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Meet South Student Athern’s lete
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Amanda Thomas
Standout Year for Southern Sports It was banner year for athletics at Southern, which
was ranked number 25 out of more than 300 NCAA Division II institutions of higher learning in the Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup standings — the university’s highest ranking ever. The Owls have now finished among the top20 percent of colleges and universities in each
Junior Women’s Swimming and Diving Team Exercise Science Major with a concentration in Human Performance
of the last five years. The competition recognizes broad-based athletics excellence.
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Claims to fame: The Division II national champion in the 200-yard individual medley, finishing with a time of 2:00.88, just .32 seconds less
Track Champions!
than the NCAA record. Other achievements at the
It was history in the making for the men’s outdoor
national championship include finishing second in the
track and field team, which captured first place at the New
200 butterfly and the 400 individual medley, and fourth
England Championship for the first time ever. It was a strong
in the 200 backstroke. Also an All American in four
victory for the Owls, who finished 23.5 points ahead of sec-
events and named the 2011 Northeast-10 Conference
ond-place finisher Northeastern University. Southern senior
Swimmer of the Year and the Most Outstanding
Diwani Augustine took home first place at the event in the
Performer of the league championships.
triple jump, with a mark of 49 feet, 9.75 inches. He also won first in the long jump (24 feet, 3.5 inches). In all, ten Owls earned All-New England honors on the final day of the competition, which was hosted by Southern in May.
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Owls Baseball Flying High The Owls started the 2010-11 season with a bang,
winning their first 22 games — a program record for both best start to a season and longest winning streak. The powerhouse team maintained its dominance, closing the year ranked number four in the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper and the College Baseball Lineup polls. The Owls finished the 2011 season with a 45-9-1 record (win, loss, tie) — setting a single-season record for victories. Other team highlights included winning their first game ever in the College World
Most proud of: Winning the national title. “I didn’t think I would actually get it; I was inspired.” Diving in: Started swimming at the age of 6; began competing between the ages of 7 and 8. Family affair: Followed suit when her older sister and cousin started swimming. Her twin sister, Ashley, dives for Southern. Inspiration: Swam for SoNoCo Swim Club at age 12 with Southern’s Coach Tim Quill. “I wanted to come to Southern so I could swim for Quill.” Support: “My family comes to every single meet. We base our schedules around swimming.” Balancing the student with the athlete: “Growing up
Series, finishing first in New England, and winning the
swimming teaches you a lot, like how to manage your
Northeast-10 Conference regular season title for the second
time and schedule.”
consecutive year. There were individual record setters as well. Senior pitcher Michael Johnston finished the year
Pre-meet ritual: Listens to Eminem
ranked first in the nation with 16
Hobbies: Drawing and photography
saves — a Southern record.
Other sports she enjoys: Running and weight training
For more sports news, visit www.SouthernCTOwls.com.
Career aspirations: To become a personal trainer or nutritionist
By Kaitlin Randall, ’11 Fall 2011 | 9