Preview: New Orleans Women

Coaches/SID's - Login to your collegeswimming.com account to submit your team's 2010 Preview

The University of New Orleans women's swimming and diving team will have a different look this coming year after graduating seven seniors who exhausted their entire eligibility while on the Lakefront.

Replacing the departed is a group of eight freshmen student-athletes, for which head coach Randy Horner feels are just as good, if not better than the group which has left.

While the team has come up with goals in their efforts to improve on the squad's fifth-place finish at last year's Sun Belt Conference meet, a lot will depends on how the freshmen progress in their first season.

In their first opportunity to make a splash, the eight freshman won 6 of 8 events at the intrasquad meet.

If this was any indication, the freshmen along with the four sophomores and one senior, form the base from which Horner can help push the team towards the top of the conference standings.

Free
In the distance events, the squad will need to replace Sarah Gros, who left UNO with the school records in the 500, 1000 and 1650 free.

Freshman Laura Cempel is expected to bear most of the weight. A high school All-American in the 500 free, Cempel also placed ninth in the 500 free at the Illinois State Meet last year.

The remaining of the distance duties will be done by committee with several other student-athletes expected to play a role.

When the free events turn to sprint and middle distance events, a group of four freshmen look to be strong contenders as Claire Barron, Wendy Oleskiw, Joanna Wozniak and Haydn Maclean are all expected to contribute right away.

A position of strength on the squad, Horner returns co-50 free record holders in senior Tess Sweatman and sophomore Catalina Mendieta, who placed eighth and ninth respectively at last year’s conference meet. The duo also placed in the 100 free with Mendieta ranking seventh and Sweatman eighth in the 100 free.

Sophomore Eva Hannesdottir, who holds the school marks in the 100 (51.06) and 200 (1:50.73) free also returns after a summer in which she represented her native Iceland in the Small Nations Games.

Back
Two sophomores lead the way in the backstroke where 200 record holder Taylor Reynolds (2:04.32) and Ashley Aranda return.

Reynolds ranks second in school-history in the 100 back (57.65) to the now graduated Ashley McClelland while Aranda ranks second to Reynolds amongst returnees in both the 100 (1:00.40) and 200 (2:06.77) back.

Of the newcomers, Fanny Varga from Stockholm, Sweden and Devan Martin from Alpharetta, Ga. are projected to add depth to the squad.

Fly
As she does in the free, Mendieta will factor in when the Privateers compete in the fly.

The school-record holder in the 100 fly (55.60), Mendieta will look to improve on her record performance from the SBC meet.

Hannesdottir, who did not actively compete in the fly last year is expected to become more of a regular fixture in the stroke after winning a national championship in the 100 fly at the 2009 Iceland national meet.

Rounding out the group looking to replace 200 fly record holder Lindsey Townsend (2:05.29) is Cempel, who won the 100 fly at the intrasquad meet last weekend, showing strength in events other than freestyle.

Breast
One of the weak events on the squad a year ago, the breast should serve as a strength for the 2009-10 Privateers.

In addition to Sweatman, who ranks second all-time in the 100 breast (1:06.91), Horner will look to Wozniak, Barron and Melissa Oishi as potential competitors for a conference title.

A Seattle, Wash. native, Oishi was a HS All-American while both Barron and Wozniak bring impressive resumes from England and Canada, respectively.

Each breast stroke swimmer will look to top Shannon McIntyre’s records in the 100 and 200 breast. McIntyre, the lone NCAA competitor in school history holds the longest standing record in the school history book, setting the two marks in 1985.

Individual Medley
On a team devoid of any returnees, Maclean is the strongest of the IM participants at UNO, having completed a strong summer at the British nationals.

Others expected to contest the 200 and 400 IMs are Wozniak, Barron and Oishi.

Schedule
The UNO women will contest a challenging slate, starting with a dual against cross-town rival Tulane on Oct. 3.

Conference rivals Western Kentucky and North Texas will be on the schedule once more, as the Privateers step up their out of conference slate with duals against strong Southeastern Conference squads LSU and Alabama.

Nashville, Tenn. will once more host the conference championship, this year taking place Feb. 17-20, 2010.