Saturday, March 26, 2011

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - In the final day of the NCAA Division III Swimming & Diving Championships, two Westminster College women's swimmers placed in the top five of the 200-yard breaststroke including a runner-up finish. The four-day meet was held at the Allan Jones Aquatic Center in Knoxville, Tenn., on the campus of the University of Tennessee.

Senior Courtney Herdt (Beaver Falls, Pa./Beaver Falls) placed second in the 200 breaststroke with a school-record time of 2:17.15. Herdt missed becoming a national champion in the event by 2.47 seconds as Emory's April Whitley won the event with a time of 2:14.62.

A two-time national qualifier, Herdt improved on her 13th-place time of 2:21.06 from last year's national meet by four seconds. Herdt finishes this year's NCAA meet with her first two All-America honors of her career including Friday night's fourth-place finish in the 100 breaststroke.

Junior Caitlin Lehberger (New Wilmington, Pa./Wilmington) took fifth in the 200 breaststroke with a time of 2:18.52 to earn All-America honors. Lehberger is now a six-time All-American, including three All-America finishes this year and three last year.

Lehberger and Herdt are the 11th and 12th All-Americans in Westminster women's team history and the first and second NCAA All-Americans. Westminster had 10 All-Americans as an NAIA school through 1994.

Westminster finished in 13th place as a team with 74 points. There were 62 schools represented at the meet. Emory won the national championship with 614 points. Other Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) teams at the meet were Grove City in 11th place with 89 points and Washington & Jefferson in 29th with 26 points. Herdt's second-place finish in the 200 breaststroke was the highest result among PAC competitors.

About Westminster College...
Founded in 1852 and related to the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Westminster College ranks first in the nation as "Best College for Women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math," according to Forbes.com. Westminster is a top tier liberal arts college, a national leader in graduation rate performance, and a "Great School, Great Price," according to U.S. News Best Colleges guide. Westminster ranked 38th among liberal arts colleges, according to the Washington Monthly College Guide, and is one of the most affordable national liberal arts colleges in Pennsylvania. Westminster is also honored as one of "The Best 373 Colleges" and "Best in the Northeast" by The Princeton Review, and is named to the President's Honor Roll for excellence in service learning.

Nearly 1,600 undergraduate and graduate students benefit from individualized attention from dedicated faculty while choosing from 41 majors and nearly 100 organizations on the New Wilmington, Pa., campus. Visit www.westminster.edu/advantage to view "Advantage: Westminster" A Strategic Plan 2010-2020.