Gearing named Women’s Swimming SAC Coach of the Year, Martin repeats as Elite 23 winner
Greensboro, N.C. —- The 15th-ranked Catawba College women's swimming team completed their action at the South Atlantic Conference Championships at the Greensboro Aquatic Center on Saturday night with three more conference individual titles, as the Catawba Indians finished second for the first time in program history.
Additionally, head coach Matthew Gearing was named SAC Women's Coach of the Year and Lillie Martin repeated as the sport's Elite 23 award winner.
HOW IT HAPPENED
1650 Yard Freestyle
- Fiona Byrne repeated as the SAC champion in the 1650 Freestyle with a B-cut time of 16:59.37
- Ella Gutenwik, Daniell Meinema and Jolina Franke earned top-six finishes as well in a Catawba-dominated heat
100 Yard Freestyle
- Marit Reckmann earned another SAC title on the week with a victory in the 100 Yard Freestyle with the lone sub-50 second time in the heat at 49.96
- Eniko Onofer also earned a podium finish at 50.79, while Marleen Plachetka finished eighth
200 Yard Backstroke
- Ash Fortin earned a top-five finish in the 200 Backstroke with Taylor Wilson right behind her in sixth and Lucie Cainaud rounding out the championship heat in eighth
200 Yard Breaststroke
- Gabi Moll earned Catawba's third SAC title of the evening in the 200 Breast, out-pacing runner-up Sydney McKenzie by .11 seconds as the Catawba duo were 1-2 in the championship heat
- Hannah Koopmans also earned a spot in the championship final, placing seventh
400 Yard Freestyle Relay
- Catawba's team of Plachetka, Sydney Peterson, Meinema and Brinkley Watson placed third in the final event of the week with a time of 3:28.36
WRAP UP OF THE WEEK
- Catawba finished second with 1782, less than 120 points behind team champion Wingate
- Last season, Catawba finished third and over 600 points behind the league winner
- Women's Coach of the Year Matthew Gearing earned his second coaching honor in as many years, as he was named Men's Coach of the Year in 2024
- Martin repeats as the Elite 23 winner, bestowed upon the student-athlete with the top grade point average in the conference
UP NEXT
- Catawba returns to the pool in two weeks, competing in the Emory Last Chance Invite for one final tune-up before the NCAA Division II National Championships in March
