PULLMAN, Wash. – The Washington State swimming team completed the first half of the 2018-19 season at the Phill Hansel Invitational hosted by the University of Houston. The Cougars rewrote the top-10 performance list at their mid-season invite, including a school record in the 100 free.

Nationally, the Cougars are ranked 22nd based on improvement from this time last year, according to an article released by SwimSwam. Washington State improved 82%. The team is first in the Pac-12 for improvement, sitting just ahead of Utah who is ranked 27th in the nation with a 62% improvement rate.

"The article that SwimSwam released is a great indicator of where we are as a program.  This group of student-athletes have bonded and really turned a corner.  I couldn't be happier with where we are going, especially since our mid-season meet was a quick drop taper and was unshaved.  We continue to talk about our family culture and dynamic and everyone is buying in.  We still have a lot more work to do, but I feel like our student-athletes are believing in the process and the idea of working together.  It's an exciting time to be a cougar!  GO COUGS!"

Freshman Keiana Fountaine is proving to be a driving force for the Cougars, leading the team with nine individual wins and is a member of six relay wins. The Tracy, Calif. native has etched her name in the WSU top-10 performance list in two events, including a school record swim in the 100 free, clocking in at 49.67. Fountaine also sits in the top-10 in the 200 free, clocking a 1:47.30 in the event – less than a second off the school record.

The breaststrokers for WSU are showing impressive times in the 100 and 200. Senior Linnea Lindberg clocked an impressive 1:01.60 in the 100 breast, placing her second in the WSU top-10 list, while sophomore Mackenzie Duarte sits third at 1:01.66. Lindberg and Duarte dropped several seconds in their respective events compared to their times at this point in the season last year. Duarte also sits second in the top-10 list in the 200 breast, clocking a 2:11.84 – dropping nearly four seconds off her time from last year. Freshman Lauren Burckel also saw a top-10 performance in the 100 breast with a 1:03.21, sitting in ninth.

Sophomore Taylor McCoy etched her name in the WSU top-10 performances in the 200 back, clocking a 1:56.86 for the second-fastest time in program history. The Pullman, Wash. native now sits in the top-10 in both the 100 and 200 back.

Freshman Emily Barrier is impressing in the freestyle sprints, etching her name in the top-10 in both the 50 and 100 free. The Fort Collins, Colo. native clocked a 23.07 in the 50 free and 1:49.78 in the 100 free at the mid-season invite to find herself in fifth and tenth, respectively, in the WSU top-10 list.

The Cougars will resume competition Jan. 11 and 12 when they travel south to compete against the Arizona and Arizona State.
 

	National Rank based on improvement	% faster than November/December 2017
Washington State	22	82%
Utah	27	62%
Oregon State	41	62%
USC	63	68%
California	70	59%
Arizona	107	59%
Arizona State	121	54%
Stanford	130	30%
UCLA	142	13%