2013-14 Schedule | 2013-14 Roster
 
KUTZTOWN, Pa. – The Kutztown University women's swimming team enters its upcoming season with record-breaking returners and young talent that are eager to get back in the lanes to compete. The journey of increasing its number of qualifiers for the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) from a year ago all begins this weekend with a road meet at Mansfield.
 
The Golden Bears return 10 upperclassmen including four seniors who look to lead their team to an improved finish in the PSAC standings. Kutztown has high aspirations of improving on its 3-5 dual-meet record and 12th place finish at the conference meet, and possibly posting some record-breaking times along the way.
 
Head coach Tim Flannery enters his 18th season at the helm of the Golden Bears swimming program. He has compiled a 117-83 dual-meet record with his women's swimmers at Kutztown and is excited about the added depth to this year's squad.
 
"I'm very excited about our returners this year," Flannery said. "They have been training very well over the last six weeks, so we are all expecting better times at the first meet of this season compared to last season. We are a bigger team than we were last year, and we will continue to grow as a team next year."
 
The peak of the Golden Bears' season hopes to be at the Franklin & Marshall Invitational on the last weekend of November, a three-day invite with trials in the morning and finals at night. Flannery and the Golden Bears will work extremely hard and look to peak at the F&M Open to try and post as many low of times as possible. Look for some of the top times of the season to be posted on the weekend of Nov. 22-24.
 
Kutztown's upperclassmen will carry most of the workload this season, however, look for experience to build in many of the newcomers in hopes of making an impact at some point throughout the season.
 
"We will continue to focus on improving our times to put us in a good position heading into the PSAC Championships," Flannery said. "We want to get as many people qualified for PSAC's as possible. I'm fully expecting that the girls that qualified last year will qualify again this year, and hopefully we have some new faces work their way to the conference meet as well to ultimately get us some additional points to move our way up the standings."
 
Sprint Freestyle
 
Junior Caitlin Davies (Ephrata, Pa./Ephrata) returns after a PSAC Championships appearance last season in the 50-free. At last year's Franklin & Marshall invite, she made her way onto Kutztown's All-Time Top 10 list in the 100-free. Davies is seventh overall on the top 10 leaderboard and is expected to be one of Kutztown's top sprint swimmers this season.
 
Fellow junior Rachael Burke (Barnesville, Pa./Mahanoy Area) has great experience in the 50-, 100-, and 200- freestyle events. She will also see time in butterfly swims but will primarily look to put her best times together in the free. Sophomore Samantha Scialpi (West Pittston, Pa./Pittston) saw time in numerous events in her freshman campaign last year, and with continued progression, will work her way to one of Kutztown's impact swimmers.
 
Freshman Aimee Watkins (Hatboro, Pa./Hatboro-Horsham) has impressed through preseason camp and should work her way into the main rotation in mid-distance.
 
Distance Freestyle
 
Senior Elizabeth Metz (Rosemont, Pa./Radnor) enters her fourth season in the Maroon and Gold and has competed at the PSAC Championships in each of her previous three years. Her top swim last year came in the 1000-free at the PSAC Championships that earned her third on the school's all-time list. She also rates third in the 1650-free and enters the season as one of the top candidates to be a record-setter this season.
 
Junior Kelli Sheatsley (Allentown, Pa./Parkland) is also a member of the top-10 list in the 1650-free. She will compete in numerous events including the individual medley as her versatility can help Kutztown in specific dual meets down the stretch.
 
Zoe Sianis (Wyomissing, Pa./Wyomissing) returns to the team this year for her senior season. She ranks on two top-10 charts from her performances at the 2010 PSAC Championships and is Kutztown's top option in the individual medley. Freshmen Vicky Ceasar (Coplay, Pa./Whitehall), Samantha Harlacker, and Allison Crouse (Manheim, Pa./Manheim Central) will all compete for contributing roles throughout the season in distance freestyle.
 
Back
 
Senior Emily Scordato (Bellefonte, Pa./Bellefonte) and junior Ellen Groeneveld (Moorestown, N.J./Moorestown) are strong in the 100- and 200-backstroke and are two of Kutztown's top back swimmers. Of the four primary backstroke swimmers, the duo of Scordato and Groeneveld bring the most experience and opportunity to make a trip to the conference championships.
 
Building on the depth in the backstroke, Scialpi as well as freshman Caitlyn Falguera (Hatboro, Pa./Hatboro-Horsham) will compete in events to give Kutztown multiple scoring options in one event.
 
Fly
 
Junior Jessica Bleiler (Dillsburg, Pa./Northern) broke the school-record in the 100-fly at last season's Franklin & Marshall Invite. Like Metz, she has competed at the PSAC Championships in each of her years at Kutztown. She ranks on three all-time top 10 lists as well as the 50-free and 200-fly. Not only will Bleiler compete in sprint freestyle for Kutztown, look for the junior to go for the school-record in the 200-fly in her junior campaign.
 
Fellow junior Melanie Felkner (Yardley, Pa./Pennsbury) swam the butterfly all season last year. She posted career-best times in five events, and her consistency could help bring added depth to the event.
 
Sianis and Burke will also compete in the fly this year for Kutztown.
 
Breast
 
Senior Natalie Carr (Exeter, Pa./Wyoming Area) has competed at three PSAC Championships and rates on two top-10 leaderboards in the breaststroke. Looking to return to her 2011 form when she posted career-bests in five of her six events, Carr will be the anchor of the breaststroke and aim for individual victories throughout the season.
 
Sianis and Sheatsley have previous experience in the breaststroke and could see time in the event.
 
Overall
 
Kutztown is one of six women-only programs in the PSAC along with Mansfield, Lock Haven, California (PA), East Stroudsburg, and Millersville. It faces all of the women's teams except for California (PA) in dual-meet action this season, as it hosts a pair of dual meets and its annual invitational.
 
It hosts nationally-ranked LIU Post in Kutztown's home-opener on Nov. 9. It hosts the annual Golden Bear Invitational at Keystone Pool the following weekend and closes its home schedule at the end of January against Millersville.