Courtesy: Texas A&M Athletics
BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The Texas A&M women’s swimming & diving team celebrated its 2022-23 season at the annual team banquet on Saturday afternoon. After announcing academic and team awards, seniors reflected on their time at A&M before the event concluded with a recap of the season.
Junior Chloe Stepanek earned the team’s Swimming MVP Award for the third straight season after bringing home a silver medal from SEC Championships and adding three All-America accolades at NCAA Championships. Stepanek returned to the podium at NCAAs with a seventh-place finish in the 200 free, adding Honorable Mention distinction after taking 13th in the 100 free and helping the 400 medley relay team to a top-16 finish. The Northport, New York, native earned the third individual medal of her career at SEC Championships after placing second in the 200 free with a time of 1:43.37, which stands as the 13th fastest time in the nation this season. Stepanek also added big points for the Maroon & White, advancing to the championship final in the 50 and 100 free, also helping the 200 free, 400 free and 400 medley relays clock top-eight times. In an effort to qualify additional relays and bring more swimmers to NCAAs, Stepanek popped off at A&M’s Last Chance meet to hit the cut, clocking in at 47.67 to lower her lifetime best and rank 16th in the country this season.
Joslyn Oakley was named the team’s Diving MVP after an impressive first season in Aggieland that saw her earn SEC Freshman Female Diver of the Year. Oakley qualified at Zones for the NCAA Championships on both springboards in her collegiate debut season. The Mooresville, North Carolina, native claimed Honorable Mention All-America awards on the 1-meter as she finished 14th from the consolation final, and on the 3-meter, placing 15th. At SECs, Oakley piled on points for the Aggies, leading the team as she advanced to the evening session on the 1-meter where she went on the take fifth and find her place on the SEC All-Freshman Team. She also added a 12th-place finish on the 3-meter. Throughout the season, she has compiled 15 top-five scores, 12 of those falling in the top three.
The team’s Most Improved awards went to swimmer Olivia Theall and diver Payton Props. Theall saw impressive time drops during her junior season, setting career bests in both the 100 fly (51.25) and 200 fly (1:54.81) at the Art Adamson Invite and both times still rank in the top 26 in the nation this season. Theall qualified for NCAA Championships for the second straight season in both fly events and helped the 400 medley relay team earn Honorable Mention All-America accolades with a top-16 finish. Theall was a key contributor for the Aggies at SECs, notching top-five finishes in each of the fly events and adding points from the B final in the 50 free. She also helped the 200 free, 400 free and 400 medley relays clock top-five times. Props continued to show great improvement in her third season in Aggieland as she qualified for NCAA Zones for the first time in her career. She set new career-best scores in all three events this season, posting a 291.50 on 1-meter and 219.75 on platform at the Air Force Diving Invitational and added a score of 346.28 on 3-meter against TCU.
Complete list of 2022-23 awards:
- Swimming MVP – Chloe Stepanek
- Most Improved Swimmer – Olivia Theall
- Diving MVP – Joslyn Oakley
- Most Improved Diver – Payton Props
- Iron Woman Sports Performance Award – Andrea Perttula
- Academic Momentum Award – Desirae Mangaoang
- Aggie Heart Award in Memory of Bob Stallings – Abigail Ahrens
- Jody Tanner – Hansen Optimist Award – Mollie Wright