Swim Team Heads to Conference Championship with Top 25 National Ranking
The Converse College swim team remained 25th in the College Swim Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) Division II Coaches Poll as they finished their regular season competition last weekend and headed to the conference championship. The Valkyries ended the season with a strong showing against Division I Marshall University, defeating the Herd in swimming by a score of 219-203. But the Valkyries ended the meet with an overall score, including diving, of 219-237. Division III Ursuline College also participated in the meet and was defeated by the Valkyries 219 – 40. Converse swimmer Meghan Calvaruso’s performance at the meet earned her the Bluegrass Mountain Conference Player of the Week award.
Converse will take a week and a half rest before traveling to the Mecklenburg Aquatic Center in Charlotte, NC to begin the Bluegrass Mountain Conference Championships. There, the team aims to improve upon last year’s fourth-place showing with seven all-conference swimmers. The Valkyries anticipate a challenge with four other teams in the conference ranked nationally in their respective divisions, plus the addition of two teams this year bringing the competition to 17-teams. Two Valkyries swimmers have achieved national cuts: Rhiannon Gluhosky (Summerville, SC) and Jenni Russell (Rock Hill, SC). Teammates Jess Mason (Greenville, SC), Meghan Calvaruso (Louisville, KY), and Ashley Johnson (Florence, SC) are just outside of making NCAA national cuts. The 400 and 800 free relay squads currently rank 3rd and 4th, respectively, in the Bluegrass Mountain Conference. Follow the Valkyries Swim Team on Twitter @ValkyriesSwim and on Facebook at Converse College Swimming.