Liberty Swimming & Diving to Celebrate Seniors on Saturday Against Campbell
1/21/2021 12:00:00 AM | Women's Swimming & Diving
Meet Day Central
The Liberty swimming & diving team will compete in its first meet of the New Year, hosting longtime CCSA opponent Campbell, Saturday at noon at Liberty Natatorium.
2021 Spring Sports Admissions/Tickets
Due to COVID-19 and state regulations, capacity at all Liberty Athletics events is under a limited capacity of 250 patrons or 30 percent capacity, whichever is less based on social distancing protocols, per Virginia Governor Ralph Northam's current Phase 3 guidelines. With those guidelines in place, admission to each event has been adjusted per sport. For more information regarding availability, please click here.
Prior to the start of Saturday's meet, Liberty will honor its six seniors – Arielle Arnett, Lindsey Cohee, Kiah Francis, Payton Keiner, Emily Manly and Emily Zimcosky. These six student-athletes have helped the Lady Flames win back-to-back CCSA titles.
How to Follow the Lady Flames
Fans unable to attend can follow a live video stream on ESPN+, as Jacob Johnston and former Lady Flame Colleen Donlin will provide commentary. Live results will be available both online and on the meetmobile app.
Liberty's CCSA Award Winners this Season
Fr. Maddie Freece – CCSA Women's Diver of the Week (Oct. 27)
Sr. Lindsey Cohee – CCSA Women's Swimmer of the Week (Oct. 27)
Sr. Payton Keiner – CCSA 2011-20 All-Decade Team
Team Notes
• The Lady Flames will be competing for the first time since Nov. 22, when they wrapped up a third-place finish at the TYR '85 Invite at Liberty Natatorium. Liberty won seven individual events at the TYR '85 Invite, including two each from senior Payton Keiner (100 back, 200 back) and freshman Chloe Harris (200 IM, 400 IM) and one apiece by Arielle Arnett (1,650 freestyle), Jessica Schellenboom (100 breaststroke) and Eva Suggs (500 freestyle).
• Two Lady Flames (Olivia Robinson and Maddie Freece) have both earned qualification to the 2021 NCAA Zone Diving Championships.
• Freshman Chloe Harris (100 butterfly, 200 butterfly) and junior Emma Hazel earned valuable national-level experience, competing in the 2020 Toyota U.S. Open, Nov. 13-14 in Greensboro, N.C.
• Liberty is 2-0 in dual meets this season, winning meets at UNC Asheville (162-127) and Campbell (142.5-118.5) on Oct. 23 and 24, respectively.
• The Lady Flames have won 23 CCSA dual meets in a row since a 137-125 loss at FGCU on Jan. 7, 2017.
• 11th-year Head Coach Jake Shellenberger has led the Lady Flames from the program's inception. He has posted a 114-33 dual-meet record, being named CCSA Women's Swimming Coach of the Year three times (2012, 2014, 2019). His teams have gone 60-14 all-time against CCSA competition.
• Liberty won its third-ever CCSA title in 2020, and second in a row. The Lady Flames won the meet by 163 points over FGCU (1,566-1,403), earning their third CCSA title in the same place where they claimed their first conference crown (Tennessee's Allan Jones Aquatic Center) in 2014.
• Last year at the CCSA Championships, the Lady Flames registered a program-record 29 podium finishes and 14 event victories, to go along with 10 NCAA B cuts and lowered five program records.
• The state-of-the-art Liberty Natatorium opened on Dec. 1, 2017 with the Central Virginia Duals, and was dedicated on Jan. 26, 2018 with an official ceremony. The Liberty Natatorium provides one of the best venues for collegiate swimming and diving in the nation, with an Olympic-sized competition pool and separate diving well and seating for 1,400 spectators in a wraparound setting.
• Liberty has hired Andrew Helmich as its new diving coach. An SEC diver for South Carolina, he served as a volunteer assistant coach at South Carolina for three seasons (2016-19) in addition to club coaching experience. He leads a diving contingent that features three NCAA Zone qualifiers from last year (Lauren Chennault, Abigail Egolf-Jensen, Olivia Robinson).
• Four Lady Flames received CSCAA Individual Scholar All-America honors last year, in Brittany Weiss, Mikayla Herich, Emma Hazel and Evan Suggs.
• A total of 13 current Lady Flames have posted CCSA podium finishes in their career, led by six from Payton Keiner. Lauren Chennault has earned four top-three placings, while Lindsey Cohee, Emma Hazel and Olivia Robinson have three podium finishes each. Emily Manly (2), Jessica Schellenboom (2), Arielle Arnett (1), Abigail Egolf-Jensen (1), Kiah Francis (1) and Chloe Rippey (1) have all podiumed as well.
Student-Athlete Notes
• A total of 11 different Lady Flames, including three freshmen, have recorded at least one individual-event victory this season, led by Payton Keiner's five event wins. Lindsey Cohee, Chloe Harris and Eva Suggs have posted four individual-event wins this season, while Harris has won the IM every time she has contested it while at Liberty.
• Senior Payton Keiner earned CSCAA All-American status last year, the third All-American in program history. Keiner has won a program-record-tying five CCSA individual titles, sweeping the 100 and 200 backstroke at each of the last two conference meets. The 2018 Most Outstanding Freshman of the CCSA Meet, she holds the CCSA record in the 200 back (1:52.63). She also owns Liberty's 50 backstroke (24.82 – L) and 100 backstroke (52.60) records.
• Junior Lauren Chennault was named 2020 Co-Outstanding Women's Diver of the CCSA Meet, winning one-meter and placing second on three-meter at the conference meet. Her one-meter title was the first CCSA diving title for a Liberty athlete. Chennault enters the season as Liberty's program record holder in one-meter (291.15) and three-meter (317.85) diving.
• Junior Olivia Robinson, the 2019 VaSID State Rookie Diver of the Year, has posted three CCSA podium finishes in her career, including third place on three-meter in 2020. She holds Liberty's record for platform diving (229.58), a discipline where she placed 15th at the NCAA Zone Championships in both 2019 and 2020.
• Senior Lindsey Cohee earned her first career CCSA individual title in 2020, capturing the 200 butterfly after placing third in the event in both her freshman and sophomore years. Cohee ranks third in program history in the 200 fly (1:57.85) and fifth in 100 fly (54.23)
• Sophomore Eva Suggs, the 2020 Most Outstanding Female Newcomer of the CCSA Meet, posted podium finishes in the 200 free (first place), 500 free (second) and 200 backstroke (third) at the CCSA Championships. She led Liberty's first-ever 1-2-3 sweep of a CCSA event, winning the 200 freestyle in a lifetime-best 1:47.82 (third in program history).
Meet Highlights
• Liberty is 13-0 all-time in dual meets at Liberty Natatorium. The Lady Flames have won 21 straight home dual meets. That is the third-longest active home winning streak in NCAA Division I women's swimming & diving, trailing only Boise State (27) and Stanford (24).
• Liberty is 16-2 all-time against Campbell in swimming & diving, with the Lady Flames winning each of the last 15 meetings. Campbell is Liberty's most-frequent opponent in program history.
Up Next
Liberty will host the 2021 CCSA Swimming & Diving Championships. The Lady Flames will look for their third straight CCSA title, as the women's meet takes place at Liberty Natatorium from Feb. 15-17. This will be the second time that Liberty Natatorium will serve as CCSA Championships host, as the 2019 conference meet also took place in Lynchburg.
Order of Events
Jan. 23, 2021
200 Medley Relay
1000 Freestyle
200 Freestyle
100 Backstroke
100 Breaststroke
200 Butterfly
50 Freestyle
3-Meter Diving (Full Break)
100 Freestyle
200 Backstroke
200 Breaststroke
500 Freestyle
100 Butterfly
1-Meter Diving (Full Break)
200 IM
400 Freestyle Relay
