Ally Hecht of the Kansas City Blazers has verbally committed to swim for Morningside College next season.
Hecht, a distance swimmer and native of Lansing, Kansas, comes to the Mustangs fresh off a slew of personal best times at the Columbia Swim Club Jim Devine Memorial Swim Meet. There, Hecht crushed her previous bests, dropping double digits in the 500, 1000, and 1650 freestyle events. Here are her fastest swims in SCY:
- 200 FR: 2:09.06
- 500 FR: 5:32.67
- 1000 FR: 11:22.76
- 1650 FR: 19:03.20
The Morningside College women, coached by former NCAA All-American Bryan Farris, finished seventh at the Liberal Arts Championships and sixteenth at NAIA Nationals last season. Hecht could prove a major player in the Morningside distance program in the upcoming years. Her current times will make her the number two Mustang distance swimmer, behind Mustang junior and last year’s LAC third place miler Tracy Gates, who will be a strong training partner. Last year, Hecht’s 1650 would have ranked tenth at Liberal Arts Championships, and her time is already fast enough to guarantee her a spot at NAIA Nationals. Her 200 time isn’t too far off the mark for the Morningside 800 relay; last season’s swimmers split between 2:03.32 and 2:08.89 at the national meet. And, given her vast improvements over the last year, expect to see Hecht drop more time, especially in her first years of college.
This year will mark the first time that former NAIA powerhouse Oklahoma Baptist will be out of the national meet, as they transition to NCAA Division II. That means that in the upcoming seasons, plenty of finals spots will be up for grabs at NAIA Nationals for swimmers from smaller teams like Morningside.
Hecht will join her older brother at the college and will swim alongside former Blazers teammate Carly Johnson.
“I chose Morningside College because of its amazing academics and athletics,” Hecht said. “The second I stepped on campus I knew I was home. It’s a great day to be a Mustang.”