Nicole Mancini of Falmouth, who dives for Bentley University, and Bangor’s Emma Waddell, who swims for Williams College, are among the 2016 first-team All-American swimmers and divers recently announced by the College Swimming Coaches Association.
Mancini, competing in this year’s NCAA Division II nationals, finished sixth in the 3-meter competition. The senior also won both the 1- and 3-meter titles at this season’s Northeast 10 Conference Championship.
Waddell recorded a time of 50.06 seconds in the 100-yard freestyle, fractions behind the season’s fastest Division III time of 49.86, according to CSCA results. At the New England Small Conference Athletic Conference Championships, the sophomore set meet records in the 50 butterfly (23.9) and the 100 butterfly (53.3).
Williams won the conference title and finished third at the NCAA Division III nationals.
Brunswick swimmer heading to FSU
Brunswick’s Nate Samson will race for Florida State University next season after considering Ohio State, Penn State and the University of North Carolina.
“The campus is gorgeous, the team is super tight, and the practices are intense,” Samson said.
Samson’s communications with the team and coach Frank Bradley have revealed their goals as the Long Reach Swim Club member described them for the program, and they have the multi-stroke swimmer scoring in the finals at the Atlantic Coast Conference Championship in his events and “doing my part” in the relays, he said.
Samson, who intends to pursue his interest in chemistry at FSU, raced a 48.7 in the 100 butterfly placing second and a fourth-place 1:50.4 in the 200 individual medley at the YMCA Nationals earlier this spring. He also scored fourth in the 100 backstroke at 48.5.
In the Class A state meet, he established a record in the 100 free at 46.2 for the state champion Dragons.
According to FSU’s class posting for next year, Max Polianski of New Zealand, whose father, Igor, won a gold medal in the 200-meter backstroke at the 1988 Olympics for the USSR, will join Samson and the Seminoles.
Ellsworth swimmers heading to Florida
Meanwhile, two members of the Class B champion Ellsworth High Eagles will continue their swimming in Florida next season as well.
Talor Hamilton will race at NCAA Division II Florida Southern College. The senior led the Eagles to the Class B state crown this year and set standards in Class B swimming in the 50 free at 21.1 and in the 100 free at 46.4.
“He should be a great asset to their team, and I am sure he is destined for greater things in the sport,” Ellsworth coach Jim Goodman said.
FSC finished third in the NCAA nationals. Mike Brum, coach of FSC, was voted Sunshine State Conference Coach of the Year for 2016.
Another member of Goodman’s team, Cooper Holmes, who has the distinction of being the only Eagle swimmer to race under a minute in each of the four strokes, also will compete in the NCAA Division II as a member of the University of Tampa.
“He, like Talor, will be a great asset to his college team as a freshman and should excel at the next level of competition and make great contributions to the team,” Goodman noted.
Tampa, coached by Ed Brennan, finished third in this year’s Sunshine State Conference and consistently ranks among the top 10 teams in Division II.
“These two seniors were the critical dynamic foundation of the team as co-captains and high point winners,” Goodman said.