Marshall swim team boasts several top athletes

Sophomore Jenny Johnnson of Osby, Sweden, capped a spectacular first season with the Herd swimming and diving team as she was named the 2008 Conference USA Newcomer of the Year as announced by the league office.

"This is such a great honor for the program," Marshall head coach Leonard Kraus said. "We were extremely happy with the way Jenny was able to perform during her first season here and she really earned this honor."

A transfer from Ashland (Ohio) University, Johnnson set a school record in the 200-yard backstroke three times during the 2007-08 season, finally setting the mark at 2:06.51 at the C-USA Championships in Houston. Johnsson also ranks in the top-10 in school history in the 400-yard IM with a collegiate-best of 4:33.37.

Johnnson is the first Marshall swimmer to receive a postseason swimming award since the Herd joined the league in 2005.

She finished the season by setting her second school record at the Conference USA Championships at the University of Houston with a 2:06.51 in the 200-yard backstroke.

Prior to coming to Marshall, Johnnson was named Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year in 2007 and Female Swimmer of the Year for Ashland in 2007. The Osby, Sweden native has also participated in the Swedish Junior Nationals where she finished seventh in the 400 IM and third in the 1500-meter freestyle. 

---

Herd swimmer Michaela Sceli of LaSalle, Ontario, Canada, came very close to qualifying for the 2008 Canadian Olympic team at the Canadian National Championships. She won her morning preliminary heat and took the 15th seed into 200-meter breaststroke finals Saturday, April 5.

Sceli came up short in her attempt to make the Olympics in the 100-meter breast as she finished in eighth-place in Wednesday’s finals of the event despite setting a new lifetime best with a time of 1:11.13.

One of the most decorated swimmers in Marshall history, Sceli recently finished her career with a Conference USA title in the 100-yard breast. She holds the school record in both the 100 and 200-yard events.

---

At the Conference USA Championships at the University of Houston, Marshall set a new school record in the 400-yard freestyle relay as Kyla Jungclaus, Jenae Moreno, Lauren Fairbanks and Johnnson teamed up to swim a time of 3:33.98.

The Marshall divers combined to take fifth through eighth-place in the platform diving event. Siobhan Schuurman led the way for the Herd divers once again, breaking her own school record in the platform with a final score of 145.

PHOTO GALLERY