FGCU Swimming & Diving Season Recap
Record	8-8-1, 4-1-0 CCSA
CCSA Conference Finish	2nd of 9 teams (1,403.00 points)
Final Results	2019-20 Schedule
All-American	Petra Halmai (CSCAA)
CCSA Superlatives	Petra Halmai (Swimmer of the Year) Reese Wakefield (Diver of the Year)
CCSA Championship Honors	Reese Wakefield (Diver of the Meet) David Boyko (Diving Coach of the Year)
CCSA Swimmer of the Week	Petra Halmai - Oct. 29, Nov. 5, Nov. 26, Jan. 21
CCSA Diver of the Week	Reese Wakefield - Oct. 8, Oct. 29, Nov. 5, Nov. 12, Jan. 7, Jan. 14, Jan. 28 Delaney Nelson - Jan. 21
Twitter	@FGCUEagles // @FGCU_WSwim
Instagram	@fgcu_wswimdive

FORT MYERS, Fla. – The FGCU swimming & diving team capped off yet another successful campaign with a second-place finish at the 2020 CCSA Conference Championships. The Eagles, who collected 1,403 points over the course of the four-day meet, earned five gold medals, seven silver medals and a pair of bronze medals.

Halmai Among the Nation's Best
This year marked the 13th-consecutive that the Eagles have placed within the top two of the conference. It also became the eighth season that has culminated with a member of the Green and Blue earning a ticket to the NCAA National Championship meet, as junior Petra Halmai (Dombovar, Hungary/Lanczos Kornel Secondari Grammar School)  was selected after her record-breaking race in the 200 Breast. Though Halmai, whose time of 2:07.38 put her at 10th in the nation, was unable to attend the national meet due to the COVID-19 pandemic, she did become the second Eagle in program history to earn CSCAA All-American recognition.

Dynamic Duo
Halmai also highlighted the postseason awards by earning CCSA Swimmer of the Year honors, alongside freshman teammate Reese Wakefield (Guelph, Ontario/Bishop MacDonelle CHS), who collected CCSA Diver of the Year recognition. FGCU is the only program in the conference that has received both the Swimmer and Diver of the Year accolades in the same season, having done so four times.

Success on the Boards
Wakefield, who was also named CCSA Diver of the Meet at the conference championship, where coach David Boyko earned Diving Coach of the Year laurels, had one of the most successful individual seasons any Eagle diver has ever had. After capturing the league's 3m title and earning a silver medal on the 1m board, she and classmate Delaney Nelson (Cincinnati, Ohio/Ursuline Academy) went on to represent the team at the NCAA Zone 'B' Diving Championships, where they competed alongside numerous student-athletes from Power-5 institutions.

Throughout the regular season, Wakefield captured a combined nine first-place finishes between the 3m and 1m boards and was named CCSA Diver of the Week for a league-record seven times.

Regular Season Triumphs
The success that the Eagles had in the postseason was a direct result of the hard work that they put in throughout the regular season. The Green and Blue set the tone for the 2019-20 campaign early, downing Vanderbilt in the opening meet at the FGCU Aquatics Complex. The victory, which came in at 172-121, marked the team's first over an SEC opponent.

Along with Wakefield's success, multiple Eagles dominated their events during the dual-meet portion of the schedule. Sophomore Wiktoria Czarnekca (Lublin, Poland/Liceum NR 10 W Lublinie) captured the title in the 50-yard freestyle all but three times, while Halmai won the 200-yard breaststroke all but three times, as well.

Looking Ahead
At their annual team banquet, which was held via a Zoom meeting, the Eagles announced the captains for the 2020-21 season. Freshman Michaela Sizemore (Fredericksburg, VA/Stafford Senior HS), Czarnecka and Halmai will lead the team next year in a campaign that will see FGCU make a run to re-claim its throne at the top of the CCSA.

All of this year's individual gold medalists at the conference championship will remain on the team, as Halmai (100 Breast, 200 Breast), Czarnecka (50 Free), Wakefield (3m dive) and freshman Julia Rodriguez (Gainesville, FL/Buccholz HS) (100 Fly) have remaining eligibility. Including the aforementioned Eagles, 19 members of this year's squad will return in the fall.

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.

E.A.G.L.E. CAMPAIGN
IT TAKES A TEAM to achieve our newest goal - a $10 million campaign to address student-athlete needs in continued academic success, life skills, mental health, nutrition, and strength and conditioning as well as departmental needs in facility expansion and improvement as well as mentoring and leadership training for coaches and staff. The name embodies our mission and the purpose of the E.A.G.L.E. Campaign - Eagle Athletics Generating Lifetime Excellence. Join Our Team and pledge your gift today to help the Eagles of tomorrow!

#FEEDFGCU
FGCU Athletics sponsors events throughout the year to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics' charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.

ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 82 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.

--FGCUATHLETICS.COM--