PSYCH SHEET
INDIANAPOLIS- The West Chester University women's swimming and diving team qualified 11 individuals in 13 events along with multiple relays for the Division II Women's Swimming and Diving National Championships, it was announced on Wednesday evening.

The Championships will held March 12-16 at the Spire Institute Aquatics Center in Geneva, Ohio. Tickets are available for purchase here.

West Chester qualified 11 individuals, and its relay squads as West Chester will compete in the 200 free relay, 200 medley relay, and 400 free relay while also likely putting together optional 800 free and 400 medley relay squads at the Championships.

Fresh off capturing four more PSAC Titles (200, 500, 1000, and 1650 free) and earning Swimmer of the Meet honors, senior Keeley Durkin (Brookhaven, Pa./Sun Valley) will shift her attention to the National Championships as she is expected to compete in the 200 free, 500 free, 1000 free, and 1650 free. A year ago, Durkin placed fifth in the 1000 free, sixth in the 500 free, 15^th in the 1650 free, and 17^th in the 200 free while also helping the 400 and 800 free relay squads earn All-America status, a role she is expected to fill once again in 2024.

Mikayla Niness (Spring City, Pa./Owen J. Roberts) qualified in the 1000, 500, 200, and 100 free and may also compete on multiple relay squads at the National Championships. At the PSAC Championships, Niness finished second in the 100 free, 200 free, and 1000 free while also finishing fourth in the 500 free. She was also a member of the winning 200, 400, and 800 free relay squads earlier this month. The senior is making her third career appearance at the National Championships, following up on an appearance that saw her qualify in four events and compete in four relays a year ago. Niness earned individual All-America status in the 500 free with a fourth-place finish while helping the 200, 400, and 800 free relays and the 400-medley relay earn All-America status.

Danielle Stewart (Dover, Del./Caesar Rodney) is expected to join Durkin and Niness in the 1000 free, entering with a time of 10:13.63, which is 25^th best in Division II. The junior is also expected to compete in the 500, 200, and 1650 free alongside Durkin, with strong b-cut times in all three of these events earlier in the season. Stewart finished third in the 1000 free at the PSAC Championships, second in the 1650 free, fourth in the 200 free, and fifth in the 500 free earlier this month. Stewart will also be making her second appearance at the National Championships after appearing in both the 500 and 1650 free, placing 19^th in that event a year ago.

McKenzie Hemingway (Chestertown, Md./Queen Anne's County) qualified in the 100 breast, 100 free, and 200 IM as an individual and may also compete on relay squads for the Golden Rams. Hemingway enters the Championships after scoring 85 points for WCU at the PSAC Championships, headlined by a victory in the 100 breast and a second-place finish in the 200 IM. Hemingway was also a part of the winning 200 free relay, 400 free relay, and 400 medley relay squads at the PSAC Championships. Hemingway is making her third career appearance at the National Championships after competing in a pair of events (200 IM/100 Breast) as an individual a year ago and helping all five Golden Ram relays earn All-America certificates a year ago as well.

Maddy Koehle (State College, Pa./State College Area) joins Hemingway in the 100 breast and will also compete alongside Lenya Ryan (Wilmington, Del./Mt. Pleasant) in the 200 breast, entering as the 23rd seed in the 100 with a time of 1:03.37 and the sixth seed in the 200 with a time of 2:15.42. Koehle will also compete in the 200 IM, entering with the 25th-best time in that event.

 Ryan enters the 200 breast as the 15^th seed with a time of 2:17.57 and will also compete in the 200 IM with a time of 2:04.73, which is the 33rd fastest, along with the 400 IM after posting a time of 4:25.17, which is the 21st best in Division II entering the Championships.

Koehle enters off a performance at the PSAC Championships, which saw her win the 200 breast, finish second in the 100 breast, and third in the 200 IM. Koehle will also be making her third appearance at Nationals after being selected in the 200 breast each of her first two years. For her part, Ryan enters off a fifth-place finish in the 200 IM, a second-place finish in the 400 IM, and a second-place finish in the 200 breast, just behind Koehle.

West Chester has a trio of student-athletes set to compete in the 200 IM as it is one of the multiple events that Hemingway qualified for as an individual along with Anna Evans (Lansdale, Pa./North Penn) and Isabela Kil (Enola, Pa./East Pennsboro), who enter as the 16th and 22nd seeds with times of 2:03.41 and 2:03.83, respectively.  Evans will also compete in the 200 back with a solid b-cut time of 2:01.94 from earlier this season.

Evans is also expected to swim as a member of the 800 free relay squad, which is comprised of Niness, Gerhart, and Durkin.

Evans enters off a PSAC Championship in the 200 IM and a pair of second-place finishes in both the 100 and 200 back. For her part, Kil enters off a fourth-place finish in the 200 IM, a second-place showing in the 100 fly, and another fourth-place finish in the 200 breast. Kil also returns to the Championships for the second time in 2024 after appearing as a member of the 200 free relay that placed eighth a year ago.

Sophie Gerhart (Spring Mills, Pa./Penn Valley) qualified as an individual in the 200 fly and 400 IM, entering as the 18^th seed in the 200 fly with a time of 2:03.00 and the 12^th seed in the 400 IM with a time of 4:22.72. Gerhart will also compete in the 500 and 1000 free with solid b-cut times of 4:58.21 and 10:17.65, respectively.

At the PSAC Championships, Gerhart won the 200 fly and 400 IM and finished second in the 500 free while also placing fifth in the 1000 free. Gerhart is making a return trip to the National Championships after participating a year ago in the 200 fly, 500 free, and 1000 free.

Samantha Trumble (Dallastown, Pa./Dallastown) is also currently seeded 25^th in the women's 50 free, entering with a time of 23.33 seconds. Trumble may also compete in the 100 free alongside Niness and Hemingway.

Kil is expected to be a strong option for Mazurek on the 200 free relay squad.

Lila DiCarlo (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Trinity) will make the trip as a relay swimmer.