COLUMBIA, S.C./KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Highlighted by a few conference-best times, the FGCU swimming team wrapped up the Gamecock Invitational while the diving team continued the Tennessee Invitational on Friday.

Overall in Columbia, the Eagles finished fourth out of seven teams, well ahead of CCSA rivals Georgia Southern, North Florida, and Gardner-Webb, and just 18 points behind Vanderbilt. South Carolina won the invitational while UNC Wilmington came in second.

"Very nice week of racing," said head coach Dave Rollins. "We got better as the meet went on and continued to see our details improve. Very proud of these women, overcoming everything they have been through this semester to having the meet they did was great to see. Looking forward to bringing the squad back together as we move into the rest of the season."

The night in South Carolina got started with the 200 back as Emma Hixenbaugh (Louisville, Ky./Ballard HS) touched sixth with a time of 1:59.68. Earlier in the preliminaries, she swam a time of 1:58.90, becoming the first person in the CCSA this season to swim under 1:59 and just the ninth person in FGCU history.

Mia Burke (Owings Mills, Md./McDonogh School) and Izabela Zekuciova (Drmoul, Czech Republic/North Texas) also picked up points for the Eagles in the 200 back as they finished 15^th and 19^th, respectively.

In the 100 free, Hailey Jerew (Miami, Fla./Cutler Bay Senior High) led the way for FGCU as she finished tied for eighth with a time of 51.32. Dani D'Ambrosio (Hillsborough, N.J./Hillsborough) finished 17^th (51.96) while Kaja Reinhardt (Herdecke, Germany Helene-Lange-Gymnasium Dortmund) placed 18^th (52.03).

Three Eagles placed three swimmers in the top 10 in the 200 breast led by Emily Merton (Jacksonville, Fla./Robert E. Lee HS) who touched sixth with a time of 2:17.81. Rebecca Winn (Warwick, United Kingdom/The Kingsley School) finished just behind her in seventh at 2:18.95 while Anna Hogan (Louisville, Ky./Dupont Manual HS) was ninth with a time of 2:19.75.

In the 200 fly, Cameron Kuriger (Columbus, Ohio/Olentangy HS) continued her explosive freshman season as she finished tied for fifth with a time of 1:59.63, the only non-Gamecock to go under 2:04 in the race. Her time is the top in the CCSA this season and the fifth-fastest in FGCU history.

The Eagles finished the meet with the 400 free relay as Burke, Jerew, D'Ambrosio, and Reinhardt swam a time of 3:25.70 to finish sixth. All three of FGCU's relay teams finished in the top 10, the only school besides South Carolina to do so.

In Tennessee, Reese Wakefield (Guelph, Ontario, Canada/Bishop Macdonelle CHS) led the way for the Eagles, putting up a six-dive score on the 1-meter of 236.75, ahead of divers from Michigan, Duke, Tennessee, and Virginia.

Team Scores

1. South Carolina – 1,818.50
2. UNC Wilmington – 1,107.50
3. Vanderbilt – 629
4. FGCU – 611
5. Georgia Southern – 322
6. UNF – 278
7. Gardner-Webb – 264

 
Eagles Entering the CCSA Top 10
200 Back
Emma Hixenbaugh – 1:58.90, 1^st
Mia Burke – 2:03.20, 8^th
 
100 Free
Hailey Jerew – 51.32, 4^th
 
200 Breast
Emily Merton – 2:17.81, 3^rd
Anna Hogan – 2:18.44, 4th
Rebecca Winn – 2:18.46, 5^th
 
200 Fly
Cameron Kuriger – 1:59.63, 1^st
 
400 Free Relay
3:25.70, 2nd

For complete coverage of FGCU swimming & diving, follow the Eagles on Twitter (@FGCU_WSwimDive), Instagram (@FGCU_WSwimDive) and online at www.FGCUAthletics.com. You can also sign up to have news on FGCU swimming & diving or other programs delivered directly to your inbox by visiting www.fgcuathletics.com/email.
 
HEAD COACH DAVE ROLLINS
Head coach Dave Rollins is only the second coach in program history. He was hired Sept. 1, 2016 and owns a 38-26-1 (.592) dual meet record, which includes a 16-2 (.889) mark against CCSA opponents, in his seventh season. Rollins guided FGCU to back-to-back CCSA titles (2017, 2018), marking the ninth championship in 10 years before winning the 10th championship in program history in 2021. In addition, he has been awarded CCSA Coach of the Year in two of his seasons at the helm. Previously, Rollins was the associate head men's swimming coach at The Ohio State University. Rollins brings over a decade of coaching experience to The Nest, which includes helping to develop Olympians, NCAA Champions and All-Americans, along with multiple conference champions. A native of Brockton, Mass., he was a standout collegiate swimmer in his own right and was inducted into the University of Arizona's Hall of Fame in 2017, as a nine-time NCAA All-American, national champion, school record holder and team captain.
 
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ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 93 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 15 seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just 11 seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 45 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. In 2022, the men's golf team became the first program to earn at at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament. Eight FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport - including women's basketball (No. 20, 2021-22), beach volleyball (No. 20, 2022) and both men's soccer (2018, 2019) and women's soccer (2018) as four of the most recent. In 2016-17, the Green and Blue posted a department-best sixth-place finish in the DI-AAA Learfield Directors' Cup and top-100 showing nationally, ahead of several Power-5 and FBS institutions. In 2018-19, the Eagles had an ASUN and state of Florida best seven teams earn the NCAA's Public Recognition Award for their Academic Progress Rate in their sport. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.50 GPA in the classroom in the fall 2020 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for 26 consecutive semesters. The past five semesters (Fall 2019 – Spring 2022) saw another milestone reached as all 15 programs achieved a 3.0-or-higher cumulative team GPA. The Eagles also served an all-time high 7,200 volunteer hours in 2017 - being recognized as one of two runners-up for the inaugural NACDA Community Service Award presented by the Fiesta Bowl.