yote notes - edition 14 (Season REVIEW)

COMING UP: Season Complete

LAST WEEK: at NAIA National Championships (Men 15th place, Women 17th place)

TOP-20 FINISHES FOR THE YOTES: It was a banner way to end the 2011-12 swim season for The C of I, as both teams finished in the Top-20 at the NAIA Championships in Oklahoma City, Okla.  The Coyote men finished 15th with 30 team points – their highest finish since placing 12th with 79 team points during the 2008 season, and the fifth time that the team has placed in the Top-20.  The Lady Yotes placed 17th overall with six team points, their best finish since 2008, when they placed 18th with 14 team points and the fourth time in the Top-20.

MAKING THE FINALS: For the first time since the 2009 season, C of I individual swimmers moved out of the morning preliminary heats into the evening finals.  Jeremy Erbsen (Denver, Colo. / U. of Colorado) was 2-for-2 in his races, making the consolation final in both the 100 and 200-backstroke, finishing fifth in the final heat of the 200.  Lucas Hill (Pendleton, Ore. / Pendleton HS) reached his first evening session after three trips to Nationals, qualifying in the 200-butterfly, placing fifth in the consolation final.  Three women’s relays and three men’s relays also swam at night, with the men’s 400-medley relay taking fifth in the consolation final.

EIGHT RECORDS BROKEN: A total of nine school records fell during the 2011-12 season – eight of which occurred at the Oklahoma City Community College Natatorium.  Jeremy Erbsen smashed both backstroke records – swimming under 54 seconds in the 100 (53.94) and becoming the first C of I swimmer to break to the 2-minute barrier in the 200 (1:56.13).  Lucas Hill broke a pair of records as well, eclipsing his own marks in the 400-IM (4:25.83) and the 200-fly (1:57.85).  On the women’s side, Chrissie Younggren (La Grande, Ore. / La Grande HS) had a big meet, breaking two school records in the lead legs of relays – besting the 200-free (2:05.85) and the 100-back (1:06.66), along with taking 20 seconds off the 1,650-free mark (19:04.98).

SEASON RECAP: It was an up-and-down season for the Yotes, dealing with a smaller roster size that made winning dual meets difficult.  The Lady Yotes picked up a 43-43 draw against Division III Mills College in December, while the Coyote men logged a 111-74 victory over Willamette during the same weekend.  The men finished with a 1-7 dual record, while the women ended with a 0-9-1 record.

LOOKING AHEAD:  Much optimism looms for both programs, as head coach Christine Mabile has been hot on the recruiting trail – with multiple signing expected to be announced in the coming weeks.  The squad will need to replace seniors Casey Walker (Portland, Ore. / Skyview HS) and Kemp Smith (Boise, Idaho / Boise HS), while the Lady Yotes return nearly the entire team intact – helping depth for the 2012-13 season.

ABOUT THE COACH: Christine Mabile just completed her first season as head coach of the Coyotes, taking over the program on January 2.  Mabile comes to The C of I after spending four seasons as a student-assistant coach at Boise State, helping the Broncos to the 2010 and 2011 Western Athletic Conference titles. She has also directed the Streamliner Aquatics program and coached at the Treasure Valley YMCA and at Capital High. A 2010 graduate of Boise State, she earned her degree in Kinesiology-Exercise Science - and currently is a swim instructor for the BSU kinesiology department.   She began her collegiate career at The C of I, swimming for the Coyotes for two seasons - qualifying for the NAIA National Championships in 2006 and 2007. Mabile currently holds a trio of school records - as she was a part of the 200-freestyle, 200-medley, and 400-freestyle relay teams that clocked the fastest time in program history during the 2006-07 season.  A native of Post Falls, Mabile was a member of the 2003 and 2004 state championship teams at Post Falls High.

FOR MORE INFORMATION: For more on The C of I swimming program, head to the official homepage of the Coyotes, www.collegeofidaho.edu/swimming.