Howard Swimming & Diving Ready for the CCSA Championships
By Howard University Athletics
WASHINGTON – Howard University men’s and women’s swimming & diving teams look to make a splash in Knoxville, Tenn., for the 2020 Coastal Collegiate Sports Association (CCSA) Swimming & Diving Championships, held on the campus of the University of Tennessee. The four-day event (Feb. 19-22) takes place at the Allan Jones Aquatic Center.
MEET PREVIEW
The 2020 edition marks the 12th CCSA Swimming & Diving Championship, since being founded in 2008.
On the men’s side, junior Kegan Ford (Port-of-Spain, Trinidad & Tobago) and freshman Luke-Kennedy Thompson (Nassau, Bahamas) lead the way. Ford looks to break the school’s 50 Free record after coming just short at the H2ounds Invitational (Dec. 6-7), clocking in at 20.97, while the Bahamas native seeks to shatter his own mark in the 400 IM (4:09.77), which he set back in December.
Junior Christian Nickolas (Brentwood, Calif.), sophomore India Jackson (Philadelphia) and freshman Courtney Connolly (White Lake, Mich.) are Bison to watch on the women’s side.
Nickolas continues her preparation for the 2020 NCAA Diving Championships in Athens, Ga. The California product is set to compete in the women’s 1-meter dive.
Jackson looks to break her own school record in the 100 Breast (1:05.79), which she set at last year’s CCSA Championships, while Connolly seeks to take down the 100 Butterfly mark, held by former Bison standout KaSandra Kaplan.
Entering the event, six Bison are competing in their final CCSA Championships, Ford, Leanne McMaster (Kingston, Jamaica), Noah Nicholas (Stone Mountain, Ga.), Maalik Nixon (Peachtree City, Ga.), Skylar Smith (Los Angeles) and Andreas Weech (Nassau, Bahamas).
To view the Order of Events, please click here.
LAST TIMEOUT
On Feb. 2, both squads fell on the road at New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT).
Freshman Miles Simon (Atlanta) won three individual races while Thompson and fellow classmate Mark-Anthony Beckles (Chaguanas, Trinidad & Tobago) also won individual events.
For the women, McMaster, Nickolas, freshman Breyahna Tyme (Ontario, Canada) sophomores Madison Freeland (Glenside, Pa.) and Asha Evans (Atlanta) all won individual events.
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
After the CCSA Championships, Nickolas continues her preparation for the upcoming NCAA Diving Championships (March 18-20).
