Cal State East Bay head women’s swimming coach Shane Pelton has announced the signing of six standout student-athletes for the 2017-18 season. Allie Klinger (Brentwood, Calif.) will transfer from San Diego State to compete as a sophomore, while Serene Augustain (Queen Creek, Ariz.), Sieara Kling (Chandler, Ariz.), Sofia Moufarrej (Livermore, Calif.), Tatum Roepke (Sacramento, Calif.), and Peyton Wayment (Littleton, Colo.) will all join the Pioneers as freshmen in the Fall.
“I am really excited to see what the future holds for this recruiting class,” Pelton said. “Our team had a great year — one of the best in program history — and now it’s time to build off that. This class is going to play an integral part in the future of East Bay Swimming.”
A Bay Area native who prepped at Heritage High School and will study Nursing at CSUEB, Klinger headlines the list of 2017-18 newcomers after spending one year swimming for the Division I Aztecs. A tremendous sprinter, Klinger’s top times in the 50 Free (23.54), 100 Free (51.24), and 100 Fly (55.03) would all rank among the fastest in the Pacific Collegiate Swim Conference (PCSC) this season.
“We are extremely fortunate to have Allie coming home to compete at East Bay,” Pelton added. “It’s exciting to have a swimmer of her caliber joining us with three years of eligibility still left. She has a chance to blossom into a special athlete.”
Augustain is a freestyle specialist currently completing her senior year at Basha High School in Chandler, Ariz. She has posted personal best times of 53.66 in the 100 Free, 1:53.52 in the 200 Free, 5:03.58 in the 500 Free, and 10:37.60 int he 1000 Free.
Another out-of-state recruit, Wayment will join the Pioneers from Chatfield High School in Colorado. Long distances swimming is her specialty, as she has posted top times of 1:54.88 imn the 200 Free, 5:01.54 in the 500 Free, and 10:30.09 in the 1000 Free. Her current PR of 17:29.60 in the 1650 Free is faster that CSUEB’s school record.
“Serene and Peyton will immediately be major contributors to in our mid-distance and long distance races,” praised Pelton. “Serene can swim everything from the 50 to the mile, while Peyton is strongest in the longer distances. Both are coming in with times that are close to our current program records.”
Roepke is a senior at Saint Francis High School in Sacramento and hails from the same club team as current Pioneer All-American Morgan McClure. She excels in the sprints and short distance strokes, and will begin her collegiate career with personal bests of 24.59 in the 50 Free, 53.91 in the 100 Free, 57.54 in the 100 Fly, and 58.70 in the 100 Back.
Kling makes it two Arizona natives in the 2017-18 class of recruits as she wraps up her senior year at Chandler High School. Kling is extremely versatile with strong times across several events and distances. She comes to East Bay with top times of 53.60 in the 100 Free, 1:55.65 in the 200 Free, 5:15.17 in the 500 Free, 58.12 in the 100 Fly, and 2:11.71 in the 200 IM.
Finally, local product Moufarrej joins the Pioneers from just over the East Bay hills at Granada High School in Livermore. In addition to posting solid freestyle times, she is particularly strong as a mid-distance flyer, notching personal bests of 54.56 in the 100 Free, 1:57.31 in the 200 Free, ad 2:07.12 in the 200 Fly.
Tatum, Sieara, and Sofia will add depth and versatility to our program, especially in the butterfly races,” Pelton noted. “I believe the potential is through the roof for all three of them. Once we get them here in the Fall and start training, I think this class is going to really excel.”
News courtesy of Cal State East Bay Athletics.
Great first recruiting class for Coach Pelton and Cal State East Bay! Congratulations Shane, I’m excited to see the progress and bright future for this excellent group of women! Keep up the good job, very proud of what you are accomplishing as a head coach.