Swimmers prepare for conference

Individual swimming results in the pre season show promise for a successful post season

Sophomore+Lauren+Burckel+places+fifth+in+the+100-meter+breaststroke+on+Sept.+28+at+Gibb+Pool.+The+Pac-12+Championships+start+at+6+p.m.+Wednesday+and+continue+through+Sunday+at+the+Weyerhaeuser+King+County+Aquatic+Center+in+Federal+Way%2C+Washington.+

ROLAND HUIE

Sophomore Lauren Burckel places fifth in the 100-meter breaststroke on Sept. 28 at Gibb Pool. The Pac-12 Championships start at 6 p.m. Wednesday and continue through Sunday at the Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatic Center in Federal Way, Washington.

CODY SCHOELER, Evergreen reporter

The collegiate swimming season has come to an end and Pac-12 Championships are starting Wednesday and will go though the weekend.

There are a few WSU swimmers who have performed well all season long and will be looking to continue their success at the conference championship meet.

Sophomore Keiana Fountaine had the most wins for the Cougars this season with six. Four of her wins came in the 100 yard freestyle, an event she recorded the second-best time on the team with 50.57 seconds.

She also has a win in the 200 yard freestyle and a team-best time of 1:49.85 in that event. The last of her wins came in the 50 yard freestyle in which she has a time of 23.35 seconds, the second-best mark on the team this season.

Fountaine will compete in all three of those events at the Pac-12 Championships. She is seeded 38th in the 50 and the 100 and 34th in the 200.

Another top swimmer in the freestyle for WSU has been junior Chloe Larson. She is the reason that Fountaine is second in the 50 and 100 yard freestyle events.

Larson is first this season for the Cougars with times of 22.82 and 49.73 seconds in the 50 and the 100, respectively. Her three wins this season have all come in the 50.

Larson will swim in the 50 and the 100 at the conference championship meet. She is seeded 17th in the 50 and 24th in the 100.

Larson also has one of the best times on the team in the 100-yard butterfly. Her time of 56.35 seconds in that event is the third best of the team. She is seeded 34th in the 100 at the Pac-12 Championship meet.

Sophomore Lauren Burckel has been the best swimmer in the breaststroke for the Cougars. She has team-best times in the 100 and 200 yard breaststroke and has picked up four wins in those events.

Her time of 1:01.10 in the 100 got her seeded 13th in the event at the Pac-12s, and her time of 2:11.69 in the 200 got her seeded 10th.

She is also competing in the 200 yard individual medley at the conference championship meet, an event she recorded one win this season. She is seeded 20th because of her time of 2:00.50, which is the second-best mark on the team.

Another swimmer with multiple wins this season is senior Ryan Falk. She has recorded four wins: one in the 200 yard freestyle, one in the 1,000 yard freestyle and two in the 500 yard freestyle.

Falk also has team-best times in the 500 (4:51.35), the 1,000 (10:11.69) and the 1,650 yard freestyle (16:58.95). She also has the second-best time in the 200 yard freestyle at 1:49.38.

She is swimming in three of those events at the Pac-12 Championship meet. She is seeded 16th in the 1,650, 27th in the 500 and 31st in the 200.

Junior Taylor McCoy has put together one of the best seasons for the Cougars this year. She has a win in three different events: the 200 yard backstroke, the 200 yard individual medley and the 400 yard individual medley.

McCoy has the best time on the team in each of those three events and will compete in them at Pac-12s. She is seeded 10th in the 400 with a time of 4:15.31, 16th in the 200 yard backstroke with a time of 1:56.81 and 23rd in the 200 yard individual medley with a time of 2:00.51.

Freshman Mia Zahab has been a solid addition to the team this year and has team-best times in both of the butterfly events. She has times of 55.89 seconds in the 100 yard butterfly and 1:59.73 in the 200 yard butterfly. She is seeded 13th in the 200 in the Pac-12 Championship meet.

Zahab has been one of the top performers in the individual medleys and will swim in those at the Pac-12s as well. Her time of 4:16.78 got her the 14th seed in the 400 yard individual medley and her time of 2:02.13 got her the 32nd seed in the 200 yard individual medley.

The Pac-12 Championships start at 6 p.m. today and continue through Sunday at the Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatic Center in Federal Way, Washington.

Wednesday and Thursday’s meets can be viewed on the Pac-12 Championships. Friday, Saturday and Sunday’s meets can be viewed on the Pac-12 Networks.