LESHER WINS NATIONAL TITLE!
Junior sets NCAA record in 400 IM
» MEET RESULTS

HOUSTON (March 9, 2007) -- Nazareth junior Emily Lesher won the national championship Friday in the 400-yard individual medley as she finished first in that event at the NCAA Division III Swimming and Diving Chamnpionships at the University of Houston.

Lesher, of Sherrill, N.Y. and a graduate of Vernon-Verona-Sherrill High School, was in second place after the morning preliminary round, then moved up to first place by setting an NCAA record in the finals with a winning time of 4:22.75. She finished ahead of Amanda Nicholson of Williams (4:23.48) and defending champion Kaitlyn Orstein of Washington & Jefferson (4:24.34).

"It was the most incredibly exciting race that I've seen in my life," said an exuberant Nazareth Coach Martie Staser. "She just turned it on out of nowhere."

Lesher was in third place, Staser said, heading into the freestyle portion (or final 100 yards) of the event. She turned in a split of :57.99 in the freestyle to race past both Nicholson and Orstein and ultimately lowered her previous best time by nearly five seconds.

"I can't really remember much once the freestyle started," said Lesher, who finished fifth in both the 200 and 400 IM in 2006. "I didn't realize that I had gone that fast. I guess it was just adrenalin."

Lesher said the race itself is something of a blur. She touched the wall not knowing that she had broken the NCAA record of 4:23.30 that has been held by Kenyon's Kathryn Petrock since 1997.

"I was kind of in shock," she said. "I wasn't really thinking about what place I was in because I can't control how the other people swim; I was just trying to swim my best time."

"We knew that both Amanda (Nicholson) and Kaitlyn (Orstein) were great breaststrokers and that they would pull ahead during that part of the race," Staser said, "but we thought that if Emily could stay close that she would have a shot."

Lesher swam 4:28.20 in the prelims and stood second behind Orstein (4:27.33), who had won the 200 IM on Thursday. Lesher's previous best time was 4:27.31 in last year's prelims.

Lesher is Nazareth's third national champion in women's swimming and diving. Kim Schneider won the title in the 100-yard butterfly in 1994 and Kama Grattet won championships as a diver on the 1-meter board in 1984 and 1985 and on the 3-meter board in 1985.

Lesher placed fifth in the 200 IM on Thursday and also finished fifth in the 400 IM last season. She also will swim in the 200 backstroke Saturday.