Swimming Places Third at NAIA National Championships

After three days of intense competition, the Brenau swim team captured third place at the 2016 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Swimming and Diving National Championships at the Columbus Aquatic Center in Columbus, Ga.

Brenau tallied 336 total points during the championships to earn their third straight top-three finish. SCAD-Savannah won the top prize with 753 points, while Olivet Nazarene University finished second with 502.50 points. Biola University finished fourth with 316 points and University of Cumberlands took fifth place with 276 points.

Courtney Hayward captured second place honors in the 1650-yard freestyle (17:02.54) to add to her outstanding finals. The Townsville, Australia native also earned two individual national championships in both the 500-yard freestyle (4:56.34) and the 400-yard individual medley (4:26.30). For Hayward, her win in the 500-yard freestyle marked her three straight title in that event as a Golden Tiger.

In the 200-yard backstroke, freshman Lindsay Dowling had another top-eight finish, placed fifth in the 200-yard backstroke in 2:04.14. Earlier in the championships, Dowling also earned a third place finish in the 100 backstroke and contributed on three other top relay teams.

Alisha Hodgetts also placed well with a third place performance in the 100-yard freestyle "B" cuts in a time of 53:37.

Mary Katherine Jabbia topped off her standout career with a seventh place finish in the 200-yard breaststroke in 2:26.82. The senior also placed seventh in the 200-yard individual medley, ninth in the 100 breaststroke and helped placed in two other relays.

In the final event of the championships, the team of Hodgetts, Hayward, Madison Kosater and Ella Kleinschmidt earned fifth place in the 400-yard freestyle relay (3:34.50).

In total, the Golden Tigers had ten total top-eight finishes, including seven individuals and three relays.