While LSU’s swim team fell short of their goals, the dive team excelled throughout the entire season, but the coaches are proud of how the two pools came together as a program.
“The men and women’s teams did a great job in terms of being a swimming and diving program this year,” swimming coach Dave Geyer said. “There’s a lot of friendships and a lot of respect that goes on between the two pools.”
In total, 13 members of the swimming and diving team represented LSU at the NCAA national championship, including five seniors who concluded their careers at the meet.
“It was bittersweet,” senior freestyle swimmer Leah Troskot said. “It’s sad to end your career, but there is no better place to end it than at NCAA’s, which is arguably one of the fastest meets in the world.”
Troskot placed 20th overall in the country, wrapped up her swimming career with a personal best in the 100 free and notched the second best time in LSU history.
Senior Kara Kopcso placed 25th overall at NCAA’s, holds four school records after her time at LSU in the 200 and 400 individual medleys and 100 and 200 fly. Senior Colleen O’Neil took 41st overall in the preliminary round at her third NCAA meet.
“There were a lot of ups and down this season as I guess every sport goes,” Troskot said. “We had high goals this year and we fell a little short.”
For the men, the 400-meter relay team of junior Jake Markham, senior Logan Rysemus and freshmen Lewis Clough and Karl Luht clocked in at 2:54.02 taking 21st overall.
Rysemus competed in his third and final NCAA’s and walked away as a four-time school record holder.
“It’s disappointing when you look at things from a national scale of where we are at,” Geyer said. “But then you take a step back, and you look at what the program accomplished this year and we can continue to take steps forward.”
A historic season for the young diving squad leaves room for a lot of potential in the upcoming years.
“If I take it in a real general sense, I’m just blessed because I have a group of athletes that really bought in — worked together,” diving coach Doug Shaffer said.
Five divers competed at NCAA’s, including all four of the men’s team.
Sophomore diver Lizzie Cui was the only diver that had previously qualified for NCAA’s.
“To watch [the men’s team] from last year to this year,” Cui said. “We’ve all improved, and for all four of them to qualify was absolutely amazing.”
Cui qualified for all three events and earned first team All-American honors on one-meter springboard, becoming the first women’s diver since 2004 to earn the first team accolade for LSU.
For Cui, her goals are clear for the future.
“I want to win an SEC championship on two boards, or maybe even three, and I want to place top three at NCAA’s on one-meter and three-meter,” Cui said.
Senior Andrew Suchla qualifying for his first NCAA’s was a moment that stood out to Shaffer, though.
“That was probably the most rewarding aspect of the whole season,” Shaffer said. “He never gave up. He kept working and kept the big picture in mind.”
Suchla earned All-American honorable mention for his performance on one-meter springboard and
freshman Juan Celaya-Hernandez also earned All-American honors after qualifying for all three events.
Celaya-Hernandez broke all three school records at the SEC championships during his first year in the pool.
“It was good to watch [the Olympians] compete and to compete against them and even beat them, that was a bonus,” Celaya-Hernandez said. “That’s how I like to compete — with higher level competitors.”