North Carolina State University Athletics
Swimming & Diving Senior Day Set For Saturday
1/11/2007 12:00:00 AM | Swimming
Swimming Kicks Off New Year with Senior Day Meet: The NC State men's and women's swimming and diving team will host South Carolina on January 13 at Noon. The Wolfpack coaching staff and team will honor the seniors and their families during the meet as five women and one male will be recognized. Melissa Jamerino, Kerry Whitson, Amy Baskwell, Lindsay Barwegen, Laura Neely and Steve Cowling will be honored at the meet. The men's team (3-2 overall) and women's squad (3-4) will swim in its second to last home meet this season against the Gamecocks on Saturday.
Men Led By Two Guys Named Steve: Not only are they both English, but Steven Cowling and Stephen Mellor share another distinction - top times in the conference. Cowling is third in the 100 fly (48.89) and second in the 100 back (48.93), the event that he won silver at last season and the gold as a sophomore in the conference meet.
Mellor may have an even better resume this season, posting the second fastest 200 back (1:46.27 - NCAA 'B' Cut), second in the 200 IM (1:49.42) and second in the 400 IM (3:53.08 - NCAA 'B' Cut) in the ACC in his first year of eligibility. Last season while redshirting, Mellor set an NC State record in the 200 back in his first two official time trials as a freshman.
Women Get Boost From Freshmen: The women's squad is getting a boost from its strong freshmen class, with Anna Linkenauger making a strong impact early. She ranks sixth in the ACC in the 400 IM and has had top-times this season on the team in both the 200 and 400 IM and the 200 backstroke. She is also second on the team in the 200 breast and third in the 100 breast.
In fact, when you look down the Wolfpack's top-times list for the season, there are six events that freshmen hold the top time. Besides Linkenauger's three times, Jessica Stewart (tops in the 100 breast and 200 breast) and Patrice Dason (100 fly) lead their events as newcomers to the Pack.
In addition, the impact of a pair of freshmen divers have been a important part of the women's squad's season. Emily Cheffins leads the ACC in the 1-meter boards and is seventh in the 3-meter, while Chelsea Ale is third in the 1-meter and ninth in the 3-meter.
Freshmen Men Not To Be Outdone: There are plenty of talented swimmers on the men's side as well, and a few freshmen have stepped into the spotlight. Mason McGee has the third fastest time in the ACC in the 200 free and is seventh in the 500 free at the midpoint of the season. Danny Voss has the ninth fastest time of the season in the 200 breast, while fellow frosh Kevin Woodhull-Smith is ninth in the 200 IM as well.
Senior Women Capsules: The women's team will lose some valuable pieces of its puzzle with the graduation of five swimmers. Below are summaries of their senior seasons and career highlights.
Melissa Jamerino: The senior sprinter has the third fastest time on the season in the 50 freestyle (24.56) and has had a successful career for the Pack. The native of Grosse Pointe, Mich., has a lifetime best of 24.41 in the 50 free, 54.16 in the 100 free and 1:01.35 in the 100 butterfly. She posted a top-3 Wolfpack time in two of her first three seasons in the 50 freestyle and has five top-5 finishes this season including a win in the 50 free against Gardner-Webb and Campbell.
Kerry Whitson: Whitson has been a standout in the freestyle events and relays over her career. The Centerville, Ohio native leads the team in the 50 free, 100 free and 200 free and is second in the 500 free. She is also the anchor of the top Wolfpack time in the 400 freestyle relay, 800 freestyle relay and 400 medley relay. She is second all-time in the 200 and 500 freestyle in school history and fifth in the 100 free.
Amy Baskwell: Baskwell has competed in the sprint and mid-distance freestyle events during her career for the Wolfpack swimming team. This season she has a top-10 finish in the 200 freestyle and finished in the top-5 in multiple freestyle events last season.
Lindsay Barwegen: Barwegen is one of the top distance swimmers in Wolfpack history, as she has led the team in each of her four seasons in many of the freestyle events. She ranks third in school history in the 500 and 1650 freestyle and tenth in the 200 free. She leads the team this season in the 500, 1000 and 1650 free and has a top-3 Wolfpack time in the 200 free and 200 fly.
Laura Neely: Neely has been a valuable addition to the Wolfpack roster and is a top student-athlete at NC State as a biological sciences major. She swam her personal best time in the 500 free last season at the Terrapin Cup and has four top-10 finishes (including a top-5 finish) already in 2006-07.
Lone Wolf: Senior standout Steve Cowling is the lone Wolfpack male swimmer on the squad, and he is also the most decorated.
Steve Cowling: An All-America selection last season as part of the 200 medley relay squad, Cowling is a former ACC Champion and three-time All-ACC selection. Cowling has a time in the top-10 record books for the Wolfpack in three different individual events (100 fly, 100 back and 200 back).
