PERFORMERS RETURN: A total of 20 Jackrabbit swimmers and divers — 14 men and six women — have previously earned all-Summit League honors based on top-three performances either individually or as a member of a relay team.

Men

Eric Anderson — 200 freestyle relay, 800 freestyle relay (2022);
Marcus Benson — 100 backstroke, 200 backstroke (2021);
Zach Boyd — 1-meter diving (2020); 1-meter diving, 3-meter diving (2022);
Spencer Fritze — 3-meter diving (2022);
Sam Johnson — 200 freestyle, 800 freestyle relay (2022);
Alex Kraft — 800 freestyle relay (2020); 800 freestyle relay (2021); 800 freestyle relay (2022)
Rafael Negri — 200 freestyle relay (2022)
Charles Sieglaff — 200 medley relay (2021); 200 freestyle relay (2022)
Austin Smith — 100 individual medley, 800 freestyle relay (2022)
Reece Stikeleather — 800 freestyle relay (2020)
Damon Venner — 400 medley relay, 800 freestyle relay (2020); 200 butterfly (2022);
Justin Wallar — 800 freestyle relay (2021); 200 freestyle relay (2022)
Gavin Wheeler — 100 individual medley, 400 medley relay (2020); 100 IM, 100 breaststroke, 200 medley relay (2021)
Max White — 200 butterfly (2021)

Women

Emma Bachelder — 200 freestyle relay, 400 freestyle relay, 800 freestyle relay (2021); 200 freestyle relay (2022)
Sianne Downes — 100 backstroke (2021); 100 backstroke, 200 backstroke (2022)
Katie Drezen — 50 freestyle, 200 freestyle relay, 400 freestyle relay (2020); 200 freestyle relay (2021); 200 freestyle relay (2022)
Elisabeth Timmer – 200 freestyle relay, 400 freestyle relay, 800 freestyle relay (2020); 50 freestyle, 100 freestyle, 200 freestyle relay, 400 freestyle relay, 800 freestyle relay, 400 medley relay (2021); 50 freestyle, 200 freestyle relay (2022)
Emma Walz – 200 medley relay, 400 medley relay (2021)
Grace Witherspoon — 200 freestyle relay (2020); 200 freestyle relay, 200 medley relay 400 freestyle relay (2021); 200 freestyle relay (2022)

Three of the returning all-league performers also are previous Summit League individual champions. Boyd has claimed three league titles in diving, winning back-to-back 1-meter titles in 2020 and 2021 and adding a 3-meter title in 2021, when he was honored as the Summit League Men's Diver of the Year and Diving Championship MVP.

White swam his way to an individual title in the men's 200-yard butterfly at the 2021 league championships, while Downes won the women's 100 backstroke title in 2021.

SCHOOL RECORDS FALL: South Dakota State swimmers combined to break five school records during competition at the Augustana Invitational Nov. 17-19 at the Midco Aquatic Center in Sioux Falls.

Three of the records fell on the men's side, with Eric Anderson the first to establish a new Jackrabbit standard by clocking a time of 19.83 seconds in the 50-yard freestyle. Anderson's time eclipsed the previous mark of 19.99 seconds set by Ben Bolinske in 2016.

Another Jackrabbit record set in 2016 fell on Day 2 of the Augustana Invitational as sophomore Rafael Negri posted a 100 backstroke time of 48.20 seconds in preliminary competition, bettering the mark of 49.62 seconds clocked by Dan Jacobson. Negri also moved into third place on the 50 freestyle list with a time of 20.22 seconds in the event final, while junior Liam Murray took over the sixth spot in program history at 20.57 seconds.

The final SDSU record to be rewritten was in the 200 backstroke as freshman Aiden Carstensen turned in a winning time of 1 minute, 47.77 seconds in the event finals. The previous mark of 1:49.13 was set by Jared Miller in 2018.

On the women's side, Elisabeth Timmer broke her own SDSU record in the 50 freestyle with a time of 22.77 seconds in the preliminary round. Timmer also teamed with Emma Bachelder, Katie Pattee and Grace Witherspoon for a Jackrabbit-record time of 1:33.29 in the 200 freestyle relay, bettering the same foursome's previous record by .42 seconds from the previous season.

A sixth school record was set in the Jackrabbits' final tune-up before the league championships, when Austin Smith lowered his own standard in the 100 individual medley at the Coyote Invitational Feb. 4. His winning mark of 50.53 seconds shaved .36 seconds off his previous standard set last March at the CSCAA National Invitational Championship.

DOWNES SETS POOL RECORD: Jackrabbit junior Sianne Downes set a Stanley J. Marshall Center women's pool record in the 100-yard backstroke during competition Oct. 15 in a triangular against Northern State and Iowa Central.

A native of Edenvale, South Africa, Downes clocked a winning time of 57.51 seconds. The previous mark of 57.96 seconds was set by Nan Liu of Iowa State in 2009.

FRITZE QUALIFIES FOR ZONES: South Dakota State senior Spencer Fritze opened the calendar year by notching a qualifying mark to earn a trip to the NCAA Zones diving competition next month. A senior from Park Rapids, Minnesota, Fritze tallied a winning score of 308.55 over six dives in a Jan. 13 home dual against St. Cloud State.

The Zone D meet in which Fritze is slated to compete is scheduled for March 7-9 at the Jean K. Freeman Aquatic Center in Minneapolis.

PEAK PERFORMERS OF THE WEEK: South Dakota State's Austin Smith and Elisabeth Timmer were honored Feb. 7 as Summit League Peak Swimmers of the Week after a successful weekend in the pool at the Coyote Invitational in Sioux Falls.

A sophomore from The Woodlands, Texas, Smith claimed his first career weekly league award after winning the 100-yard individual medley in a school-record time and adding a pair of third-place finishes at the two-day meet. He clocked a winning time of 50.53 seconds to lower his own SDSU record in the 100 IM by .36 seconds, while recording third-place efforts in the 100 breaststroke (:56.53) and 500 freestyle (4:44.47). Smith also led off the Jackrabbits' 400 freestyle relay, which closed the meet by winning the event in a time of 3:05.90.

Timmer, meanwhile, garnered the 10^th Swimmer of the Week award of her career after winning three events at the Coyote Invitational. A senior from Savaneta, Aruba, swam to victories in both the 200 individual medley (2:05.46) and 50 freestyle (:23.31) on the opening day, with her winning time in the 200 IM more than five seconds faster than her nearest competitor. The second day of action saw Timmer win the 100 IM (57.80) and place second in the 100 breaststroke (1:07.13).

In all, Jackrabbits swimmers and divers combined for eight Peak Performer awards during the 2022-23 season:

Spencer Fritze – Oct. 18, Nov. 1, Nov. 9
Austin Smith – Feb. 7
Aleni Stoakes – Nov. 15
Elisabeth Timmer – Oct. 18, Jan. 17, Feb. 7

MAKING THE GRADE: Both the Jackrabbit squads were honored earlier this month as Scholar All-America teams by the College Swimming and Diving Coaches Association of America for posting team grade-point averages above 3.0 during the recently completed fall semester.

SDSU's men's team recorded a 3.24 team GPA, with the women's squad posting a 3.19 team GPA.

UP NEXT: A number of Jackrabbits are expected to compete at the National Invitational Championships March 10-12 in Elkhart, Indiana. The three-day meet will be held at the Beacon Health Aquatic Center.

-GoJacks.com-