Women's Swimming | 10/19/2017 4:40:00 PM

WEST CHESTER, Pa. - The Bloomsburg University women's swimming team opens the 2017-18 regular season at tenth-ranked West Chester University on Friday night, October 20, at the Graham Natatorium. Start time is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. Division I Lehigh University will also compete as part of the tri-meet.

The Golden Rams enter the meet with a 2-0 record on the season, having defeated both Shippensburg and Southern Connecticut State in a tri-meet last Saturday. Lehigh, meanwhile, is 1-0 on the season with a victory under its belt against Boston University back on October 7.

The Huskies had another outstanding season a year ago as they posted a 7-1 dual meet record with their only loss coming in the first meet of the year. They swam their way to a second-place finish at the PSAC Championships for the third straight year, which was last done in the 1991-1992 season. Over the course of the year, the women set three school records, garnered 10 All-PSAC awards, achieved 13 NCAA "B" cut times, and added 38 new times to the program's all-time top ten list. Five swimmers went on to represent Bloomsburg at the NCAA Championships in Birmingham, Alabama. Brooke Gilson qualified in the 1650-yard freestyle and also swam the 500-yard freestyle and the 1000-yard freestyle events. The 800-yard freestyle relay team of Gilson, Kaci McIlmoyle, Karly Hursey (Hampstead, Md./North Carroll), and Becca Cubbler (Royersford, Pa./Spring-Ford) set a new team record while placing 19th in the event.

This season, Bloomsburg will turn to a trio of captains to provide leadership both in and out of the pool. Leading the Huskies will be seniors Nikki Young (Eagleville, Pa./Methacton) and Karly Hursey (Hampstead, Md./North Carroll) along with junior Sydney Mercer (Bloomsburg, Pa./Millville).
 
Young enters her final year of competition as an NCAA All-American and a four-time Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) champion. She is returning to action after a season-ending knee injury caused her to miss the entire 2016-17 season. Young currently holds four team records and has been named All-Conference seven times in her career.

"We are excited to have Nikki returning to action," said Bloomsburg University head coach Stu Marvin.  "She has courageously battled back from a knee injury that is crippling to most breaststrokers. Her work ethic and attitude throughout her recovery has been a great inspiration to the entire team."
 
Hursey enters her senior season as the team's top distance swimmer. She was named the Bloomsburg Women's Swimmer of the Year after an outstanding 2016-17 campaign that saw her earn Collegeswimming.com Swimmer of the Week honors twice and PSAC Swimmer of the Week accolades once. Hursey currently holds one team record and is an all-time top five performer at Bloomsburg in the 500-yard freestyle, the 1000-yard freestyle, and the 1650-yard freestyle.

"As a nursing major, Karly has shown incredible dedication and discipline in balancing academics and athletics," boasted Marvin. "Her trip to the NCAA championships last year has made her more focused than ever and certifies her leadership on the team." 
 
Mercer will begin her junior season as the Huskies' top backstroker and a top performer in the 200-yard and 400-yard individual medley. She broke her own team record in the 200 backstroke at the 2017 PSAC Championships on her way to a fourth-place finish. Mercer is ranked second all-time at Bloomsburg in the 100-yard backstroke and is a Bloomsburg top ten performer in the both individual medley events.

Also a nursing major, Mercer is meeting the demands of academics and athletics. "Sydney has really come into her own and has emerged as a team leader," said Marvin. "She is eager to build off of her success from last season."

The Huskies have some voids to fill left behind by departing seniors Gilson, McIlmoyle, Colleen Finias, Connie Medura, and Alison Turzanski. However, Marvin brought in a group of nine newcomers that should provide some immediate help and compete for points in the conference championships later in the season. Joining the Huskies in 2017-18 will be Chelsea Ackerson (Hamilton, N.J./Steinert), Kristen Bane (Uniontown, Pa./Laurel Highlands), Samantha Carpenter (Sunbury, Pa./Shamokin Area), Sammie Carroll (Marlton, N.J./Cherokee), Sarah Corse-Campion (Pottsville, Pa./Pottsville), Emily Hodges (Harleysville, Pa./Souderton), Kelley McHugh (Philadelphia, Pa./Little Flower), Lindsay Mooney (Salisbury, Md./Parkside), and Annika Trolle (Allentown, N.J./Allentown) - all of whom bring excellent credentials with them to this year's squad.

"These nine ladies will be awesome additions to our program," said Marvin. "They will be key contributors and give us tremendous depth. We lost five girls to graduation and we are now adding nine so our depth has improved dramatically. Our graduating seniors accounted for 13 swims in the PSAC Championship finals last season. This group has the potential of having 25 swims in the finals, giving us a net gain of 12. That is tremendous news for us."

UP NEXT
The Huskies will return to the pool on Friday, November 3 when they host Edinboro University in the first home meet of the season at the Nelson Field House Pool. Start time is scheduled for 6:00 p.m.