SAN DIEGO – San Diego State swim and dive student-athletes Summer Westmoreland, Moa Bergdahl Christiana Williams and Meredith Smithbaker were named to the CSC Academic All-District Team for their combined performance in the classroom and in the pool, as announced Tuesday by College Sports Communicators, formerly known as the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).
To be eligible for nomination to the 2024 CSC Academic All-District Division I Women's Swimming and Diving Team, candidates must have at least a sophomore standing and maintain a cumulative grade-point average of 3.50 or higher, combined with consistent contributions in the pool by participating in at least four of the institution's competitions OR placing in the top eight at a conference meet.
Additionally, each school is limited to four nominations to the 2024 CSC Academic All-District Division I Women's Swimming and Diving Team.
After careful consideration, Bergdahl, Smithbaker, Westmoreland and Williams have qualified for advancement to the CSC Academic All-America national ballot to be voted on by CSC members. First-, second- and third-team CSC Academic All-America honorees will be announced April 23, 2024.
All four Aztec competitors played a prominent role in helping San Diego State capture its third-straight Mountain West championship during the 2023-24 campaign and fifth in the last six seasons.
A native of Halstad, Sweden, Bergdahl earned four all-MW honors at the conference meet last February, winning gold medals in the 100 breaststroke and as a member of the Aztecs' victorious 400 medley relay team. She also took home a silver medal in the 200 breaststroke and a bronze in the 200 IM.
A sophomore majoring in sustainability at SDSU, Bergdahl has maintained a 3.93 cumulative GPA. Following the 2022-23 season, she landed on the MW all-academic team and received conference scholar-athlete recognition.
In addition, Smithbaker won five gold medals at the MW Championships in the 50 free, 100 free, 200 free relay, 200 medley relay and 400 medley relay. The Aztec junior set career-best times in the 100 free (48.54) and 50 free (22.24), which rank second and third on the school's all-time charts, respectively.
The Fort Collins, Colorado, native was named MW Swimmer of the Week on Nov. 21, 2023, after totaling 45 individual points at Texas A&M's highly competitive Art Adamson Invite, highlighted by a victory in the 50 free.
A two-time MW scholar-athlete and all-academic selection, Smithbaker is majoring in art/graphic design with cumulative 3.85 GPA.
A diver from Tucson, Arizona, Westmoreland garnered three all-MW accolades at the conference meet after placing sixth in both the 1-meter and platform competition to go with an eighth-place finish on the 3-meter springboard. The Aztec junior totaled a career-best 251.80 points from the platform height at the MW Championships, which ranks seventh in school history.
In all, Westmoreland posted 21 top-10 finals finishes during the season and competed at the NCAA Zone E Championships for the third year in a row.
A two-time MW scholar-athlete and all-academic honoree, Westmoreland has compiled a 3.96 GPA as a civil engineering major at SDSU.
Not to be outdone, Williams, who also hails from Tucson, qualified for the NCAA Championships in the 200 breaststroke after claiming a gold medal at the conference meet with a season-fast swim of 2:09.19.
The Aztec senior was also invited to compete in the 100 breast at the national championships on the strength of her NCAA "B" Cut times during the year, highlighted by a career-fast time of 59.91 vs. USD on Jan. 26, which ranks fourth in school history. For her efforts against the Toreros, she was named MW Swimmer of the Week.
Additionally, Williams secured a bronze medal at the conference meet in the 100 breast and received all-MW recognition in the 200 IM following a sixth-place finish.
Williams, who merited MW scholar-athlete plaudits and all-academic honors in 2023, has accumulated a 3.87 GPA as a public health major at San Diego State.
The CSC Academic All-America program separately recognizes swim and dive honorees in four divisions — NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III and NAIA.
For more information about the CSC Academic All-District and Academic All-America Teams program, visit AcademicAllAmerica.com.