COUGARS FINISH EIGHTH AT THE PAC-12 CHAMPIONSHIPS

Washington State finished eighth at the Pac-12 Conference Championships. The team notched school records in the 100 back and 800 free relay. Freshman Emily Cook broke the school record in the 100 back for the second time this season, clocking in at 53.66 in the preliminary round of the event. Cook later went on to finish 11th overall. The 800 free relay team of Alba Fores, Rachel Thompson, Jasmine Margetts, and Ryan Falk set the school record with a time of 7:12.87, placing seventh overall. The Cougars finished the championships with 307 points, ahead of Oregon State (199). Three Cougars hit NCAA "B" Standard times in their events at the meet. Cook and Taylor McCoy each clocked standard times in the 200 back, while Margetts notched standard times in the 200 fly, 200 IM, and 400 IM.

Sophomore Luci Brock and senior Ciera Kelly were both named to the All-Academic First Team. Kelly was named to the first team for the second consecutive season after posting a 3.92 GPA while majoring in zoology. Brock joins Kelly on the first team with a 3.86 GPA. This is Brock's first all-academic honors. Sophomore Ryan Falk and junior Penny Nichols were both named to the second team while seniors Anna Brolin and Rachel Thompson and junior Jasmine Margetts all earned honorable mention accolades. Falk earned her first career all-academic honor after producing a 3.57 GPA. Nichols earned her second career all-academic honor after earning first team accolades last season. The Phoenix, Ariz. native owns a 3.58 GPA while majoring in viticulture and enology. Brolin earned honorable mention honors for the third consecutive season after posting a 3.01 GPA while majoring in accounting. Thompson earned her third career all-academic honor after producing a 3.12 GPA while majoring in marketing. Margetts was named to the honorable mention team for the second consecutive season. The Torrence, Calif. native owns a 3.50 GPA while majoring in environmental science.

The Cougars were recognized by the College Swimming Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) as a Scholar All-America Team for the fifth straight semester. The Cougars earned a 3.26 during the Fall 2017 semester, with two cougars - Emily Cook and Ciera Kelly - earning a perfect 4.00 GPA.

WSU traveled east during winter break to Delray Beach, Fla. to train for 10 days. The Cougars spent the days training both in the pool and on the beach to build muscle and endurance. The trip marked the fifth consecutive year the team trained in Florida over winter break.

Junior Jasmine Margetts led the way for the Cougars in individual wins with 11. Margetts currently holds WSU Top-10 times in seven different events and is a member of the school record 800 free relay team. Margetts was selected to compete in the USA College Challenge Oct. 21-22, 2017. Swimming stars from the Pac-12 competed against members of the USA Swimming National Team in the second edition of the USA College Challenge. Margetts had an outstanding performance at the event, setting season best times in the 100 back, 200 back, and 1000 free. Margetts also posted the third-fastest time in program history in the 1000 free, clocking in at 10:06.66.

The Cougars said good bye to three seniors this year: Anna Brolin, Rachel Thompson, and Talisa Wibmer. The three have had an impressive run at Washington State. During their senior campaign, the three combined for a total of five individual wins and nine relay wins. Thompson led the way in individual wins with three, including two in the win over Oregon State on senior day. Brolin had two individual wins in the 100 fly. Thompson (200 free, 500 free) and Brolin (100 fly, 200 fly) have etched their names into Cougar history with Top-10 times in their respective events. Thompson was also a member of the 800 free relay team that broke the school record at the Pac-12 Championships. The three seniors were all members of the winning 400 free relay team against Oregon State.

The freshmen combined for 12 individual wins and five NCAA "B" Standard time during the season. Emily Cook led the way with eight wins and two standard times. Cook broke the school and Gibb Pool record in the 100 back, touching the wall in 53.66 and 54.51, respectively. Cook's time of 53.66 was during the preliminary round at the Pac-12 Championships and was the second time she broke the record this season - the earlier coming in November at the Ohio State Invite. Cook's season-best time in the 100 ranked her 16th overall and the second-fastest freshman in the conference. Cook also broke the Utah Pool record in the 50 back. Cook hit NCAA "B" Standard times in the 100 back and 200 back (1:58.27) at the conference championships, Cook's time in the 200 back was fifth-fastest in program history and the seventh-fastest time for a freshman in the Pac-12. Pullman, Wash. native Taylor McCoy earned two wins during the season in the 200 back. McCoy hit an NCAA "B" Standard time in the event at the Pac-12 Championships, touching the wall in 1:57.52 - third fastest in program history. McCoy's season-best time in the 200 back ranked her 24th overall and the fifth-fastest freshman in the conference. McCoy also holds the ninth-fastest time in program history in the 100 back, clocking in at 55.92. Alba Fores (200 free) and Sam Howell (1000 free) had one win each. Fores sits in WSU All-Time Top-10 in three events: 100, 200, and 500 free. Fores' season-best time of 1:48.49 in the 200 free was fourth-fastest in program history and the ninth-fastest freshman in the conference. The freshman from Sweden also hit an NCAA "B" Standard time in the 100 free, touching the wall in 49.81 at the Ohio State Invite - tied for third-fasest in program history. Fores' season-best time in the 100 free was the eighth-fastest time for a freshman in the Pac-12. Fores was also third-fastest in program history in the 500 free, clocking in at 4:49.15 at the Ohio State Invite, making her the ninth-fastest freshman in the Pac-12. Fores also swam the opening leg in the 800 free relay team that broke the school record at the Pac-12 Championships. Mackenzie Duarte was the final freshman to hit an NCAA "B" Standard time. Duarte clocked in at 2:15.68 in the 200 breast at the Ohio State Invite. Duarte currently sits seventh in WSU history in the event, and eighth in the 100 breast (1:03.19). Kelly Morgan and Chloe Larson also etched their names into Cougar history. Both reached Top-10 times in the 50 free clocking in at 23.25 and 23.35, respectively.

For the sixth straight year, the Cougars recorded a victory over Oregon State, 163-74. This improves WSU's overall record against the Beavers to 35-19. Seniors Anna Brolin, Rachel Thompson and Talisa Wibmer combined to post three individual and two relay wins. Thompson led the way with two wins in the 50 and 100 free. Brolin took first in the 100 fly. All three seniors were members of the winning 400 free relay team. Freshman Emily Cook added the Gibb Pool record to her resume with a first-place time of 54.51; and now holds both the school and pool records in the event. Clothilde Peseux, Ryan Falk, and Jasmine Margetts each finished with two wins. Peseux won the 100 and 200 breast. Falk won the 500 and 1000 free. Margetts claimed the the 200 fly for the fifth time this season and finished first in the 200 IM. Freshmen Alba Fores and Taylor McCoy also added wins, taking first in the 100 free and 20 back, respectively.

The Cougars recorded 63 lifetime-best performances this season and 20 WSU All-Time Top-10 times. Two school records were broken: 100 back (Emily Cook) and 800 free relay (Alba Fores, Rachel Thompson, Jasmine Margetts, and Ryan Falk).

Six incoming student-athletes signed National Letters of Intent to the Washington State swimming team. The 2018 signing class is comprised of Sophia Balmaceda (Fremont, Calif.), Emily Barrier (Fort Collins, Colo.), Payton Bokowy (Sandpoint, Idaho), Keiana Fountain (Tracy, Calif.), Paige Gardner (Walla Walla, Wash.), Hailey Hyde (Bend, Ore.), and Olivia Tungate (Oak Harbor, Wash.).