IRVING, Texas – After winning three individual meets and setting a pair of facility records, Owls senior Kaitlyn Swinney earns the first C-USA Swimmer of the Week honors of 2018. The Diver of the Week award went to FIU freshman Rachel Foord, who placed first in the 3-meter diving event with an NCAA Zone-qualifying score of 281.95 to help the Panthers to a first place finish at the FIU Sprint Invitational.
 
SWIMMER OF THE WEEK
KAITLYN SWINNEY, Rice, Sr., Fort Bend, Texas
Not only did Rice’s Kaitlyn Swinney win three individual events in two meets over the weekend, she set a pair of facility records in the process. In a pair of weekend quad meets at No. 12 ranked Arizona (Jan. 5) and at Grand Canyon University (Jan. 6), Swinney dominated her specialty in the I.M.  The senior from Fort Bend, Texas, first swam a 4:17.86 to win the 400-IM at No. 12 ranked Arizona (and at more than 2,400-feet of elevation competing in Tucson). The next day at Grand Canyon Univ. in Phoenix, she swept both the 200-IM (2:04.41) and 200-backstroke (2:01.44) with a pair of new facility records at the GCU Aquatics Center. Swinney also posted two second place finishes at Arizona in the 100-backstroke (56.34) and 200-backstroke (2:01.63).  This is her second Swimmer of the Week award this season.
 
DIVER OF THE WEEK
RACHEL FOORD, FIU, Fr., Melbourne, Australia
Freshman Rachel Foord took first in the 3-meter diving event with an NCAA Zone-qualifying score of 281.95 at the FIU Sprint Invitational Friday at the Biscayne Bay Aquatic Center. It was her fourth win in last five events and helped the Panthers finish first among the 11 teams at the Invite. The 1-meter springboard event was cancelled due to weather at the outdoor venue. Foord was the only diver to post a score that met the NCAA Zone standard.  This is her third weekly diving honor this season.
 

2017-18 SWIMMERS OF THE WEEK
O11 – Lauren Rhodes, Rice; Oct. 18 – Ashley Brem, Old Dominion; Oct. 25 – Alicia Caldwell, Rice; Nov. 1 – Kaitlyn Swinney, Rice; Nov. 8 – Naomi Ruele, FIU and Angelica di Marzio, Marshall; Nov. 22 – Marie-Claire Schillinger, Rice; Dec. 6 – Emmy Lockyer, Marshall; Dec. 20 - Alicia Caldwell, Rice; Jan. 10 - Kaitlyn Swinney, Rice.

2017-18 DIVERS OF THE WEEK
Oct. 11 – Rebecca Quesnel, FIU; Oct. 18 – None; Oct. 25 – Meghan Miller, North Texas; Nov. 1 – Rachel Foord, FIU; Nov. 8 - Rachel Foord, FIU; Nov. 22 – Brooke Bouchard, FIU; Dec. 6 – None; Dec. 20 – Brittany Haskell, FIU; Jan. 10 - Rachel Foord, FIU.
 
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