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Head coach Sue Novitsky announced the signing of seven swimmers for the 2011-12 season.
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Nov. 23, 2010
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - An abundance of talent will join the Illini swimming and diving team next fall, as head coach Sue Novitsky announced the signing of seven swimmers to national letters of talent. The recruiting class includes Hailey Booth (Loveland, Ohio/Loveland), Andrea DeAngelis (Mountain Lakes, N.J./Mountain Lakes), Kayla Dlugopolski (Mequon, Wis./Homestead), Mary Beth Howard (St. Louis, Mo./Parkway West), Alison Meng (Lodi, Wis./Sauk Prairie), Callan McDermott (Mokena, Ill./Lincoln-Way East) and Megan Marchuk (Winnetka, Ill./New Trier).
"The seven student-athletes that will join the team next season will continue to add to our overall talent level," Novitsky said. "This class will bring a fantastic combination of athleticism, academic strength and great quality people. Coach (Steve) Farnau and I feel that these young ladies have the drive to help the team in the pool, in the classroom and to be awesome teammates. We are looking forward to helping them continue to develop and be excellent representatives of the University of Illinois. They are all excited to have the opportunity to wear the Orange and Blue and to help the team continue to move forward."
The group is highlighted by nine state high school individual and relay titles, eight NISCA/Speedo Swimming and Diving All-America honorees, four National Club Swimming Association (NCSA) Junior National qualifiers, two USA Swimming Junior National qualifiers and Scholastic All-America selections and one US Open qualifier and YMCA National qualifier.
Hailey Booth
Hometown: Loveland, Ohio
High School: Loveland High School
USA Swimming Club: Cincinnati Aquatic Club
Main Events: Butterfly, middle distance freestyle, individual medley
Three-time Ohio Division I high school state qualifier ... NCSA Junior National qualifier ... USA Swimming Speedo Sectional qualifier ... At the 2010 Ohio high school state championships, places sixth in the 200 freestyle relay, 12th in the 200 medley relay, 16th in the 100 butterfly and 18th in the 500 freestyle.
Top Times
100 Butterfly: 57.63
200 Butterfly: 2:11.32
500 Freestyle: 5:07.26
200 Individual Medley: 2:10.30
400 Individual Medley: 4:35.67
Coach Novitsky on Hailey: "Hailey is a great addition to the team and has a wide range of events that she can compete in during meets. She has continued to develop during her high school career and we expect that to continue at Illinois. Hailey is strong academically as she currently ranks in the top 10 of her high school class. Additionally, she shows some of the characteristics that we look for in our student-athletes, such as great enthusiasm and competitiveness."
Andrea DeAngelis
Hometown: Mountain Lakes, N.J.
High School: Mountain Lakes High School
USA Swimming Club: Lakeland Hills YMCA
Main Events: Breaststroke, individual medley
Two-time New Jersey high school state qualifier ... YMCA National qualifier ... Two-time USA Swimming Scholastic All-America team honoree ... Competed at the YMCA Short Course National Championships, placing ninth in the 200 medley relay and 22nd in the 100 and 200 breaststroke ... At the 2010 New Jersey high school state champions, took first in the 200 freestyle relay, third in the 200 medley relay, fifth in the 100 breaststroke and 15th in the 200 individual medley ... At the 2009 state championships, placed third in the 200 medley relay, fourth in the 200 freestyle relay, seventh in the 400 freestyle relay and 15th in the 200 individual medley.
Top Times
100 Breaststroke: 1:05.64
200 Breaststroke: 2:22.00
200 Individual Medley: 2:09.78
Coach Novitsky on Andrea: "Andrea is a terrific addition to our breaststroke group. She just started really competing and training her breaststroke in the past two years and has seen impressive time drops during that time. Andrea has gained experience competing at the national level and that will definitely help her continue to develop in college. She brings tons of enthusiasm and a strong drive to help the team keep improving. Her family used to live in Illinois and Andrea is excited to return and wear the Orange and Blue."
Kayla Dlugopolski
Hometown: Mequon, Wis.
High School: Homestead High School
USA Swimming Club: Elmbrook Swim Club
Main Events: Distance freestyle
Three-time Wisconsin high school state qualifier ... USA Swimming Junior National qualifier ... US Open qualifier ... NCSA Junior National qualifier ... At the 2009 Wisconsin high school state championships, placed seventh in the 500 freestyle and 20th in the 200 freestyle relay ... At the 2008 state championships, finish seventh in the 400 freestyle relay and 500 freestyle, 11th in the 200 freestyle and 16th in the 200 freestyle relay.
Top Times
200 Freestyle: 1:55.09
500 Freestyle: 4:57.24
1000 Freestyle: 10:04.85
1650 Freestyle: 16:50.48
Coach Novitsky on Kayla: "Kayla is a fantastic addition to our distance group and will be able to contribute immediately in those events. Additionally, Kayla has gained valuable national experience over the past year. With her current times in the 1000 and 1650 freestyle events, she would already be ranked in the top 10 on Illinois' all-time individual performance list. Kayla has a strong work ethic and a solid training foundation. She is a good student and has a great personality that will continue to add to the team overall."
Mary Beth Howard
Hometown: St. Louis, Mo.
High School: Parkway West High School
USA Swimming Club: Clayton Shaw Park Tideriders
Main Events: Backstroke, middle distance freestyle
Three-time Missouri high school state qualifier ... At the 2010 Missouri high school state championships, placed sixth in the 200 freestyle relay, seventh in the 400 freestyle relay and ninth in the 200 freestyle ... At the 2009 state championships, took first in the 200 freestyle relay, fifth in the 400 freestyle relay, 11th in the 100 backstroke and 16th in the 200 individual medley.
Top Times
100 Freestyle: 53.64
200 Freestyle: 1:54.92
500 Freestyle: 5:08.97
100 Backstroke: 59.01
200 Backstroke: 2:05.90
Coach Novitsky on Mary Beth: Mary Beth is great addition to our backstroke and middle distance freestyle groups. She has gone career best times in five events in the past month and we expect to see her continue to get even faster. Mary Beth has a terrific personality and is extremely motivated to put in the work to continue to develop in the pool. She is a strong student and is looking at majoring in mechanical engineering.
Megan Marchuk
Hometown: Winnetka, Ill.
High School: New Trier High School
USA Swimming Club: New Trier Swim Club
Main Events: Sprint freestyle
Four-time Illinois high school state qualifier ... Two-time USA Swimming Scholastic All-America team honoree ... NCSA Junior National qualifier ... Seven-time NISCA/Speedo Swimming and Diving All-America honoree in 200 medley relay and 200 and 400 freestyle relay ... At the 2010 Illinois high school state championships, helped team win state title, in addition to placing first in the 400 freestyle relay, second in the 200 medley relay, fourth in the 200 freestyle relay and seventh in the 50 freestyle ... At the 2009 state championships, helped guide team to a second-place finish and took first in the 400 freestyle relay, second in the 200 freestyle relay, fifth in the 200 medley relay and 10th in the 50 freestyle ... Also guided high school team to second-place finishes in 2007 and 2008.
Top Times
50 Freestyle: 24.12
100 Freestyle: 52.60
200 Freestyle: 1:54.02
Coach Novitsky on Megan: "Megan is a strong addition to our sprint group. During her high school career, she was a big contributor on relays and we expect her to be competing for relay spots as well at Illinois. The experience that Megan has gained being on a highly competitive team will only help her continue to develop. Megan is a well-rounded athlete also competing on the rowing team in high school. She is a tough competitor in combination with being a strong student that will add to the overall quality of our team."
Callan McDermott
Hometown: Mokena, Ill.
High School: Lincoln-Way East High School
USA Swimming Club: Academy Bullets Swim Club
Main Events: Backstroke, individual medley
Three-time Illinois high school state qualifier ... USA Swimming Sectional qualifier ... Has competed at three Illinois high school state championships, claiming top-40 finishes in the 100 backstroke, 200 medley relay, 200 individual medley and 400 freestyle relay.
Top Times
100 Backstroke: 59.34
200 Backstroke: 2:14.80
200 Individual Medley: 2:09.42
Coach Novitsky on Callan: "We are happy to have another member of the McDermott family become an Illini, as Callan joins her sister Darragh on the team. Callan had some good drops in her events during the fall high school season. We expect that she will continue to develop and add to the depth of our backstroke and individual medley groups. Callan is a very motivated individual and is extremely active in numerous groups at school. She is looking forward to putting on the Orange and Blue next year."
Alison Meng
Hometown: Lodi, Wis.
High School: Sauk Prairie High School
USA Swimming Club: Waunakee Rural Aquatic Team
Main Events: Butterfly, backstroke, sprint freestyle
Five-time Wisconsin high school state champion ... Division II state record holder in the 100 Butterfly (55.94) ... 2010 NISCA/Speedo Swimming and Diving All-America honoree in the 100 backstroke ... Four-time Wisconsin high school state qualifier ... USA Swimming Junior National qualifier ... NCSA junior national qualifier ... At the 2010 Wisconsin high school Division II state championships, won her second straight state title in the 100 butterfly and 100 backstroke and placed third in the 200 medley relay and 400 freestyle relay ... Also won state in the 400 freestyle relay in 2008 ... Has finished in the top-10 at the state championships 16 times in four years.
Top Times
50 Freestyle: 24.23
100 Freestyle: 52.68
200 Freestyle: 1:52.97
50 Backstroke: 26.57
100 Backstroke: 55.91
200 Backstroke: 2:02.14
50 Butterfly: 25.74
100 Butterfly: 55.92
Coach Novitsky on Alison: "Alison is an awesome addition to our team and will make an immediate impact in our butterfly and backstroke events. Additionally, she has great versatility in her freestyle events and is coming off a very successful high school season, where she was able to defend her two state titles in the 100 Backstroke and 100 Butterfly. Her current times in the 50, 100 and 200 backstroke along with her 50 and 100 butterfly times would place her in the top 10 individuals all-time list at Illinois. Alison has only been swimming year round for a couple of years, but has a strong athletic background and is a fierce competitor that will keep adding to the quality of our team."
