Denver’s Dylan Bunch and Samantha Corea are selected as the 2015 Summit League Swimmers of the Year, while Denver’s Ross Edfort and South Dakota’s Greysen Hertting are named Summit League Divers of the Year, as voted on by the league’s head coaches. Bunch, Corea and Hertting all earn the honor for the second straight year while Edfort receives the award for the first time in his career.
Bunch captures the Men’s Swimmer of the Year award for the second time in as many seasons. The junior has won the award in both of Denver’s seasons as a Summit League member. Bunch finished the season at the NCAA Championships in Iowa City, where he set new Summit League records in both the 500 free (4:17.25) and 1,650 free (14:47.53), breaking marks that he had previously set at this year’s Summit League Championships in Indianapolis. His time in the 1,650 free earned him All-America honors as he finished seventh overall in the event. The Boulder City, Nev., native earned all-league honors in the 200 free and was part of the league record-setting 800 free relay team to go along with his first-place finishes in the 500 free and 1,650 free, helping the Pioneer men win The Summit League championship for the second straight year.
Denver senior Sam Corea earns Summit League Women’s Swimmer of the Year accolades for the second time in her career. The Vancouver, British Columbia, native won three individual league titles (100 fly, 100 back, 200 back) and was part of four relay titles (200 medley, 200 free, 400 medley, 400 free) at the league championships where she was named Swimming Championship MVP, helping lead the Pioneer women to their second straight Summit League championship. Corea qualified for the NCAA Championships in both the 100 fly and 200 back where she had the best showing of any swimmer in Summit League history, finishing second in the 100 fly (50.86) and third in the 200 back (1:50.56), both all-time Summit League records. To go along with her individual All-America distinctions, the senior was also a member of the 400 free relay team that finished 19th in the process of setting another league record with a time of 3:16.89. Corea spearheaded her team’s effort in collecting 33 points at the NCAA Championships in Greensboro, N.C., most by any women’s team in Summit League history.
Edfort becomes the first Denver Pioneer to be named Summit League Men’s Diver of the Year. The senior swept the one-meter (305.55) and three-meter (354.15) dives at the league championships en route to being named Diving Championship MVP and aiding Denver in becoming league champions for the second year in a row. The two-time Summit League Diver of the Week qualified for the NCAA Championships in the one-meter after finishing eighth in the NCAA Zone E Championships. The Somerset, N.J., native finished 46th nationally in the event at the NCAA Championships in Iowa City.
Hertting is voted Summit League Women’s Diver of the Year for the second straight year. The sophomore was named Diving Championship MVP for the second time after winning both the one-meter (293.00) and three-meter (273.75) dives at The Summit League Championships in February. This season, Hertting set a South Dakota school record of 320.33 in the three-meter and was the only female diver from The Summit League to qualify for the NCAA Zone D Championships where she finished 48th in the one-meter and 31st in the three-meter. The Appleton, Wis., native finished the 2014-15 season with 27 individual victories and 10 Summit League Diver of the Week awards.
Swimming News courtesy of the Summit League.