Wanland wins breaststroke at Big Tens
Former Stevenson standout Ashley Wanland ended her final Big Ten Championships with a title in the 100-yard breaststroke.
The Wisconsin senior posted a pool-record and NCAA ‘A’ qualifying time of 59.17 at the Big Ten women’s swimming and diving championships in Iowa City, Iowa.
“It was an unbelievably great swim for Ashley — not because we didn’t think she could do it, but because it was a top-two time in the NCAA’s this year,” said Wisconsin coach Whitney Hite.
“She is a joy to coach,” he said.
Wanland finished fourth in the 200-yard breaststroke on Saturday, a ninth-place time in the NCAA’s this year. She was also part of the first-place 200 medley relay which set a pool record in 1:37.34 and 2nd place 400 medley relay which posted a time of 3:33.94.
Wisconsin finished fourth overall at the Big Ten meet behind Minnesota, Indiana and Ohio State. It is the Badgers’ best finish since the 2004-05 season.
The next and final event for Wanland as a collegian will be the NCAA women’s championships, which will be held March 15-17 in Auburn, Ala. Wanland will also compete at the Olympic Trials in Omaha, Neb. in June.
Ÿ Augustana’s Emma Regier (Grayslake North) broke the school record in the 100 butterfly twice at the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin Championships at Carthage College.
She recorded a time of 1:00.68 in the preliminaries to erase Nancy Fabrizio’s 1988 mark of 1:00.92. In the finals, Regnier became the first Viking to eclipse the one-minute barrier when she stopped the watches at 59.67 en route to placing ninth in the event.
She also swam the second leg on the 800 freestyle relay team that took fourth and established a new school record.
Regnier nearly got another individual school mark as she placed fifth in the 100 breaststroke in 1:08.62, just missing Julie Konchan’s 1987 standard of 1:08.14.
Regnier also took fifth with her 200 medley relay in 2:02.66.
Women’s track
The awards keep coming in for former Warren track and field performer Sarahbeth Jones.
The Augustana junior has been selected as a 2011 All-Academic honoree from the United States Track & Field/Cross Country Coaches Association.
Jones was one of just 183 women’s cross country runners in NCAA Division III to earn the honor.
In order to qualify for the USTFCCCA All-Academic Cross Country Team, the student-athlete must have compiled an accumulative grade-point average of 3.30 or better through the most recent grading period and placed in the top 35 at the NCAA Division III Regional Championship.
Jones enjoyed a tremendous fall for veteran head coach Fred Whiteside’s Vikings and was named the Vikings’ Most Valuable Performer, according to a vote of her teammates after the team’s annual awards banquet on Dec. 11.
Jones had been a solid top-seven performer in her first two years of competing for Augustana.
This year, however, she rose to new heights as she was the Vikings’ No. 1 runner in the eight meets of which competed.
She started the season with a victory at the Augie Open on Sept. 1 in sweltering heat at Sylvan Island Park. That began a string of success that didn’t end until the NCAA Division III Midwest Regional Championship at Saukie Golf Course on Nov. 13.
She turned in a sterling performance at the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin championship meet on Oct. 29 finishing fifth with a time of 23:21 at Montrose Harbor in Chicago. Her season ended with a 27th-place finish at the Midwest Regional.
Jones was named the winner of the Jack Swartz Award from the CCIW in the fall of 2011 for her ability to combine athletic prowess with academic excellence. She carries a 3.54 grade-point average with majors in English and communication.
Youth football / cheerleading
Chicagoland Pop Warner is open for new registration of teams and players. Pop Warner is the only Illinois program with local, regional and national championships held at Disney yearly. Pop Warner is the largest national football/cheer program in the world and has programs all over the Northwest Suburbs. Pop Warner is the only program that rewards academic success which prepares kids to be good student athletes. Email cpwfc@comcast.net with questions.
Youth sports
Walk in registration for the Vernon Hills Athletic Association tackle football and flag football programs will be Saturday, Feb. 25 from
1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. at 740 Corporate Woods Parkway.
For more information: call 847-793-8300.
Registration forms and more information is available at www.vhcyaa.org
Ÿ Please email Sports Notes items to jleusch@dailyherald.com or FAX to (847) 427-1173.