Feb. 17, 2003
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This Week
San Diego State swimming will travel to Oklahoma City, Okla., this week to participate in the annual Mountain West Conference Swimming and Diving Championships. The meet gets underway on Wednesday, Feb. 19, with the one-meter diving followed by the 200 medley relay and 800 freestyle relay. Action concludes on Saturday with the 400 free relay.
In the Past
This will be the fourth championship meet for the MWC, which began operating as a conference during the 1999-2000 season. San Diego State finished sixth in its first two appearances at the league championships and was seventh last year. <> Coaching Staff
San Diego State head coach Deena Schmidt is in her ninth season as head coach of the Aztec swimming and diving program. The former Olympian, who won a gold as a member of the 400 medley relay team at the 1972 Olympics, is a 1988 graduate of San Diego State. Schmidt is assisted by Greg Hutt, also in his ninth season, and first-year diving coach Jim Wynne.
Strong Finish
San Diego State concluded its season with a pair of dual meet victories and finished its 2002-03 campaign with four consecutive wins. In its year- ending meets, SDSU defeated Cal Poly SLO and Fresno State, both on the road. With those victories, the Aztecs ended their season with a 6-8 dual meet record.
At Cal Poly, the Aztecs took first in all but three eventsto win by a score of 158-81. For the Aztecs, Emily Schmied and Melissa Webb each turned in a pair of wins. Webb turned in a time of 1:55.73 in the 200 freestyle and took first in the 500 freestyle with a time of 5:07.79. Schmied placed first in the 100 butterfly (59.24) and also in the 200 individual medley with a time of 2:10.27.
At Fresno State, Hannah Ryan started an Aztec comeback with a win in the 500 free. SDSU then swept the top three spots in the 100 fly as Schmied led the event with a time of 58.78. Erin Kilpatrick took first in the 400 IM with a time of 4:33.94 and the Aztecs closed out the meet by winning the 400 free relay in 3:35.94. Schmied and Jill Karacozoff led the Aztecs with two individual first place finishes. Overall, SDSU recorded 28 top-three finishes for the meet, registering a 160-138 victory over the Bulldogs.
Schmied Honored
Freshman Emily Schmied was named the Mountain West Conference Swimmer of the Week after SDSU's final weekend of dual meet competition earlier this month. In each of the team's meets at Cal Poly and Fresno State, she won two individual events and was a member of a first-place relay team. Her individual wins came in the 100 fly and 200 individual medley at Cal Poly as well as the 100 and 200 fly at Fresno. She also swam on the winning 200 medley and 400 free relay squads at those meets respectively.
Kilpatrick Among Team Leaders
Senior Erin Kilpatrick will look to continue her success at the MWC Championships where she was the lone Aztec to earn all-conference recognition last year after placing third in both the 200 fly and 400 individual medley. This season she has recorded times that rank among SDSU's top three (for 2002-03) in seven events, including the team's best times in the 500 free, 100 back, 200 fly and 400 IM. She is also a member of three Aztec relay quartets (800 free, 200 and 400 medleys) that have turned in team-best marks this season.
Karacozoff Leads Her Event
Third-year Aztec Jill Karacozoff could be ready to make her move at this week's meet. A specialist in the breaststroke, she improved her times steadily over the final four weeks of the dual meet season. Karacozoff has the team's top times in both the 100 (1:05.73) and 200 (2:22.42) breast this season. Her time in the 100 breast is the second fastest ever for an Aztec swimmer.
Schmied Leads The Youngsters
Freshman Emily Schmied has proven to be another of SDSU's most versatile performers this season. One of eight freshmen on the Aztec roster this year, she holds the team's top times in both the 100 butterfly and 200 individual medley. She also ranks among the top three in the 100 backstroke and 200 butterfly as well. Schmied is a member of five relay teams (200, 400, 800 free plus 200, 400 medley) that have recorded team-best times this season.
Breaking Into The Record Book
Junior Hannah Ryan became the latest Aztec swimmer to enter the all-time SDSU records list when she went 10:27.86 in the 1,000 freestyle at Cal Poly on Jan. 31. It was the third-fastest time ever recorded by an Aztec swimmer in that event. This season, SDSU swimmers have recorded marks in nine events that rank among the top-five all-time performances in school history. In addition to Ryan, Erin Kilpatrick, Emily Schmied, Jill Karacozoff and Melissa Webb all have times in various events that rank in the SDSU top fives. In addition, the foursome of Schmied, Webb, Ryan and Kilpatrick has recorded the school's third-best ever time in the 800 free relay while freshman Lindsey Minnich has turned in the fourth-best mark in the three-meter diving.
Here's The Storey
One of SDSU's primary threats at this week's MWC meet will be junior Megan Storey in the distance freestyle events. She has recorded the top mark in the MWC in the 1,650 freestyle this season at 17:10.57. Her time of 10:15.67 in the 1,000 free ranks fourth in the conference while her 500 free mark of 5:03.65 is ninth best among league swimmers this season.
Championship Results
SDSU's results from this week's meet may be found daily at www.goaztecs.com. Complete meet results will be avavilable on the Mountain West Conference web site (www.themwc.com) at the conclusion of each day's competition.