Dec. 15, 2009
LEXINGTON, Ky. — The Kentucky swimming and diving teams announces the addition of 11 athletes to join the 2010-11 rosters next fall. Kentucky will add eight women and three men to its squad next season.
All 11 of these athletes come from an array of backgrounds, but all are certain to add quality depth to the nationally ranked Kentucky swimming and diving teams. Coach Gary Conelly and diving coach Ted Hautau are excited about the potential of these athletes on the collegiate level and helping UK continue its rise in the ranks of collegiate competition.
Joining Kentucky in the fall are Emma Brown, Clark Cromer, Marisa McGlynn, Diana Norkus, Abigail Ortmayer, Kelly Titus, Kristen Wilson, Samantha Wright, Will Heidler, Nick Hein and Stevie Wimmer.
Emma Brown
Hometown: Bloomfield Hills, Mich.
Club Team: Legacy Diving Association
Club Coach: Buck Smith
Discipline: Diving
High School: Wylie E. Groves High School
Coach Ted Hautau on Brown: “We are excited to have Emma joining the team. She has a strong work ethic and has been consistently improving since converting from gymnastics to diving a few years ago placing third in her high school state championship this year.”
Clark Cromer
Hometown: Louisville, Ky.
Club Team: Lakeside Seahawks
Club Coach: Mike DeBoor
Discipline: Sprint Free
Best Times: 50-free (24.12); 100-free (52.74)
High School: Sacred Heart Academy
Coach Gary Conelly on Cromer: “Clark is going to add critical depth to our freestyle group, especially in the shorter races. She has a lot of promise and could certainly be a part of our NCAA free relays. In addition, Clark has been trained to Bleed Blue as a daughter of two UK alumni.”
Marisa McGlynn
Hometown: Louisville, Ky.
Club Team: Lakeside Seahawks
Club Coach: Mike DeBoor
Discipline: Backstroke/Individual Medley
Best Times: 100-back (58.56); 200-back (2:04.12); 200-IM (2:11.40)
High School: Sacred Heart Academy
Coach Gary Conelly on McGlynn: “Another swimmer from Coach Mike DeBoor and the Lakeside swim team, Marisa will improve our back, fly and IM events. She is coming off a summer of great improvements. We see her being a critical part of our team in dual meet and conference competition.”
Dianna Norkus
Hometown: Sugar Grove, Ill.
Club Team: Academy Bullets Swim Club
Club Coaches: Bill Schalz and Todd Capen
Discipline: Butterfly/Individual Medley/Freestyle
Best Times: 100-fly (56.75); 200-fly (2:03.84); 200-IM (2:06.58); 100-free (53.10)
High School: Rosary High School
Coach Gary Conelly on Norkus: “Diana’s real strength is butterfly, but she also shows great promise as a freestyle sprinter. We are expecting her to really take off in college becoming a powerful threat in not just fly and free but also IM. She is going to surprise a lot of people in her college swimming career.”
Abigail Ortmayer
Hometown: Arlington, Va.
Club Team: Machine Aquatics
Club Coach: Christian Dowd
Discipline: Breaststroke/Individual Medley
Best Times: 100-breast (1:04.84); 200-breast (2:22.86); 200-IM (2:09.81)
High School: Yorktown High School
Coach Gary Conelly on Ortmayer: “Abi is a great addition to our 2010 freshman class. She is going to add much needed depth to our breaststroke corp. She is a powerful swimmer who could also help us in the IM events. She has a strong UK connection through her uncle who is a member of the football coaching staff.”
Kelly Titus
Hometown: Bowling Green, Ohio
Club Team: Bowling Green Swim Club
Club Coaches: Gary and Carolyn Lane
Discipline: Breaststroke/Individual Medley
Best Times (LCM): 200-IM (2:22.16); 400-IM (5:00.91); 200-breast (2:38.58); 200-free (2:06.80)
Coach Gary Conelly on Titus: “Kelly is a great addition to the team. She is going to be one of our best IMers, but she is also going to help us in just about any event. She is a good middle distance freestyler as well as being a solid breaststoker and butterflyer. She is a focused swimmer who will prove to be a serious asset to UK during her tenure. We are very pleased to have her in this class.”
Kristen Wilson
Hometown: Lexington, Ky.
Club Team: Wildcat Aquatics
Club Coach: Ben Davis
Discipline: Butterfly/Freestyle
Best Times: 50-free (23.41); 100-free (50.94); 200-free (1:50.37); 100-fly (56.52)
High School: Paul Laurence Dunbar High School
Coach Gary Conelly on Wilson: “Kristen is right out of Lexington, Ky. We are extremely pleased to add her to the team. She has tremendous talent. She is a great freestyler from the 50 up to the 500. She is one of the top freestylers nationally in the 2010 class. Everyone expects her to be a great performer in the freestyle events, but I think she is going to also be an NCAA caliber butterflyer. Having Kristen in this class goes a long way to ease the loss of our graduating senior fly and free sprinter, Megan Pulskamp.”
Samantha Wright
Hometown: Wildwood, Mo.
Club Team: Rockwood Swim Club
Club Coach: Mary Liston
Discipline: Backstroke/Individual Medley
Best Times: 100-back (58.13); 200-back (2:05.09); 400-IM (4:31.67)
High School: Lafayette High School
Coach Gary Conelly on Wilson: “Samantha is a swimmer doing all the right things. She took big drops from her 2009 indoor season to her 2009 outdoor season. We feel fortunate to have signed her early because we are certain she is going to continue improving in 2010. She is a hardworking, dedicated swimmer coming out of a solid training background at the Rockwood Swim Club under Mary Liston. She’ll be a powerful threat in back, free and IM events.”
Will Heidler
Hometown: Lisle, Ill.
Club Team: Academy Bullets Swim Club
Club Coaches: Bill Schalz and Todd Capen
Discipline: Backstroke/Individual Medley/Breaststroke
Best Times: 200-IM (1:52.71); 400-IM (4:00.94); 100-back (52.11); 200-back (1:51.09); 100-breast (58.98)
High School: Naperville North High School
Coach Gary Conelly on Heidler: “Will is a very exciting addition to the team. We expect him to really take off in college. He is a focused athlete who is competitive in all four strokes. He is going to give us more depth in all of our events. He will be a serious threat in any dual meet event. I expect he will be a real standout in the IM events, but he is the sort of swimmer who can be at the national level in whatever event he chooses.”
Nick Hein
Hometown: Danville, Pa.
Club Team: Indian River State College
Club Coach: Frank Bradley
Discipline: Sprint Freestyle/Fly
Best Times: 50-free (20.6); 100-free (45.2); 100-fly (51.8)
High School: Danville Area High School
Coach Gary Conelly on Hein: “Nick is a junior college transfer from Indian River State College who will go a long way in replacing our graduating sprinters. He is a powerful sprinter who will be a contender in the 50, 100 free, and 100 fly. He will certainly be one of the sprint relay members and will help to keep our sprint events among the best in country.”
Stevie Wimmer
Hometown: Libertyville, Ill.
Club Team: CATS Aquatic Team
Club Coach: Kevin Zakrzewski
Discipline: Sprint Freestyle/Fly
High School: Libertyville High School
Coach Gary Conelly on Wimmer: “Stevie is an incredibly talented athlete. He is a multidimensional swimmer who will be an asset in freestyle events from the 50 up to the 200. He is also an outstanding sprint butterflyer. He could easily score in three individual events at our conference meet and should be an NCAA qualifier in his freshman season. His addition to the team will keep all of our freestyle relays at the NCAA Championships.”
For the most up-to-date information regarding the Kentucky swimming and diving squads please visit UKathletics.com.
