CSUEB swimmers rack up All-America, all-conference awards

• March 27, 2014 9:00am

Cal State East Bay's swimming team racked up accolades and records during the 2013-14 season, the fourth under current Head Coach Ben Loorz. The season culminated at the 2014 NCAA Championships with a 15th place team finish, three All-American performances, and all six Pioneers whom qualified earning at minimum All-America Honorable Mention honors.

Caitlin DeNise, Alyssa Tenney, Brittany Rojo, and Madison Hauanio earned All-America honors qualifying for the championship finals in the 200-yard and 400-yard freestyle relays. DeNise became the first Pioneer since the early 1990's to earn individual All-America honors with a seventh place finish in the 100-yard butterfly.

Both medley relay teams earned All-America Honorable Mention status after qualifying for the consolation final of the NCAA Championships. Kamaehu Alboro and Makila Schuck swam the backstroke and breaststroke legs, respectively on those squads. Rojo, DeNise, and Hauanio each earned individual All-America Honorable Mention honors.

In total the Pioneers finished the regular season with 23 individual and all five relays recording NCAA Provisional qualifying times. In addition, DeNise recorded an automatic qualifying time with her lifetime best of 54.78 seconds set at the Pacific Collegiate Swim Conference (PCSC) Championships.

It was one of DeNise's three podium finishes at the PCSC Championship meet. She was the first Pioneer to earn PCSC titles since East Bay joined the PCSC in the early 1990's after winning the 200 individual medley and 100 free.

Five different Pioneers recorded PCSC individual podium finishes including Tenney (400 IM), Hauanio (400 IM), Rojo (100 Fly), and Mariam Lowe (100 Back). All five relays finished runner-up at the PCSC meet and later beat the conference champion squad from UC San Diego at the NCAA National Championships.

In total 10 different individuals earned All-PCSC Team honors after recording a top-8 finish in an individual event. The list includes Alboro (100 Back), Hannah Cutts (1,000 Free & 1,650 Free), DeNise (200 IM, 100 Fly, 100 Free), Hauanio (200 IM, 400 IM, 200 Back), Rachel Knowles (400 IM & 200 Breast), Lowe (100 Back & 200 Back), Rojo (50 Free, 100 Fly, 200 Fly), Courtney Schwiesow (100 Breast, 200 Breast), Rachel Shimizu (1,000 Free, 200 Free, 1,650 Free), and Tenney (200 IM, 400 IM, 200 Back).

Cal State East Bay finished runner-up at the PCSC Championships with DeNise earning Female Swimmer of the Meet honors. The Pioneers broke 15 school records with many reset multiple times throughout the season.

The awards do not stop there as the Pioneers were successful in the pool as well as the classroom. CSUEB boasted a 3.17 team grade point average in the fall to earn College Swimming Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) Team Scholar All-American Honors.

Cutts, Lowe, and Shimizu are Honorable Mention Individual Academic All-Americans after maintaining a 3.5 or better GPA and recording an NCAA "B" cut time during the 2013-14 season. Schuck and Tenney earned Individual Academic All-America honors with 3.5 or better GPA's and participated in the NCAA National Championship meet.

Tenney, Knowles, and Jessica Reed-Baum received Academic All-Conference honors with 3.5 or better GPA's and after participating in the PCSC Championship meet.

-- CSUEB Sports Information Staff