Oakland Sweeps 2024 #HLSD Championships
Joseph Thomas
INDIANAPOLIS (February 17, 2024) – The 2024 Horizon League Swimming and Diving Championships concluded on Saturday at the IU Natatorium (NAT) with Oakland’s men and women crowned #HLSD champions for the 11
th consecutive season. The Golden Grizzlies finished the men’s competition with 876.5 points and women’s team finished with 909.5 points.
- On the men’s side, IUPUI finished in second place with 808 points while Cleveland State was third.
- In the women’s competition, Milwaukee placed second followed by IUPUI.
- The finals kicked off with Emmaleigh Zietlow of IUPUI winning the women’s 1650 freestyle while Gavin Webb of Youngstown State’s won the men’s 1650 freestyle with a time of 15:09.60.
- Zietlow’s time of 16:25.95 broke the previous championship record by nearly ten seconds.
- Next, the 200 backstroke saw Oakland sweep the men’s and women’s races.
- Freshman of the Year Clarissa Bezuidenhout took the women’s race and Harry Nicholson took first place in the men’s race.
- Bezuidenhout clocked in a time of 1:58.89 and Nicholson clocked in a time of 1:42.64.
- In the 100 freestyle, Ronjua Riihinen and Christian Bart locked in first for Oakland in the women’s and men’s races, respectively.
- Riihinen finished with a time of 50.41 and Bart clocked a time of 43.16.
- In the 200 breaststroke, Oakland’s Bella Gary took first place in the women’s race and IUPUI’s Logan Kelly took first in the men’s race.
- Gary clocked a time of 2:18.64 and Kelly finished with a time of 1:54.39.
- Oakland’s men’s and women’s teams swept the 200 butterfly.
- Jordyn Shipps finished in first for the women, clocking in at 1:58.58 and Auben Nugent finished in first for the men, clocking in at 1:45.79.
- In the men’s 3-meter dive, IUPUI’s Sebastian Otero took home first place with a score of 392.30.
- In the final event of the night, Oakland claimed first place in the women’s and men’s 400 freestyle relay.
- The women’s team clocked in a time of 3:22.03 while the men’s team clocked 2:53.53.
2024 #HLSD Championships Specialty Awards
Women’s Freshman of the Year – Clarissa Bezuidenhout, Oakland
Men’s Freshman of the Year – Nathan Rariden, IUPUI
Women’s Diver of the Meet – Alaina Heyde, IUPUI
Men’s Diver of the Meet – Sebastian Otero, IUPUI
Women’s Swimmer of the Meet – Emmaleigh Zietlow, IUPUI
Men’s Swimmer of the Meet – Spencer Jyawook, IUPUI
Women’s Diving Coach of the Year – Larry Albright, Oakland
Men’s Diving Coach of the Year – Eric Barnes, IUPUI
Women’s Swimming Coach of the Year – Kyle Clements, Milwaukee
Men’s Swimming Coaches of the Year – Hannah Burandt, Cleveland State and Damion Dennis, IUPUI
Final Team Scores:
Men:
- Oakland – 876.5
- IUPUI – 808
- Cleveland State – 525
- Youngstown State – 417
- Milwaukee – 365
- Green Bay – 240.5
Women:
- Oakland – 909.5
- Milwaukee – 690.5
- IUPUI – 527.5
- Youngstown State – 474
- Cleveland State – 463.5
- Green Bay – 184