INDIANAPOLIS - The University of California San Diego is sending 20 student-athletes to the 2018 NCAA Division II Men's and Women's Swimming & Diving Championships in Greensboro, N.C., March 14-17. The official list of qualifiers was announced by the NCAA on Thursday afternoon.
The sixth-ranked UC San Diego women will have 10 swimmers, all three divers and at least one relay specialist traveling, for a total of 14 competitors. Those chosen for the 16th-ranked Triton men include five swimmers and their only diver. The four-day meet will be held at the Greensboro Aquatic Center.
The women's group includes three seniors in Angie Phetbenjakul, Haley Hamza and Alex Rodman (Coronado/Coronado HS). Phetbenjakul is making her fourth trip. Hamza is a third-time qualifier, but was unable to go as a sophomore due to injury. Rodman will be a repeat attendee. Reagan Eickert and Lily Maxfield are three-time qualifiers, with fellow junior Amanda Sumrow (San Diego/Patrick Henry HS) earning her first NCAA trip. Sophomore Kaitlyn Ritchey is going for a second straight year, and will be joined by first-timers Lindsay Clark, Ciara Franke (San Diego/La Jolla HS) and Rachel Taylor, all true freshmen.
Among the five Triton men's swimmers going are seniors Kevin Wylder and captain Kevin Fink, and junior Garrett Tse. It marks a fourth qualification in four years as a Triton for Wylder. Fink makes his return in his final go-around after a trip in 2016. Tse is a second-timer, as is sophomore Edgar Chin, who went as a relay swimmer in 2017. True freshman Tenny Chong has made his first NCAA qualifying team.
Divers Brooke Abrantes (San Diego/Santana HS) and Patty Sullivan are making their third appearances, with fellow junior Delainey Carlin (Carlsbad/Carlsbad HS) a repeat qualifier. Senior Trevor Jackson (Ramona/Ramona HS) is the men's representative, for a second straight year since he joined the program. All four divers will compete in the pre-qualification meet in the one- and three-meter springboard competitions on Tuesday, March 13, attempting to make the main draw in either event. Abrantes is the only one to have done so previously, last year, en route to earning All-America honorable mention in the three-meter in 16th place.
Senior captain Haley Murphy is headed to Greensboro as a relay swimmer for the second straight year, and for the third consecutive year overall. More Triton men and women may be added to that relays-only list in the coming days. The UC San Diego men and women will both swim all five relay events.
True freshman Zack Reuter, the Pacific Collegiate Swimming and Diving Conference (PCSC) Championships Men's Co-Swimmer of the Meet, is No. 10 among 10 men's alternates, with his B cut in the 400-yard individual medley of 3:56.47.
Under the leadership of first-year head coach David Marsh, UC San Diego will travel to North Carolina on Sunday, March 11. The UCSD women were 16th last March, with the Triton men 19th.
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