SIOUX FALLS -- -- The University of Sioux Falls Women's Swimming Team, which opened the season by sweeping duals with Augustana, UMary and Northern State, will compete at the Midwest Shootout at the HK Pool in Omaha, Neb., at 10 am on Saturday, Oct. 12. The Cougars opened the season with five individual or relay performances ranked in the top eight in NCAA DII.

USF, which was picked to finish third in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) Coaches Preseason Poll, opened the season with a dominating performance in the pool. Directed by second-year head coach Chris Hamstra, USF was led by sophomore Ella Johnson who recorded the top performance in NCAA DII in the 200 fly (2:02) and ranked second in the 50 fly (26.31) while also winning the 100 fly (57.08) and ranking eighth nationally. Aside from her three individual wins, she also was part of four relay victories in the opening weekend on Oct. 4-5. She helped the 800 fly team to a clocking of 7:54.57, which ranks No. 1 in DII. The team included Johnson, Elizabeth Spaans, Giulia Marcon and Leah Eagleton. Junior Chantal Kasch clocked a 2:2274 in the 200 breast at the Quad Dual and is ranked No. 2 in the event in NCAA DII.

USF, which is in its fourth season, has finished third at the NSIC Championships two straight years and also has consecutive top 21 finishes at the NCAA DII Swimming and Diving Championships. The Cougars return five of its six national swimmers in Giulia Marcon, Johnson, Jenna Krahn, Elizabeth Spaans and Chantal Kasch.  This is USF's first year with a senior class, which will be led by Kyjana Webber, who competed at nationals two years ago, and Leah Eagleton, who had an NCAA B-Cut last year. USF also has a talented freshman class with seven newcomers aboard.
 
A year ago, the Cougars finished 5-2 in duals a year ago and rallied to finish third in the NSIC Championships for a second straight season. With the three dual wins this season, USF is 8-2 in duals over the past two years. Johnson was one of two Cougars to qualify for nationals a year ago. She set a school and conference record of 55:02 in 100 butterfly and also set a school mark in the 200 butterfly at the conference meet (1:59.83). She earned honorable mention All-American honors in the 200 butterfly and was part of USF's first-ever All-American relay team as the 400 medley was seventh. Returning from that All-American team is Johnson, Marcon and Kasch. At the league meet, USF broke four NSIC meet records, recorded seven NCAA 'B' cuts, one NCAA 'A' cut, set five school records and six swimmers posted personal-best results.  Also returning to this talented squad will be conference point earners Elizabeth Spaans, who set a school mark in the 200 IM while finishing third and competing in three relays at nationals, Jenna Krahn, Nina Groene, Evelyn VanDeMark, Sydnie Saddoris, Tori Bailey, Keelin O'Connor, Alex Sanchez Clark, Lauren Tabbert, Aleah Rohde, and Leah Eagleton.

Review – USF sweeps duals in Bismarck
Led by Ella Johnson, Elizabeth Spaans, Jenna Krahn and Chantal Kasch, USF opened the season with a dominating performance at the Quad Dual hosted by the University of Mary on Oct. 4-5. The Cougars, which is now 3-0 in dual competition, defeated U-Mary, 303-119; Northern State, 329-78 and Augustana, 267-141, after competition wrapped up on Saturday.

USF showed extraordinary depth which allowed the Cougars to build points throughout the course of the dual competition. The Cougars captured 18 wins over the two days of competition with 13 individual titles and five relay victories.


Johnson, who was named USF's Athlete to Watch in the preseason coaches poll, had a big opening meet with seven total victories which included individual wins in the 200 fly, 100 fly and 50 fly. She also was part of the 400 free, 400 medley, 200 medley and 800 free relays which picked up wins. Johnson, who earned All-American honors at the DII championships last spring, captured the 200 fly in 2:02.00 which was a NCAA "B" cut and the No. 1 time in Division II. She led a 1-2 effort in the 200 fly as freshman Valerie Childs was second in 2:13.20. In the 100 fly, Johnson captured the title in 57:08 as USF placed three in the top four in the race. Freshman Ursula Demarquet was third in 1:00.10 while freshman Valerie Childs was fourth in 1:00.12.  In the 50 fly, Johnson captured the title with a 26.31 clocking. Childs was fourth in 27.49.

Johnson swam the third leg of USF's winning 200 medley relay which finished in 1:47.89. Other team members on the 200 medley relay included Spaans, Kasch and Krahn.  Johnson was part of the winning 400 free relay in 3:37.21 which also included Krahn, Giulia Marcon and Demarquet.  USF's second place 400 free relay finished in 3:40.44 with a team of Spaans, Leah Eagleton, Tori Bailey and Evelyn VanDeMark. Johnson, Spaans, Kasch and Marcon won the title in the 400 medley relay in 3:57.11. USF also was second in the 400 medley relay with Julia Zanto, freshman Abby Ford, Demarquet and Krahn. In addition, Johnson was part of the 800 free relay, which finish in 7:54.57. Aside from Johnson, Spaans, Marcon and Leah Eagleton also swam on the winning squad. USF was also fourth in the 800 free relay with Nina Groene, freshman Makenzy Kennedy, Evelyn VanDeMark and Ford.

Krahn, who was part of five victories individually or as a member of a relay, helped lead USF to a win in the 200 free relay in 1:39.95. She was joined on the team by Marcon, Bailey and Eagleton. USF also had a second place squad with Spaans, Ford, Sydnie Saddoris and DeMarquet clocking a 1:40.98.
 
Krahn led a strong USF contingent in the 50 free by clocking a 24.65 to claim the title. In that race, Marcon was third in 25.01 while Demarquet was fourth in 25.02 with Eagleton, sixth, 25.50 and Bailey, eighth in 25.68.

Krahn also picked up a title in the 100 free in 54:06. In the race, USF dominated by taking the top four spots in the race. Demarquet was second in 54.08 while Marcon was third in 54.39 and Eagleton, fourth in 55.04.

Spaans wasn't only a standout in the relays, she won three individual titles and was part of six titles overall. She claimed the win in the 400 IM in 4:43.56 with Kennedy taking third in 4:46.04. Spaans won the 200 backstroke in 2:11.87 with Zanto taking third in 2:16.04.  And, Spaans won the 200 IM in 2:11.93 while Kennedy was second in 2:15.79 with Keelin O'Connor, third, in 2:17.61.

Kasch picked up three individual wins which included the 50 breast in 30.80. Ford was third in the same event in 31.69. Kasch also won the 200 breast in 2:22.74 while Ford was second in 2:30.74. And, she also won the 100 breast with a clocking of 1:05.02.

Also picking up wins for USF was Gigi Bario in the 50 back in 28.20. In that race, USF also had three others in the top six with Krahn, third, 28.43; Zanto, fourth, 28.81 and O'Connor, sixth, 29.18.

Julia Zanto won the 100 back in 1:01.94 and Childs finished fourth at 1:03.25. Also for USF, Marcon was second in the 500 free in 5:19.29 with Kennedy, fourth at 5:21.96. Marcon took third in the 200 free. USF had a second place finish from Nina Groene in the 1,650 free in 18:14.92 with Alex Sanchez-Clark, fifth, in 18:29.65. MaKenzy Kennedy also took third in the 1,000 free in 10.57.55 with Sanchez Clark, fifth in 11:06.81.

Next for USF Swimming will be competing at the Midwest Shootout on Oct. 12 in Omaha, Neb.