University of Minnesota Athletics
Women's Swimming and Diving Head to NCAA Championships
3/16/2004 12:00:00 AM | Women's Swimming & Diving
The University of Minnesota heads to the 2004 NCAA Women's Swimming and Diving Championships, March 18-20, hosted by Texas A & M in College Station, Texas. The Golden Gophers enter the championships as the 25th-ranked team. Minnesota is one of five Big Ten teams ranked in the CSCAA poll.
Golden Gophers Send Seven to Nationals
Minnesota will have seven members represent the Maroon and Gold at the NCAA Championships. Along with individual events, the Gophers look to compete in the 200 and 400 free relays as well as the 200 and 400 medley relays.
Sarah Bohlsen will compete in the 100-meter fly, while Katy Coombe will participate in both the 50 and 100 free. Kate Hardt qualified in middle distance free events, while Melissa Schold will compete in the 100 and 200 breaststroke events. For the second year in a row, Juleen Rodakowski will compete in the 100 and 200 fly events and the 200 individual medley. The 2004 season marks the first year of NCAA Championship competition for Bohlsen, Coombe, Hardt and Schold and diver Abbie Bowden.
Junior diver Rebecca Cornthwaite makes her third trek to the NCAA Championships, while Bowden will compete in the NCAA's 1- and 3-meter events for the first time in her career.
ESPN2 Airing NCAA Championships
ESPN2 will air the 2004 NCAA Division I Women's Swimming and Diving Championships on Thursday, March 25 at 2:30 p.m. (EST).
All-America Honors
All-America honors will be announced following the finals of every event. All swimmers in the `A' final will earn first-team All-America honors. Participants making the `B' final, also known as the consolation final, will earn All-America honorable mention certificates. The Golden Gophers had one first-team All-American last year and two All-American honorable mentions out of four competitors.
NCAA Championships Last Year
Minnesota completed the 2002-03 season with a top-25 finish at the NCAA Championships last year. The Golden Gophers scored 29 points from four members. Auburn won its second-straight title with 536 points. The Gophers finished higher then the Big Ten's Purdue (No. 25), Notre Dame (No. 17) and Florida State (No. 24). The Maroon and Gold were not ranked coming into the championships.
Keri Hehn gained her second first-team All-America honors in the 200-yard breaststroke in her three-year tenure with the Gophers. She finished eighth in the event with a time of 2:14.27. Dana Baum and Rebecca Cornthwaite earned All-America honorable mention honors. Baum finished ninth in the 200-yard freestyle, while Cornthwaite added a ninth-place finish in the platform.
Juleen Rodakowski competed in her first NCAA Championships last year. Rodakowski participated in the 100 and 200-yard butterfly and the 200-yard individual medley.
Head Coach Freeman To Retire
After 31 years of service, the only head women's swimming coach the University of Minnesota has ever had, Jean Freeman, will retire from coaching at the conclusion of the 2003-04 season.
Minnesota teams have placed at the NCAA Championships in each of the last 17 years. Minnesota earned top-20 national finishes at the NCAA Championships during seven seasons, highlighted by a 10th-place showing in 1992. Freeman has coached 58 swimmers to All-America status 203 times. More than 100 swimmers have garnered All-Big Ten honors during Freeman's reign, during which time the Gophers have posted winning records in 20 consecutive seasons. With Minnesota's first-ever Big Ten championship in 1999, Freeman earned her fourth Big Ten Coach of the Year Award.
Athletics director Joel Maturi has asked Freeman to stay on staff at the University of Minnesota as special assistant to the athletics director. A national search will be conducted following the 2003-04 campaign. Nieszner has been named the interim head coach, effective immediately.
Minnesota Places Fifth at Big Tens
The Golden Gophers took fifth place in the Big Ten Championships, hosted at Minnesota's University Aquatic Center. With a score of 412.50, it was the team's best finish in four years. In addition, junior Katy Coombe earned second-team All-Big Ten honors. She captured a second place finish in the 50 free with a B-cut time of 23.08. The 200 free relay team of Jennifer Hasling, Sara Vine, Coombe, and Sarah Perrott added a fifth place finish with a time of 1:32.01. The mark set a new school record for the Gophers breaking the previous record set in 1999.
Juleen Rodakowski earned a fifth place finish in the 200 butterfly, clocking a B-cut time of 2:00.36 and a seventh-place showing in the 100 fly (55.61). In the 200 breaststroke, senior Melissa Schold won her heat of the consolation finals in a time of 2:17.57 and placed fourth overall in the 100 breaststroke. Kate Hardt captured a fifth place finish in a B-cut time of 1:48.42. Sarah Bohlsen captured a lifetime best time finished sixth in the 100 butterfly with a B-cut time of 55.35.
Bowden and Cornthwaite Qualify for NCAA's
Abbie Bowden and Rebecca Cornthwaite finished the NCAA Diving Zones, both qualifying for the NCAA Championships this weekend. Bowden finished fifth in the 1-meter, while Rebecca Cornthwaite earned ninth place (246.40). Cornthwaite earned third in the 3-meter event with a score of 476.35, while Bowden captured a score of 431.35 to take 12th place. Cornthwaite also competed in the platform, placing ninth overall. s
The Australian Connection
Mike Martens started his tenure as the Minnesota men's and women's diving coach this season. Prior to his arrival at Minnesota, Martens coached at the South Australian Sports Institute. Martens coached current Gopher diver Rebecca Cornthwaite while she was there and introduced to the idea of her becoming a Golden Gopher.
Golden Gophers and the State of Minnesota
The Golden Gophers have 19 of their 39 swimmers from the state of Minnesota. Of the 19, a majority of the swimmers live near or within an hour of the Twin Cities metro area. The Gophers' second-highest state ratio is Wisconsin with four.
Nevada Connection
Sophomore freestyler Kate Hardt is the sister-in-law to former swimmer and current student assistant coach Dana (Baum) Hardt. Both are Carson City, Nevada, natives. Hardt's sister, Julie, is a member of the Georgia swim team. The duo raced against each other at the Georgia Invitational earlier this season. Golden Gophers Head to NCAA Championships
The University of Minnesota heads to the 2004 NCAA Women's Swimming and Diving Championships, March 18-20, hosted by Texas A & M in College Station, Texas. The Golden Gophers enter the championships as the 25th-ranked team. Minnesota is one of five Big Ten teams ranked in the CSCAA poll.
Golden Gophers Send Seven to Nationals
Minnesota will have seven members represent the Maroon and Gold at the NCAA Championships. Along with individual events, the Gophers look to compete in the 200 and 400 free relays as well as the 200 and 400 medley relays.
Sarah Bohlsen will compete in the 100-meter fly, while Katy Coombe will participate in both the 50 and 100 free. Kate Hardt qualified in middle distance free events, while Melissa Schold will compete in the 100 and 200 breaststroke events. For the second year in a row, Juleen Rodakowski will compete in the 100 and 200 fly events and the 200 individual medley. The 2004 season marks the first year of NCAA Championship competition for Bohlsen, Coombe, Hardt and Schold and diver Abbie Bowden.
Junior diver Rebecca Cornthwaite makes her third trek to the NCAA Championships, while Bowden will compete in the NCAA's 1- and 3-meter events for the first time in her career.
ESPN2 Airing NCAA Championships
ESPN2 will air the 2004 NCAA Division I Women's Swimming and Diving Championships on Thursday, March 25 at 2:30 p.m. (EST).
All-America Honors
All-America honors will be announced following the finals of every event. All swimmers in the `A' final will earn first-team All-America honors. Participants making the `B' final, also known as the consolation final, will earn All-America honorable mention certificates. The Golden Gophers had one first-team All-American last year and two All-American honorable mentions out of four competitors.
NCAA Championships Last Year
Minnesota completed the 2002-03 season with a top-25 finish at the NCAA Championships last year. The Golden Gophers scored 29 points from four members. Auburn won its second-straight title with 536 points. The Gophers finished higher then the Big Ten's Purdue (No. 25), Notre Dame (No. 17) and Florida State (No. 24). The Maroon and Gold were not ranked coming into the championships.
Keri Hehn gained her second first-team All-America honors in the 200-yard breaststroke in her three-year tenure with the Gophers. She finished eighth in the event with a time of 2:14.27. Dana Baum and Rebecca Cornthwaite earned All-America honorable mention honors. Baum finished ninth in the 200-yard freestyle, while Cornthwaite added a ninth-place finish in the platform.
Juleen Rodakowski competed in her first NCAA Championships last year. Rodakowski participated in the 100 and 200-yard butterfly and the 200-yard individual medley.
Head Coach Freeman To Retire
After 31 years of service, the only head women's swimming coach the University of Minnesota has ever had, Jean Freeman, will retire from coaching at the conclusion of the 2003-04 season.
Minnesota teams have placed at the NCAA Championships in each of the last 17 years. Minnesota earned top-20 national finishes at the NCAA Championships during seven seasons, highlighted by a 10th-place showing in 1992. Freeman has coached 58 swimmers to All-America status 203 times. More than 100 swimmers have garnered All-Big Ten honors during Freeman's reign, during which time the Gophers have posted winning records in 20 consecutive seasons. With Minnesota's first-ever Big Ten championship in 1999, Freeman earned her fourth Big Ten Coach of the Year Award.
Athletics director Joel Maturi has asked Freeman to stay on staff at the University of Minnesota as special assistant to the athletics director. A national search will be conducted following the 2003-04 campaign. Nieszner has been named the interim head coach, effective immediately.
Minnesota Places Fifth at Big Tens
The Golden Gophers took fifth place in the Big Ten Championships, hosted at Minnesota's University Aquatic Center. With a score of 412.50, it was the team's best finish in four years. In addition, junior Katy Coombe earned second-team All-Big Ten honors. She captured a second place finish in the 50 free with a B-cut time of 23.08. The 200 free relay team of Jennifer Hasling, Sara Vine, Coombe, and Sarah Perrott added a fifth place finish with a time of 1:32.01. The mark set a new school record for the Gophers breaking the previous record set in 1999.
Juleen Rodakowski earned a fifth place finish in the 200 butterfly, clocking a B-cut time of 2:00.36 and a seventh-place showing in the 100 fly (55.61). In the 200 breaststroke, senior Melissa Schold won her heat of the consolation finals in a time of 2:17.57 and placed fourth overall in the 100 breaststroke. Kate Hardt captured a fifth place finish in a B-cut time of 1:48.42. Sarah Bohlsen captured a lifetime best time finished sixth in the 100 butterfly with a B-cut time of 55.35.
Bowden and Cornthwaite Qualify for NCAA's
Abbie Bowden and Rebecca Cornthwaite finished the NCAA Diving Zones, both qualifying for the NCAA Championships this weekend. Bowden finished fifth in the 1-meter, while Rebecca Cornthwaite earned ninth place (246.40). Cornthwaite earned third in the 3-meter event with a score of 476.35, while Bowden captured a score of 431.35 to take 12th place. Cornthwaite also competed in the platform, placing ninth overall. s
The Australian Connection
Mike Martens started his tenure as the Minnesota men's and women's diving coach this season. Prior to his arrival at Minnesota, Martens coached at the South Australian Sports Institute. Martens coached current Gopher diver Rebecca Cornthwaite while she was there and introduced to the idea of her becoming a Golden Gopher.
Golden Gophers and the State of Minnesota
The Golden Gophers have 19 of their 39 swimmers from the state of Minnesota. Of the 19, a majority of the swimmers live near or within an hour of the Twin Cities metro area. The Gophers' second-highest state ratio is Wisconsin with four.
Nevada Connection
Sophomore freestyler Kate Hardt is the sister-in-law to former swimmer and current student assistant coach Dana (Baum) Hardt. Both are Carson City, Nevada, natives. Hardt's sister, Julie, is a member of the Georgia swim team. The duo raced against each other at the Georgia Invitational earlier this season.
Players Mentioned
