KNOXVILLE, TN – After wrapping up day two of the 2020 CCSA Championship, the FGCU swimming & diving team (8-8-1, 4-1 CCSA) checks in at second place with 438 points. FGCU ranks between first-place Liberty (581 points) and third-place UIW (394 points).

Thursday's competition was highlighted by sophomore Wiktoria Czarnecka (Lublin, Poland/Liceum NR 10 W Liblinie), whose NCAA B Cut time and personal best of 22.40 in the 50-yard freestyle won her a gold medal. In addition to becoming the eighth-straight Eagle to win the event, she is FGCU's second CCSA champion at this year's meet, as freshman Reese Wakefield (Guelph, Ontario/Bishop Macdonelle CHS) took home yesterday's 3m dive title.

"In the team standings, this day is our weakest," head coach Dave Rollins said. "We will only get stronger as the meet continues. To see our freshmen step up today was amazing. Half our swims today were from our freshman class, swimming best times and scoring big points for the team was awesome. Congratulations to Liz (Zeiger) on placing third in the IM, setting a new best time and moving into ninth in school history. Tori (Czarnecka). Wow. Absolutely amazing. She continues an incredible 50 Free tradition for FGCU, not only taking the win but swimming the third-fastest time in school history. The energy can be felt all over the pool deck. This team is in a great spot heading into tomorrow and we will look to carry the momentum forward."

Day two's final sessions began with the 200 Free relay, which saw the team of freshman Hailey Jerew (Miami, FL/Cutler Bay Senior HS), Czarnecka, sophomore Meghan Schienvar (Holmdel, N.J./Holmdel HS) and freshman Lucija Sulenta (Zagreb, Croatia/Gimnazija I Ekonomska Skola Benedikta Kotruljevica) pick up a second-place finish. Their time of 1:32.96 was 0.71 seconds faster than the team's seed time, which was bolstered by Jerew's leadoff swim of 23.47, her new personal best.

The 500-yard freestyle was next on the docket following the opening relay. The freshman duo of Hannah VanDress (Cape Coral, FL/Bishop Verot HS) and Michaela Sizemore (Fredericksburg, VA/Stafford Senior HS) each qualified for the B final, where they placed 11th and 13th, respectively. Classmate Kaja Reinhardt (Herdecke, Germany/Helene-Lange-Gymnasium Dortmund) rounded out the Green and Blue scoring in the long-distance event by winning the C Final, good for 17th place overall.

Senior Elizabeth Zeiger (Cumberland, RI/Homeschool) represented FGCU as the team's first individual in an A Final during the second day of competition, as she qualified in the 200 IM. She laid down a personal record (2:01.77) en route to claiming a third place finish in the event. Freshman Anna Hogan (Louisville, KY/Dupont Manual School) also added points, finishing 12th overall.

The final event of the day was the 50 Free, where Czarnecka's performance earned her the top spot on the podium. The Eagles combined for 71 points in that event alone, as a total of four individuals earned spots in scoring finals. Both Jerew and Schienvar earned spots in the B Final, while Sulenta represented the Green and Blue in the C Final.

The CCSA Championship will continue on Friday, Feb. 21 with the 10 a.m. prelim session. Finals, which are scheduled to begin at 6 p.m., will feature the 100 Fly, the 400 IM, the 200 Free, the 100 Breast, the 100 Back, 1 meter dive and the 400 medley relay.

Standings, Day Two
1. Liberty – 581
2. FGCU – 438
3. UIW – 394
4. Gardner-Webb – 280
5. UNC Asheville – 256.5
6. Campbell – 244.5
7. UNF – 218
8. Georgia Southern – 214
9. Howard - 1143

200 Medley Relay
FGCU – 1:32.96

500 Free
11th place – Hannah VanDress – 5:01.09
13th place – Michaela Sizemore – 5:01.34
17th place – Kaja Reinhardt – 5:00.88

200 IM
3rd place – Elizabeth Zeiger – 2:01.77
12th place – Anna Hogan – 2:06.21

50 Free
1st place – Wiktoria Czarnecka – 22.40 (B)
9th place – Hailey Jerew – 23.48
14th place – Meghan Schienvar – 23.84
19th place – Lucija Sulenta – 23.91

For complete coverage of FGCU swimming & diving, follow the Eagles on Twitter (@FGCU_WSwim), Instagram (@FGCU_WSwimDive) and online at www.FGCUAthletics.com. You can also sign up to have news on FGCU swimming & diving or other programs delivered directly to your inbox by visiting www.fgcuathletics.com/email.

HEAD COACH DAVE ROLLINS
Head coach Dave Rollins is only the second coach in program history. He was hired Sept. 1, 2016 and owns a 32-20-1 (.615) dual meet record, which includes an 11-2 (.846) mark against CCSA opponents, in his fourth season. Rollins guided FGCU to back-to-back CCSA titles (2017, 2018), as well as the program's fourth-straight title in 2018, marking the ninth championship in 10 years. In addition, he has been awarded CCSA Coach of the Year in two of his seasons at the helm. Previously, Rollins was the associate head men's swimming coach at The Ohio State University. Rollins brings over a decade of coaching experience to The Nest, which includes helping to develop Olympians, NCAA Champions and All-Americans, along with multiple conference champions. A native of Brockton, Mass., he was a standout collegiate swimmer in his own right and was inducted into the University of Arizona's Hall of Fame in 2017, as a nine-time NCAA All-American, national champion, school record holder and team captain.

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ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 81 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 12 seasons at the Division-I level. Additionally, in just eight seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 36 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. Seven FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport – including both men's and women's soccer again in 2018. In 2016-17, the Green and Blue posted a department-best 6th-place finish in the DI-AAA Learfield Directors' Cup and top-100 showing nationally, ahead of several Power-5 and FBS institutions. In 2018-19, the Eagles had an ASUN and state of Florida best seven teams earn the NCAA's Public Recognition Award for their Academic Progress Rate in their sport. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.35 GPA in the classroom in the spring 2018 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for twenty consecutive semesters. The Eagles also served an all-time high 7,200 volunteer hours in 2017 – being recognized as one of two runners-up for the inaugural NACDA Community Service Award presented by the Fiesta Bowl.

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