2023-10-05 19:19:10
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Wheeling, W. Va. – After a long off-season of recruiting and continuing to rebuild the program, the Wheeling University Men’s and Women’s Swimming teams are ready to hit the pool for the first time in 2023-2024. They open up the season on Friday, October 6th, when they head to the West Virginia State Games at the Mylan Park Aquatic Center. With both teams featuring more experience and their largest rosters since the 2016-17 season, both are looking to take the next step forward this season.
Last season, both teams had some milestone moments as they continued through their rebuilding of the program. The women sported the most competitive team since the program restarted as they went 5-4 across their dual meets and finished 2-2 in Mountain East Conference (MEC) play. As they entered the 2023 MEC/Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) Championships, they were ready to make a run towards the conference. They were able to finish fifth overall, and third among MEC competitors while taking home eight All-MEC honors, the most since the revitalization of the program. On the men’s side, they were a smaller team but accomplished their first dual meet victory since 2017 when they defeated Bethany 65-43. They also had several B and C Final swims as they continued to grow in the pool.
On the women’s side, the Cardinals return plenty of experience, led by junior Jade Miller. Miller is a three-time MEC Champion in her first two years and has taken home five All-MEC honors throughout her career. Last season, she won the conference championship in both the 100-Yard and 200-Yard Backstroke, taking home the 200-Yard championship for the second year in a row, with times of 59.12 and 2:11.and respectively. Joining Miller will be the reigning MEC Co-Freshman of the Year Gabby Baiano, who enters as a two-time All-MEC award winner. She specializes in the long distance events, swimming in the 1650 Freestyle as well as the 1,000 and 500 Yard Freestyle. She set the third fastest time in program history in that 1650, swimming and 18:07.71 and looks to build off that success.
On the men’s side, the Cardinals brought in eight new recruits as the team features their largest roster since the program’s revitalization in 2020. The lone returner from the 2022-23 program is junior Nathan Yost, who was a strong competitor in the 200-Yard events last season. He swam in the final on three of the four days of the MEC/GMAC Championships, with his best showing coming in day three. He qualified for the B Finals in the 200-Yard Butterfly and picked up an 8th place finish in the MEC with a time of 2:05.12. He will be joined by transfers Jiwh Santos and Alex Ferebee as they look to lead the continued growth of the program and look for more dual meet wins in 2023-24.
The West Virginia State Games will be one of two tournament style events for the Cardinals, and the first event before they jump into dual meet action next week. It will be a two-day event at the Mylan Park Aquatic Center as the team gets a chance eto see several of the top teams from around the region. It was the kick-off event for the swimming season last year and the Cardinals got good looks in the pool. For veterans Iike Miller and Yost, it will be a chance to show the progress they have made over the summer while for others like the incoming freshman class, it will be their first taste of collegiate swimming. The Cardinals are looking to set the bar high and use that to build towards the conference championships in February.
Meet Info
The 2023 West Virginia State Games will be hosted at the Mylan Park Aquatic Center in Morgantown, West Virginia. Serving as the home pool for West Virginia University swim, the Cardinals will be competing once morest some of the top teams in the region, including several of their MEC counterparts. The first day of the event is an evening session beginning at 6 PM, followed by an followingnoon session on Saturday beginning at 11 AM.
Last season, the Cardinals competed in this same meet to open the season, as they had several big results. Nathan Yost picked up several top 20 finishes, with his best being a 14th place spot in the 200-Yard Butterfly. On the women’s side, it was Jade Miller leading the way, with her best performance being the top DII finisher at the event in the 200-Yard Backstroke.
The Details
The first session of the 2023 West Virginia State Games is set to kick-off on Friday, October 6th, at 6 PM.
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