Tulane Swimming Signs Four All-Americans

NEW ORLEANS, La., November 19. WHILE in the midst of her first season of the restarted Green Wave swimming program, Tulane head coach Daniella Irle announced the signing of high school All-Americans Tiffany Brown, Cara Davidoff, Sarah Dicharry and Katie Naglick during the early signing period.

All four signees, Irle's second recruiting class since becoming the head coach last February, earned All-America recognition during their respective prep careers and will join the team for the 2004-05 season. Brown earned the honor in the 50 and 100 freestyle and 100 backstroke, Davidoff in the 50 and 100 free, Dicharry in the 200 individual medley and 200 and 400 free relay, and Naglick in the 100 fly, 200 medley relay, and the 200 and 400 free relays.

"This is exactly the kind of class we need in our second year," Irle said. "They're fast, they fill a specific need that we have, and they're all tremendous students. Last year, we recruited swimmers with good speed and general versatility. This year, we went for a more specific class and that's exactly what we have.

"For what is essentially a second-year program to sign four high school All-Americans is amazing. But I think that just tells us a lot about what kind of kids we're getting. They see what we're trying to do here at Tulane, and want to be a part of it. They all had opportunities to join well-established programs, but I think they all want to be part of starting a tradition rather than just being a part of tradition."

Highlighting the list is Brown, a four-year letterwinner at Rancho Bernadro High (San Diego, Calif.) where she earned All-America honors, earned the CIF championship in the 100 backstroke and set several school records. Brown also swam for Pacific Swim Club where she was part of the 2003 Junior National Championship winner in the 400 free relay, and qualified for the U.S. Open.

Her best times are 58.2 in the 100 meter free, 58.00 in the 100 yard back, 2:04.9 in the 200 yard back and 5:02 in the 500 yard free. A standout in the classroom as well, Brown has won the Silver Star Award every semester of her high school career for holding a 4.0 grade point average, received the Fraternity of Academic and Civic Excellence Award, and was named to both the San Diego All-Academic first-team and the Scholastic All-CIF squad. She chose Tulane over Northwestern, Rice, Rutgers and Yale.

A three-time team MVP at Palisades High (Los Angeles, Calif.), Davidoff joins the Green Wave program after earning All-America honors in the 50 free twice and the 100 free as a senior. She was named Palisadian Post Athlete of the Year as a junior and senior, and set school records in the 50 and 100 free, and 200 free relay.

Davidoff also swam for Palisades Malibu YMCA from 1998-2003, where she was a YMCA National finalist in the 50 and 100 free in 2003. Her top times are 24.1 in the 50 free and 52.3 in the 100 free. In the classroom, she earned Scholastic All-CIF honors from 2001-03, was a member of the Principals Honor Roll every semester and received the Kodak Young Leaders Award in 2003. Davidoff signed with Tulane over Duke and Northwestern.

A native of Gonzalez, La., Dicharry helped St. Joseph's Academy win city championships in each of the past three years, including the state title in 2002. A three-year varsity letterwinner, she was a member of the City Meet Champion 200 free relay and 400 free relay teams that earned All-America honors in 2002 and 2003. The 2002 200 free relay squad was 10th in the nation, and Dicharry earned a city championship and All-America honors in the 200 individual medley in 2003.

She also swam for Crawfish Aquatics for three years, earning the state championship in the 200 individual medley in 2003. Her best times are 2:08 in the 200 yard individual medley, and 2:09 in the 200 meter freestyle. Away from the pool, Dicharry is a member of the Beta Club and the French Club. She was also recruited by LSU, , Texas A&M, Centenary and John Hopkins.

Naglick, meanwhile, is a four-year letterwinner at Mercy High (Dearborn, Mich.) where she earned All-America, all-state, All-Catholic League, all-county and all-area honors three times during her prep career. A state qualifier in the 100, 200 and 500 free, 100 fly, 200 and 400 free relay and 200 medley relay as a senior, Naglick won the Oakland County Championship in the 100 fly during the year.

At the club level, Naglick swam for the Dearborn Dolphins where she qualified for the Junior Nationals in the100 fly the past three seasons, and recorded a Senior National qualifying time in the 4×100 medley relay last winter. Her best times are 58.0 in the 100 yard fly and 1:04 in the 100 meter fly. Away from the pool, Naglick is a member of the National Honor Society and is an active volunteer in several charitable organizations. She chose Tulane over Bowling Green, Indiana and Michigan State.

While the four signees will not join Green Wave squad until next season, the 2003-04 team returns to action on Sunday, Nov. 23 when they participate in their first home meet in over 13 years. Tulane will host the University of Nevada and Louisiana-Monroe at 1 p.m. in the Reily Student Recreation Center, and admission is free.

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