Rice University Athletics
Rice Swim Team Award-Winners Announced
4/24/2009 12:00:00 AM | Swimming & Diving
Led by sophomore Erin Mattson's selection as the recipient of 2009 Catherine Hannah Award as the Rice Swimmer of the Year, Rice head swim coach Seth Huston announced the team's annual award winners for the 2008-09 season.
Joining Mattson on the swim team's award list for 2009 were senior Natalie Kirchhoff as the Most Improved swimmer, freshman Shelby Bottoms as the Rookie of the Year and sophomore Ashten Ackerman as the winner of the Kathryn E. Scholl True Blue Spirit Award.
Mattson had sensational, record-setting season in the pool for Rice. At the Conference USA Championships she shattered the four-year old school record in the 200-yard butterfly with an NCAA-provisional qualifying time of 1:58.94. The sophomore from Highland, Ill., posted Rice's second-fastest individual career time in the 200-yard freestyle (1:47.98), the third-best mark in the 100-butterfly (54.63), and the fourth-fastest Rice time in the 100-freestyle (50.72). Mattson also joined with her teammates to set two new school records in relay events, setting new Rice standards in the 400- and 800-freestyle relays (with times of 3:21.66 and 7:18.01, respectively).
Her 2008-09 season was impressive to be sure, but what is even more eye-opening about Mattson's marks is that it was her first time to swim competitively in two full years. Mattson is a redshirt sophomore who had to sit out all of 2007-08 with a nagging injury. She worked hard to return from the setback, however, and her perseverance paid-off with one of the best swim seasons in school history. Not only did Mattson have a stellar competitive season in the pool, she was also named to the 2009 C-USA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll for maintaining a 3.00 grade point average as an Ecology/Evolutionary Biology major in Rice University's accelerated curriculum.
Natalie Kirchhoff also knows a few things about bouncing back from an injury. The senior from Columbia, Mo., fought through some setbacks to register some of her best career times this season and earn the award as the Most Swimmer. In January Kirchhoff swam a personal-best 2:06.62 in the 200-butterfly in a multi-team meet at LSU. Her 56.42 in the 100-fly at the C-USA Championships was the team's fourth-best mark in the event all year and another personal record.
An award that Kirchhoff won each of the last three years was the Scholl True Blue Spirit Award. In 2009 the honor went to Ashten Ackerman. The award is presented to the Owl who has shown dedication, discipline and leadership, but most importantly, has been an inspiration to her teammates with her consistent hard-work and commitment to the team concept. Not only was Ackerman the team's top swimmer in the 200-breaststroke (2:21.13), she was versatile enough to compete in both individual medley events and the sprints.
True freshman Shelby Bottoms was the Owls' 2009 Rookie of the Year. The local standout from nearby Lamar High School had a sensational debut season at the Division I level. She swam the fourth-fastest 200-individual medley in Rice history (2:03.44) to help lead the Owls to the meet title at the Nebraska Invitational in Lincoln, Neb. Bottoms also scored big for the team at the C-USA meet in the 400-IM and 200-backstroke.
As a team the Rice swimmers finished third at the 2009 C-USA Championships. The Owls and coach Huston await the opening of the program's new, on-campus 50-meter outdoor competition pool. The new facility is slated for completion next swim season in 2009-2010.
Players Mentioned
