ERIE, Pa. – After a fourth-place mark in the PSAC Championships a season ago, the Gannon women's swimming and diving team enters the season primed for success led by fifth-year head coach Jacqueline Michalski.
 
With key returnees and a strong incoming class, the Golden Knights aim to contend for a PSAC Championship this upcoming season.
 
"I am very excited for what our women have in store," said Michalski. "We brought a lot of newcomers into the program, and we are returning a lot of talent this year. The team finished strong last year, and I am hoping to watch them do it again."
 
"We have a very strong team, with quite some depth," said senior Sterre van de Goor (Oss, Netherlands/Sint-Joriscollege). "We have some good swimmers this year, and I'm excited to get the season started."
 
The Golden Knights open their 2023-24 slate on Friday, October 20, when they host Clarion in the season/home opener at Carneval Athletic Pavilion Pool at 4:30 p.m.
 
"We're excited to get the season started," senior diver Kyla Miller (Wilbraham, Mass./Minnechaug Regional) said. "The women's team has a lot of positivity and a lot of unity going on, and we are really determined for this season."
 
The Golden Knights placed fourth among 12 teams in the PSAC Championships last season and saw the 800 freestyle relay and 400 freestyle relay teams earn All-PSAC honors after both finished third in their respective races.
 
Senior Irati Arzalluz (Lasarte-Oria, Spain/Santo Tomas Lizeoa), senior Alex Pannemann (Clinton Twp., Mich./Chippewa Valley),  junior Madalyn Myers (Murrysville, Pa./Franklin Regional), junior Chenay Date Line (Johannesburg, South Africa/Crawford College Sandton), and sophomore Isabella Dietz (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Allegheny) were all members of the All-PSAC squads and return this season. They will look to help propel the Golden Knights this season. 
 
"There's a lot of great leadership built within our program this year that can help continue to move us forward," noted Michalski. "We have some young freshmen that have stepped up in what they've done in the pool and in training, so we have a lot of great opportunities to make some forward progress."
 
Notable veteran returnees for this year's squad include senior Francesca Nemetz (Greensburg, Pa./Hempfield Area), Miller, van de Goor, and Myers.
 


 
WOMEN'S SWIMMING AND DIVING GLANCE:
 
Head Coach: Jacqueline Michalski
 
Assistant: Katie Cowan
 
Season/Home Opener: Friday, October 20, 4:30 p.m., vs. Clarion – Carneval Athletic Pavilion Pool
 
PSAC Championships: February 14-17 – Keystone Aquatic Center – Carlisle, Pa.
 
 
RETURNEES TO WATCH:
 
Senior Sterre van de Goor (Oss, Netherlands/Sint-Joriscollege), Distance Freestyle  
 
Senior Francesca Nemetz (Greensburg, Pa./Hempfield Area), Butterfly/Distance Freestyle
 
Senior Kyla Miller (Wilbraham, Mass./Minnechaug Regional), Diver
 
Junior Madalyn Myers (Murrysville, Pa./Franklin Regional), Distance Freestyle
 
 
NEWCOMERS TO WATCH:
 
Freshman Emily Hedges (Peachtree Corners, Ga./St Pius X Catholic), Individual Medley and Breaststroke
 
Freshman Katelyn Reott (Butler, Pa./Moniteau), Sprint Backstroke and Sprint Freestyle
 
Sophomore Camila Devaux (Bahia Blanca, Argentina), Butterfly and Backstroke
 
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HOME OPENER:
 
GANNON GOLDEN KNIGHTS VS. CLARION GOLDEN EAGLES
 
WHERE: Carneval Athletic Pavilion Pool
WHEN: Friday, 4:30 p.m. (Meet will begin with diving)
LIVE VIDEO  
 
COACHES:
 
Gannon: Jacqueline Michalski (fifth season), Katie Cowan, Anne Novakoski (diving coach)
 
Clarion: Brehan Kelley (eighth season); Heath Calhoun (diving coach)
 
The Gannon and Clarion women's teams met at Clarion last October, and the Golden Eagles emerged with a 151-110 victory.

The Clarion women placed fifth in the PSAC Championships, one spot behind the Gannon women.
 
The Golden Eagles are led by sophomore Luna Castellanos, who swept the 1-Meter and 3-Meter championships at the NCAA Division II championships. She also qualified for the NCAA Championships in her first meet of the season Friday at Clarion's Don Leas Diving Invitational.
 
Junior diver Alexa Gonczi also was a Second-Team All-America diver. Gonczi and diver Collen Hudson both hit NCAA qualifying marks in the season-opening event.