FGCU S&D 2018-19 Schedule Revealed

The FGCU swimming and diving team have a profoundly tough schedule this season for the 2018-19 school year.

Last Time Out:
The Eagles went 7-2 overall with a 2-0 record in the CCSA Conference while claiming first place in the CCSA Championship.

Although some of the swimmers competed in the UF Last Chance Meet, only one made it to swim in the national: senior Christina Kaas Elmgreen. Elmgreen, a native of Charlottenlund, Denmark, was named on the CSCAA Scholar All-American First Team for the second consecutive year for hard work in the classroom.

The 2016-17 CCSA Women’s Swimmer of the Year and CCSA's Most Outstanding Female Swimmer competed at the NCCA Swimming Championships in the 100 and 200 fly while recording 17 top-3 finishes throughout the whole season.

Newcomers:
FGCU was able to ink 10 newcomers to the team, nine freshman and one transfer.

Among the international side of freshman are Wiktoria Czarnecka and Delanie Goll.

Czarnecka, a native of Lublin, Poland, and a former of the AZS UMCS Lublin club/travel team, was a 2016 European Junior Championship qualifier in Hodmezovasarhely, Hungary and a Polish Junior National Champion and Senior National Medalist. Czaenecka will be competing in the 50,100 and 200 Freestyle and 100 Butterfly.

Goll, a native of Essen, Germany, was the German Junior National Champion and a Senior National Finalist as well as a Participant in the 2016 European Junior Championships. Goll will be competing in the 50, 100 and 200 Breaststroke and 200 IM.

On the U.S. side for freshman, swimmers include Kellie Fischer and Meghan Schienvar.

Fischer, a native of Edmond, Oklahoma who graduated from Edmond Memorial High School, is a All-American Academic qualifier, a member of the All-City and All-State First Team, a six-time State Champion and a four-time Swimmer of the Year. Fischer will be competing in the 100 and 200 Backstroke, 100 Butterfly, and 100 Freestyle.

Schienvar, the second generation of the Schienvar legacy, joins her elder sister, Karin, on the team after graduating from Holmdel High School in Holmdel, New Jersey. Schienvar was a YMCA National Qualifier, a YMCA All-American in the 800 relay and a competiter in the 2017 USLA National Lifeguard Championships. Schienvar will swim in the 50, 100, 200 and 500 Freestyle.

The lone transfer that joined the team is junior Emily Glinecke. Glinecke, a native of Pottstown, Pennsylvania, joins FGCU with two years of eligibility remaining after spending her first two years at Arizona State. There, she won the 100 breast and finished second in the 200 breast against Oregon State and was a CSCAA Scholar All-American (HM) her freshman year and was a member of the Pac-12 All-Academic First Team.

In fact, Glinecke was on the same team as former FGCU swimmer Fanny Teijonsalo.

Returners:
Key returners for the team include from the swimmers: Elmgreen, fellow seniors Doris Eichhorn, Linda Shaw, Hannah Burdge and Gracie Redding, junior Elizabeth Zeiger and sophomore Petra Halmai.

Eichorn, a native of Berlin, is a two-time CSCAA Scholar All-American Honorable Mention and a CCSA All-Conference member. Last season, Eichorn recorded 16 top-three finishes throughout the season as she swam an NCCA ‘B’ standard time in the 100 back on five separate occasions became a two-time individual finalist at the CCSA Championships placing third in both the 100 back (54.00) and 200 back (1:59.70).

Shaw, a native of Leeds, England, is a two-time CCSA All-Conference member where she recorded 13 top-3 finishes throughout the season, including a first place finish in the 1000 free against Miami (10:22.39).

Shaw was a three-time individual finalist at the CCSA Championships last season and a member of the CCSA 800 free relay that touched the pads in a new school record time of 7:11.15. Shaw also claimed silver in the 200 free in a personal best and NCAA ‘B’ Standard time of 1:47.75.

In addition, Shaw became the CCSA Champion in the 500 free in a personal best time of 4:48.14, placing her second in the FGCU record book.

Hailing from Stuart, Florida, Burdge comes in as a one-time CSCAA Scholar All-American Honorable Mention, CSCAA First Team Scholar All-American, and CCSA All-Conference member.

Last season, Burdge recorded 16 top-3 finishes throughout the season. Burdge won gold at the CCSA Championships in the 200 free (1st-place) with a personal best time of 1:47.58 earning her an NCAA 'B' standard time, placing her third in the FGCU record book.

Since transferring from Florida State in the 2016-17 season, Redding, a native of Orlando, enters as a two-time CSCAA Scholar All-American and is the reigning CCSA Most Outstanding Swimmer. Redding earned her best times at the CCSA Championship with 22.55 in the 50-yard freestyle (1st-place), 48.92 in the 100-yard freestyle (1st-place), and 53.96 in the 100 -yard butterfly as well as posting five first-place finishes against Rutgers.

Zeiger, a native of Cumberland, Rhode Island enters last season as a one-time CSCAA Scholar All-American.

Zeiger earned her best times at the CCSA Championships with 4.51.25 in the 500 freestyle, 16.43.06 in the 1650 freestyle, and 4.13.06 (FGCU record) in the 400 IM, 10:06.61 in the 1000 free. Zeiger also earned first finishes by winning the 400 IM in the Triple Distance Classic and 500 free over UNF and Campbell.

Halmai enters her sophomore year as a two-time individual finalist at the CCSA Championships. A native of Dombovar, Hungary, Halmai recorded 24 top-3 finishes throughout the season, including placing second in the 200 breast in a personal best and NCCA ‘B’ standard time of 2:13.63 while placing third in another personal best time of 1:01.86 in the 100 breast. Her 200 breast time placed her the fourth all-time in FGCU history.

On the diving side, all five divers are returning for the season, lead by sophomores Melissa Novak and Megan Wakefield.

Hailing from Frederick, Maryland, Novak holds the FGCU record in both the 1 and 3-meter dives (316.3 in the one meter and 335.05 in the three meter). Novak has also claimed a first place finish in the one-meter dive against Florida and placed 2nd at the CCSA Championship on 3- meter dive with a score of 335.05 and on 1-meter with a score of 316.30 while also competing in the the NCAA Zones Diving Championships turning in a 24th-place finish, the highest any Eagle has ever placed at the NCAA Zones in program history.

Wakefield, a native of Guelph, Ontario, Canada, currently holds the FGCU record in the platform dive (six dives) with aforementioned score (242.55). Wakefield placed third at the CCSA Championship on 3-meter dive with a score of 334.50 and 5th on 1-meter with a score of 270.40, earning a personal best of 242.55 on platform at the University of Miami in a record-breaking performance that qualified her for the NCAA Zone Diving Championships.

Schedule Breakdown:
The Eagles will begin their season at home in a rematch against Florida. Florida beat FGCU 173-125 last year.

The Eagles will follow facing FIU in Miami for the FIU Classic, and will then return home for a tri-meet against FIU and CCSA conference member UNF on Oct. 6.

On October 19, the Eagles will travel to Atlanta and compete against host Georgia Tech, Miami, and NCAA DIII Savannah College of Art and Design. They will then face Auburn on October 20 and  head to Boca Raton in a tri-meet against FAU and Princeton on Nov, 2 before returning to Atlanta for the three-day Georgia Tech Invite from Nov. 15-17.

The Eagles will then wrap up 2018 with a CCSA Conference meet at home against UNC Asheville on Dec. 17.

After winter break and the start of 2019, the Eagles will face Liberty for another CCSA Conference meet on Jan 5, 2019, following with a final tri-meet at home against Miami and Bowling Green on Jan 19.

For the last meet, it will be senior night as the Eagles recognize nine seniors: Kaas Elmgreen, Eichorn, Redding, Shaw and Burdge as well as the other swimmers, Antonia "Toni" Baerens, Kiley Eble, Nicole Oppel and diver Margot Kessler.

The Eagles will wrap up the season on the road against FIU. There will also be the South Florida Divers Invite, so assumingly all five divers will be competing in it.

Afterwards, it will be the CCSA Championship (Feb. 20-23), the UF Last Chance Meet (Feb. 28-Mar. 2), the NCAA Zone Diving Championship and hopefully, the national championship in Austin, Texas.