KUTZTOWN, Pa. – Kutztown women's swimming had a strong finish to last season, capped by
Gracie McKee's (Gilbertsville, Pa./Boyertown) Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference gold medal in the 200-yard backstroke. It was KU's and head coach
Tim Flannery's first event champion since 2010.
The Golden Bears finished ninth at PSAC Championships in York in February with 400 team points following the four-day event, the third straight year they ended ninth at PSACs. They haven't finished higher than ninth since the 2010-11 campaign when they were eighth.
McKee and
Jade Ware (Easton, Pa./Wilson Area) were two upperclassmen competing at championships last season and are both back this season. That duo led a talented group of freshmen, including
Frannie Pease-Wingenter (Goodyear, Ariz./Millennium),
Annamarie Rodier (Mount Laurel, N.J./Lenape),
Ana Soto (Hamburg, N.J./Vernon Township) and
Natasha Sheehy (Tempe, Australia/MLC School). The first three return to the squad looking to improve upon their times.
Flannery welcomes one of his largest rosters in his 27th season leading the program. It is a prominently young group, with 74% of the team underclassmen.
Jaylin Calistro (Temple, N.H./Contoocook Valley Regional) is the lone senior and, along with Ware,
Olivia Bing (Newtown, Pa./Council Rock North) and
Ainsley Fischer (Newark, Del./Delaware Military Academy) are the juniors.
Kutztown began its 2023-24 season in a PSAC meet with Shippensburg, back on Wednesday, Sept. 27. McKee, Pease-Wingenter and Rodier combined for 10 wins on the evening. The meet was tied at 113 after 12-of-14 events, with the final outcome decided in the 200-yard individual medley and 200-yard freestyle relay. Shippensburg jumped ahead by 11 with a 1-2-4 finish in the 200 IM and though the Maroon and Gold answered with a win in the 200 free relay from Rodier, Soto,
Trinity Miller (Mount Pleasant, Pa./Mount Pleasant) and Pease-Wingenter, it wasn't quite enough as the hosts needed a 1-2 finish to flip the result in their favor.
Birta Smaradottir (Mosfellsbær, Iceland/Commercial College of Iceland) was a part of the winning 200 medley relay team with McKee, Soto and Pease-Wingenter.
Kutztown hosts Cedar Crest for a home meet tomorrow, Saturday, Oct. 14, at 1 p.m., from Keystone Pool.
