A Sneak Peak of the 2018-19 Northwest Conference Season

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Photo Courtesy: Ann Wigger

By McKenna Ehrmantraut, Swimming World College Intern. 

The NCAA Division III Northwest Conference is gearing up for a big year with many returning star athletes and the addition of George Fox University in its inaugural season. The Northwest Conference consists of the following schools: Lewis and Clark College, Linfield College, Pacific Lutheran University, Pacific University, University of Puget Sound, Willamette University, Whitman College and Whitworth University. Let’s take a look at what the 2018-19 season has in store!

An Addition to the Northwest Conference

George Fox University will be starting its rookie year with 30 swimmers. Natalie Turner, head coach of George Fox Bruins, says, “With no history, no pool, and no teammates to meet, our incoming freshmen really took a leap of faith in me and in George Fox to create a swimming culture here. They are really excited to be joining the Northwest Conference in the fall and to add more depth and diversity to swimming in the Pacific Northwest.”

PLU coach, Matt Sellman, says, “We’re glad to welcome George Fox into the fold. With nine swim programs, that makes us one of the largest conferences in NCAA Division III and demonstrates just how strong our sport is and will continue to be in the Northwest.”

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Photo Courtesy: Ann Wigger

Predicting This Season from Championship Results

Chris Myhre, head coach at UPS, says, “One need only to look at the final standings from last year to get an early peek towards next season.” Last season ended with a bang, as four individual conference records fell at the meet in Federal Way, Washington last February.

On the women’s side, Kelli Callahan posted conference records in the 200 and 400 IMs. On the men’s side, Owen Limpet broke the 50 free record and Patrick Wilber toppled the 100 back. In addition, seven swimmers (of whom six are returning for the 2018-19 season), competed in individual events at the NCAA Division III Championships in Indianapolis, Indiana in March. The following athletes qualified for the national-level competition: Linfield’s Noah Cutting, Pacific Lutheran’s Kaycee Simpson, Puget Sound’s Kelli Callahan, Whitman’s Mara Selznick, and Whitworth’s Hannah Galbraith, Byron Rossmiller, and Patrick Wilber.

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Photo Courtesy: Ann Wigger

Returning Veterans

The Northwest Conference is loaded with strong teams, talented swimmers and experienced coaches returning next season. These veterans include the 2017-18 Conference Swimmers of the Year, Cutting, Callahan and Evette Dow; Freshman Swimmers of the Year, Simpson and Ryan Grady; and Coaches of the Year, Jennifer Blomme of Whitman and Steve Schadt of Whitworth. However, as Myhre mentions, “The great unknown will be the newcomers and those returners who are motivated to improve.”

“Every year it is a thrill to see how our changing and developing teams match up throughout the season. Between welcoming a new swimming program to the competition and some positive changes to the championship schedule, we have a great season ahead of us [here in the NWC],” Chris Fantz, coach of Lewis and Clark, says.

With over 130 new recruits expected in the fall and strong teams made up of returning upperclassmen, the Northwest Conference is gearing up for another record-breaking season.

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Sarah
Sarah
5 years ago

Thanks for the write up of our fantastic conference! DIII in the PNW!

Sarah Bray Ehrmantraut

Nice to see coverage of DIII schools in the PNW

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