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Colella Announces Incoming Group for 2008-09
8/19/2008 12:00:00 AM | Swimming & Diving
DURHAM, N.C. ? Duke head swimming and diving coach Dan Colella has announced the 14 incoming student-athletes who will join the Blue Devils on the men's and women's side for the upcoming 2008-09 season.
Both programs welcome seven new members to the squad, representing nine states as well as Canada. Two student-athletes on each side will compete in diving.
“We are thrilled with the arrival of our freshmen class,” said Colella. “They have come to Duke to earn a world-class education and to help us in our quest to becoming a world-class swimming and diving program. This is an extremely gifted group that will make an immediate impact for us both at the conference and national level. We are looking forward to working with them in the coming weeks.”
On the men's side:
Willson Buchanan comes to Duke as an in-state product from Charlotte, N.C., and Myers Park High School. A four-year letterwinner and senior year team captain and MVP, Buchanan was voted WSOC-TV's Outstanding Senior for the high school and competed outside with the Mecklenburg Aquatic Club.
Nate French, a swimmer out of Pittsford, N.Y., and Pittsford-Mendon High School, is a reigning All-America in the 500 freestyle, recognition he earned as both a junior and senior. He was a state champion in the 500 free as a junior, and is a three-time Section V champion and two-time Section V Division I Swimmer of the Year. Voted First Team All-County as a sophomore, junior, and senior, French turned in times of 4:35.89 in the 500 free and 1:42.92 in the 200 free as a senior. Junior year, he clocked 15:49 for the 1,650 free, 9:30.00 for 1,000 free, and 4:35.38 for 500 free.
Shawn Hoffman comes to Duke as a diver from North Tonawanda, N.Y., and North Tonawanda High School. The 2008 state champion as a senior, Hoffman holds section VI and Niagara Frontier League records for his 11-dive scores, also holding the school record. He posted his six-dive best performance of 364.85 and 11-dive best of 606.35 during his senior year, improving his junior year bests in the six- and 11-dive events from 346.25 and 551.70, respectively. Hoffman earned varsity letters every year from the seventh grade through his senior year, and competed outside with the Wings Diving Team.
Andrew Huff joins the Blue Devils from Scarsdale, N.Y., and Edgemont High School, where he competed in the freestyle, butterfly, and individual medley events. Huff was a state qualifier in the 100, 200, and 500 free, as well as the 100 fly and the 200 IM as a junior and senior competitor. A section I champion in the 500 free as a junior, Huff finished the year undefeated in the event before being forced to sit out of the state championships with an injury despite qualifying in five events. He earned silver medals in both the 200 and 500 freestyle at the sectional meet, and competed in the 200 IM and 500 free at the state meet as a junior, reaching the finals in the latter. Huff, who competed outside of school with the Badger Swim Club, is also a Junior Nationals competitor in several events and has competed internationally with his club team in Montreal and Geneva.
Alex Kluge will join the Duke program from Macungie, Pa., and Emmaus High School, where he specialized in the individual medley and backstroke and was a 12-time All-America selection. Kluge was the state 200 IM bronze medalist as a senior, also taking bronze in the 100 backstroke as a junior and finishing as the runner-up in the 200 IM. His resume also includes a state championship in the 200 IM as a sophomore. Kluge has competed as a member of the state-record holding 200 medley relay team and was a member of the 200 medley relay that was the state runner-up during his freshman season.
Cody Kolodziejzyk comes to Duke from the National Sport School, and Calgary, Alberta, Canada, as an Olympic trials qualifying diver. He previously qualified for and competed in Senior Nationals from 2006-08, placing seventh in the 3-meter open and sixth in the 1-meter open, and for Junior Nationals. Kolodziejzyk was the Dive Calgary Senior Male Athlete of the Year for 2008, and a member of the Alberta Junior Team from 2007-08. His performance earned him the silver medal on the 3-meter board at the Alberta Winter Provincials, and took silver on the 3-meter and bronze on the 1-meter at the Western Canada Summer Games.
Ben Tuben comes to Duke from Fairfax, Va., where he competed as a butterfly specialist at Thomas Jefferson High School. Tuben broke the Virginia state record in the 100-meter butterfly with his time of 49.77 during preliminaries. He qualified for Junior Nationals as a junior in the 100 fly, with a time of 51.77, and as a senior in the 100 fly (49.64) and 200 fly (1:53.71), making bonus event times for the 100 backstroke as well. His times in the 100 fly and 200 medley relay made him an automatic All-America in the events. He also swam the 100 backstroke in the state meet as a senior and qualified for states in the 100 fly as a freshman, sophomore, and junior ? swimming in the consolation finals all three years.
On the women's side:
Katharine Bodnar joins the Blue Devils women's program from New York City and The Spence School. A four-year letterwinner and senior year team captain, Bodnar was an AAIS League All-Star for four years and team MVP as a sophomore, junior, and senior. She holds school records in the 200 IM, 200 freestyle relay, 400 freestyle relay, 200 medley relay, and the 500 freestyle, and additionally is an AAIS league record holder in the 200 IM, 200 free relay, 200 medley relay, and 400 freestyle relay. Her squad went undefeated and captured the league championship during her final three seasons of competition, and Bodnar capped off her prep career by receiving the Senior Recognition Award from the school. On the club side, she was a short course Senior National Qualifier in the 200 backstroke.
Catherine Conklin joins the Duke program from Kenilworth, Ill., having competed for New Trier High School. A three-year letterwinner and team captain as a senior, Conklin was a state qualifier alternate as a sophomore, junior, and senior, and qualified for sectionals in the 100 backstroke as a junior. She was a second-team statewide selection as a senior and third-team as a sophomore and junior. She swam with the New Trier club from age 7-18 and qualified at the sectional level in the 100 back and 500 free.
Meghan Dwyer comes to Duke from Mission Viejo, Calif., and Mission Viejo High School where she was a four-time All-America and four-time All-County selection. A four-year letterwinner, Dwyer was a team captain as both a junior and senior and holds records at both the high school and club levels.
Abby Johnston is a diver set to join the program from Upper Arlington, Ohio, and Upper Arlington High School. During her prep career Johnston was a three-time All-America and a two-time state champion. She primarily competes on the three-meter springboard. Johnston is a member of the USA Diving Olympic Medal Program (OMP) and was a USA Diving national champion on three-meter synchronized in 2005, 2006, and 2008. She was a Junior National champion on three-meter as well, and secured one silver and two bronze medals at the Junior Pan-Am Games.
Jessica Lyden will join the Duke diving corps from Lexington, Ky., and Lexington Catholic High School. Lyden set the state record on her way to a state championship as a senior with a total score of 498.10 for 11 dives. Sitting out due to injury as a sophomore and junior, Lyden was also a state champion and the team's Most Valuable Diver her freshman season with an 11-dive score of 472.95, while she picked up a second-place score of 461.80 as an eighth-grade competitor. Lyden was an All-State and All-Region selection in each of her eighth grade, freshman, and senior seasons. At the club level, she competed with the Kentucky Dive Club and claimed a title in the one-meter at Junior Nationals in 2005.
Steffi Niessl is a product of Brewster, N.Y., and Brewster High School, where she competed primarily in the butterfly, sprint and backstroke events. An All-America selection as a junior and senior, Niessl was also a sectional high school swimmer of the year and set personal records of 23.83 in the 50 free, 55.84 in the 100 fly, 58.50 in the 100 back, 2:09.09 in the 200 fly, and 2:03.49 in the 200 back. A varsity letterwinner each year from seventh through 12th grade, Niessl was state champion in the 50 free and 100 fly her senior year. A six-time Empire State Games gold medalist, she also holds records at that meet and is a NLSA Junior National Qualifier in seven events. She is also a qualifier in Spring Speedo Nationals, Summer Speedo Junior Nationals, and the U.S. Open.
Rose O'Connor is a distance freestyle swimmer out of Mt. Vernon, N.Y., and Oak Noll High School, where she was a Scholastic All-America selection as a sophomore and junior in addition to her swimming accomplishments.
The 14 incoming student-athletes will officially begin their Duke swimming & diving careers when the squads compete in the Blue and White Meet on Saturday, Oct. 4 at 11 a.m. at Duke's Taishoff Aquatic Pavilion, before hitting the road for their first intercollegiate meet Oct. 18 at UNC Wilmington, set for 2 p.m.
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Players Mentioned
Backstroke
/ Swimming & DivingMid-Free
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Back/Free
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Diving
/ Swimming & DivingDistance Free
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/ Swimming & DivingBack/IM
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Diving
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Diving
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Back/Fly
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Butterfly
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