AUBURN, Ala. – The NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships are back on this year, and the Auburn women will be well-represented with eight swimmers qualifying for the meet later this month.
Seniors Carly Cummings and Jewels Harris headline a group that also includes juniors Emily Hetzer and Devan Sweeney, sophomore Averee Preble and a trio of freshmen – Brynn Curtis, Colby Hurt and Hannah Ownbey.
"I am thrilled to have eight swimmers representing Auburn at the NCAA Championships," Auburn head coach Gary Taylor said. "It's certainly been a difficult season for a number of reasons, but these women worked through adversity and punched their tickets to the championships.
"This group includes several veterans who are making a return to the competition, and I am extremely happy for these women. After having last season taken away, they will get the opportunity to return and share their knowledge with our younger women. We also have freshmen, sophomores, and juniors who will get to experience this competition for the first time. This is really important in their continued growth and will also play a role in pulling others along with them next season."
Cummings, Hetzer and Preble all qualified for last year's NCAA Championships but never got the chance to swim because the meet was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Two years ago, Hetzer and Harris both qualified for NCAAs while Cummings made it as relay alternate and swam the breaststroke leg on the 400 medley relay. Hetzer earned CSCAA All-American honors after finishing 15th overall in the 1650 freestyle.
This will be the first NCAA Championship meet for Sweeney, a redshirt transfer who transferred to Auburn from Missouri, as well as the three freshmen – Curtis, Hurt and Ownbey.
All eight qualifiers scored points at the SEC Championships last month. Ownbey led the way with A-Final appearances in the 200 and 400 IM along with a B-Final swim in the 200 breaststroke. Harris also made an A-Final in the 100 butterfly. Cummings, who will swim in three events at NCAAs, is the school-record holder in the 200 breaststroke, a record she set at this time last year.
Auburn's NCAA roster could grow next week at the Zone B Diving Championships where sophomores Ashlynn Sullivan and Gretchen Wensuc and freshman Maia Goldstein will all have a chance to secure their spot.
The 2021 NCAA Women's S&D Championships will take place March 17-20 from Greensboro, North Carolina.
