Season Preview: 2022-23 Women's Swimming & Diving
WASHINGTON, Pa. – The Washington & Jefferson College women's swimming team is preparing for the 2022-23 season under fifth-year head coach
Matt Rochna.
2021-22 Season Review: The Presidents were 5-4 in their first full season since the pandemic as they finished their season above .500. W&J registered a 3-3 record in Presidents' Athletic Conference dual meets.
Their best win of the season came against Chatham, after posting a narrow victory 155-137.
Taylor Newton (Olyphant, Pa. / Scranton Prep),
Amanda Graves (Irwin, Pa. / Penn Trafford), and
Taylor Weyrich (McMurray, Pa. / Seton LaSalle) led the way for the Presidents as they each posted multiple top finishes in a key victory over the conference opponent.
A quartet of Washington & Jefferson College women's swimming & diving team members earned All-Presidents' Athletic Conference honors.
Amanda Graves and
Sydney Neumann (Long Beach, Calif./Millikan) earned All-PAC Second Team honors. Graves secured her second straight All-PAC accolade after recording several top five performances at the PAC Championships.
Kimber Randolph (Greensburg, Pa./Hempfield) also gained All-PAC status for a second consecutive season. Randolph secured Honorable Mention recognition after finishing up her career in the Red and Black.
Alexis Griner (Valrico, Fla./Bloomingdale) represented W&J on the PAC Sportsmanship Team.
2022-23 PAC Women's Swimming and Diving Preseason Coaches' Poll
(Predicted order of Championships finish) |
|
| School (first-place votes) |
Points |
2021-22 Championships finish |
| 1. Grove City College (6) |
76 |
1st (of 7) at PAC Championships, 1048 pts. |
| 2. Saint Vincent College (1) |
69 |
2nd (of 7) at PAC Championships, 765.50 pts. |
| 3. Allegheny College (1) |
66 |
7th (of 9) at NCAC Championships, 616 pts. |
| 4. Westminster College |
61 |
3rd (of 7), at PAC Championships, 659 pts. |
| 5. Chatham University |
51 |
4th (of 7) at PAC Championships, 369 pts. |
| 6. Washington & Jefferson College |
48 |
5th (of 7) at PAC Championships, 330 pts. |
| 7. Franciscan University |
41 |
6th (of 7) at PAC Championships, 272.50 pts. |
| 8. Bethany College |
36 |
7th (of 7) at PAC Championships, 7 pts. |
2022-23 PAC Women's Swimmers and Divers To Watch: Amanda Graves,
Molly Nielsen,
Sydney Neumann, and
Taylor Newton
Key Returners: The 2021-22 roster will include 10 returners, with six of those being upperclassmen and will add an incoming class of six.The Presidents lost
Kimber Randolph to graduation this past season and will need to find depth to replace what she was able to produce this past season after she acquired All-PAC second team honors.
"Our staff is excited for the new season and the endless possibilities it brings. The ladies are striving to keep their high cumulative team GPA, while also training hard at the pool and in the weight room," stated Rochna. "Our returning team members have successfully integrated our six first years into our team culture and everyone is on the same page with the goals for the year."
Returning junior
Amanda Graves looks to kickoff this season in a new role for the Presidents as the team's team captain. Graves has been a pivotal piece to this program since her freshman year, posting an All-PAC second team honor in her first two seasons. Graves' respective finishes at PACs: 100 fly (5th), 200 back (5th), 100 back (8th), 200 medley relay (4th), 400 medley relay (4th), 200 free relay (5th), 400 free relay (5th).
"
Amanda Graves has always been someone who has displayed leadership qualities within our program from the moment she joined our team. She has always had a heart beat on our team and has positively impacted our team her first two seasons," said Rochna. "Being elected captain by her teammates this season just solidifies the mark she is making on our program during her time at W&J. She is a strong leader and we are excited to see where that help leads our ladies this year."
Graves' classmate,
Molly Nielsen (Erie, Pa. / Harbor Creek), is coming off of a season hampered by injury which led to her not being able to participate in PAC's and a good chunk of the season. In her first year, Nielsen managed to establish herself early on as she was recognized by the PAC on their All-PAC Second Team after an impressive freshman season. Nielsen looks to have a bounce back season this coming year as she looks to maintain her position atop the Presidents youthful squad.
"Molly is very dedicated and passionate about swimming. Her work ethic and commitment to our program speak volumes about her personal character. She is ready to bounce back this season after experiencing setbacks sophomore year," stated Rochna. "Molly is healthy and ready to get back to her success at the PAC Championship meet."
Sophomore
Sydney Neumann (Long Beach, Calif. / Millikan) returns to the Presidents swimming & diving unit as one of their top options in the breaststroke and individual medley races. Neumann stepped up big for the Presidents last season after some crucial injuries help down the overall potential of the unit. Neumann used a strong showing in her first-ever PAC Championships to pick up Second Team laurels. Neumann's respective finishes at PACs: 200 breast (5th), 100 breast (6th), 50 free (14th), 200 medley relay (4th), 400 medley relay (4th), 200 free relay (5th), 400 free relay (5th). Neumann is studying abroad this fall and will rejoin the squad for the spring semester.
Taylor Newton and
Morgan McGuire (Friedens, Pa. / Somerset) both look to return for their sophomore seasons after posting impressive starts to their collegiate careers. All three sophomores stepped up in key areas last season when other top swimmers went down which aided in a hard-fought run at PAC Championships.
"We are not only looking for our sophomores to continue to lead by example within our program, but we will see them become more vocal within the team as they take that next step forward within their journey," said Rochna.
Junior
Alexis Griner is the longest tenured diver on the team. Last season, Griner represented W&J on the PAC Sportsmanship Team. She will be accompanied by freshman
Madison Trunzo as a fellow diver this coming season to round out the diving room for W&J in the 2022-23 season.
Newcomers: The women's swimming and diving team welcomes five new recruits to Henry Natatorium for 2022-23.
Maleiah Colby (Manor, Pa. / Penn-Trafford) - Breaststroke/Butterfly
Alycia Kerrigan-Mize (Oak Park, Calif. / Newbury Park) - Freestyle/Butterfly
Audrey Kough (Fayetteville, Pa. / Chambersburg) - Freestyle/Backstroke
Emma Truby (Waldorf, Md. / Thomas Stone) - Butterfly/I.M.
Madison Trunzo (Elizabethtown, Pa. / Cedar Cliff) - Diver
"We expect our newcomers to continue integrating themselves into our program and college athletics. Coach Josh has already done a great job of working with and integrating Madi Trunzo to our current diving team," said Rochna. "Our staff always take the time to analyze our first years technique to make sure we build a good base for the rest of their time at W&J. They have all worked really hard this year and we talked about everything we want to achieve this season in our goal meetings. We are confident our first years will drop time and time and earn top personal diving scores."
Team Captain:
Amanda Graves
Coaching Staff: Matt Rochna (St. Bonaventure, '15) looks to kick off his fifth season as the head men's and women's swimming and diving coach at Washington & Jefferson College in 2022-23. A total of 10 Presidents (Six men, four women) earned All-PAC honors in 2021-22. Rochna led the W&J men's team to a third place finish at the PAC Championships, its best finish since the 2015-16 season.
In his second season, Rochna had three men's swimmers collect All-PAC applause.
Colin Higinbotham,
Andrew Ivory and
Dean Kralic all made multiple trips to the "A" finals at the 2019-20 PAC Championships and were each rewarded with All-PAC Second Team recognition.
Jackson Bangert joined the W&J staff as its Intern Assistant Swimming & Diving Coach for the 2021-22 academic year. He helped assist head coach
Matt Rochna in leading the W&J men's team to a third place finish at the PAC Championships, its best finish since the 2015-16 season.Bangert was a four-year member and highly accomplished swimmer at Edinboro University, a member of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) in NCAA Division II. The Akron, Ohio native holds the school record at Edinboro University in the 100 yard butterfly with a time of 50.21.
Josh Vasko '17 joined W&J in August of 2021 and currently serves as the Interim Diving Coach for the W&J swimming & diving program and will return this season. Vasko earned PAC Women's Diving Coach of the Year honors in 2022. He coached PAC Women's Diver of the Year,
Taylor Weyrich, during the 2021-22 season. Weyrich claimed both the 1-Meter and 3-Meter diving titles at the 2022 PAC Championships.
Looking at the Schedule: W&J will swim at 12 meets before they travel to Grove City for the PAC Championships that will be held Feb. 15-18.
The swimming & diving team will open their PAC schedule on Oct. 21 on the road against Allegheny College. W&J will then travel to Bethany (Oct. 22), Westminster (Oct. 29), and Indiana, Pa. to face both Chatham and IUP (Nov. 5).
Last Word: "Our coaching staff, captains, and everyone involved in our program outlined how we vision ourselves achieving our goals and success this year. We have a strong training program in place, hard working student-athletes, and individuals who want to be here and complete," said Rochna. "We talked at our beginning of the season team meeting about continuing to be where are feet are and enjoy the process."
