University Southern California Trojans
Women's Swimming At Pac-10 Championships
February 22, 2000 | Women's Swimming & Diving
Feb. 22, 2000
LOS ANGELES - The USC women's swimming team (5-3 overall, 2-3 in the Pac-10) will compete in the 2000 Pac-10 Championships this Thursday through Saturday (Feb. 24-26) at Belmont Plaza in Long Beach. Preliminaries begin each day at 11 a.m. with finals beginning each night at 6 p.m. Tickets are available at Belmont Plaza.
RANKINGS - The USC women are ranked No. 5 in the Feb. 10 edition of the College Swimming Coaches Association of America Top 25 poll.
LAST ACTION - USC last swam against UCLA on Feb. 12 in Westwood, defeating the Bruins, 158-142. Senior Paige Francis posted wins in the 100y and 200y back while freshman Asa Sandlund won both the 500y and 1650y free. Sophomore diver Kellie Brennan won both the 1- and 3-meter springboards.
LAST YEAR AT THE PAC-10s - USC took second at the 1999 Pac-10 Championships last year before finishing sixth at the NCAAs. Senoir Lindsay Benko posted wins in the 200y and 500y free and the 200y back while Kellie Brennan, then a freshman, won the 1-meter springboard. Other returners who had noteworthy swims included sophomore Corrie Murphy taking second in the 400y IM and sixth in the 200y IM and freshman Kristin MacGregor taking second in the 100y breast, fourth in the 200y breast and fifth in the 200y IM
USC SUPERLATIVES - USC Coach Mark Schubert has built women's and men's teams that are dotted with national and international-caliber swimmers. More than a dozen were competing this summer at various meets around the world, with considerable success. Junior Corrie Murphy won a bronze at the 1999 World University Games while returning medalists at the U.S. Nationals include junior Alexis Lyon, sophomore Kristin MacGregor and freshman Michala Kwasny
OLYMPIC ACHIEVEMENT - USC Coach Mark Schubert, in his seventh year at Troy, will serve as the head coach for the U.S. men's team at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia. It is his sixth consecutive USA Olympic coaching position. (Schubert's wife, Joke, will be the head manager for the U.S. contingent in Australia, as well.) Mark Schubert was an assistant coach at the 1996 Atlanta Games. He served as the 1992 USA women's Olympic head coach, guiding the American women to two gold medal relay world records, four additional American records and an impressive world-leading 14 medals, including five gold. In January of 1998, he served as assistant coach for the U.S. women's team at the World Championships in Perth, Australia.
MICHALA KWASNY - So far, USC's top swimmer has been freshman Michala Kwasny, who owns USC's top times in five events in yards and three top times in short course meters. She has posted NCAA automatic qualifying times in the 200y IM (1:59.37, a USC record and pool record), the 400y IM (4:14.31) and the 200y fly (1:59.09) and has recorded consideration times in the 100y breast (1:03.94), 100y fly (5.21) and the 200y breast (2:16.48). She came to USC after a sensational summer in which she finalled in four events at the 1999 U.S. Summer Nationals.
CORRIE MURPHY - Junior Corrie Murphy, an All-American as a freshman, is on course to return to that status this year. She has an automatic qualifying time in the 400y IM (4:14.70) and in the 400m IM (4:42.72). She has also posted consideration times in the 500y free (4:49.72), the 200y IM (2:02.86), the 200m back (2:12.41) and the 200m free (2:02.24). At the 1999 U.S. Open, she reached the finals of the 400m IM, taking eighth in 4:56.40.
PAIGE FRANCIS - Senior Paige Francis, a five-time career All-American, has been USC's top sprinter in 2000. She has an NCAA automatic qualifying time in the 200m back (2:11.62). She has USC's top times in the 50y free (23.88), the 100y free (51.35) and the 200y free (1:50.69, an NCAA consideration time). She also has USC's best times in the 100y back (55.26) and the 200y back (1:59.69), both NCAA consideration times, as well as in the 50m free (26.09, NCAA consideration).
KRISTIN MacGREGOR - Sophomore Kristin MacGregor, a three-time All-American as a freshman who set three USC records last year, has posted an NCAA automatic time in the 100m breast (1:07.99) and has consideration times in the 200y IM (2:01.71), the 200y breast (2:16.55) and the 100y breast (1:02.37), the latter being USC's top time of the year.
OTHERS TO WATCH - Freshman Asa Sandlund has USC's top times in the 500y free (4:48.58), the 1000y free (9:54.41) and the 1650y free (16:29.95). Freshman Jennifer Parmenter has posted an NCAA consideration time in the 200y IM (2:03.35) and has also been vital on USC relays.
