First Time Championship Qualifiers

Two South Dakota sophomores on the Swimming and Diving teams are the first Coyotes to qualify for the NCAA Championships. Alex Parkinson won the 1650 freestyle at the Summit League Championships with a time of 15:04.40, and Nick Rounds won the 50 free with a school record of 19.15 second, as well as the 100 back.

Parkinson and Rounds continue to practice through spring break for the Championships on March 25-28 in Atlanta, Georgia. They aren’t the only ones training though, as Head Coach Jason Mahowald asked some other athletes to stay and help them train.

“They don’t train together at all, so we have a couple of guys staying over spring break to help train both of them,” Mahowald said. “Nick and Alex will go hard for two weeks and then take a little break right before the championships.”

Mahowald knew that Rounds and Parkinson could get to the championships, but also knew that they would jumpstart others on the team.

“Seeing Nick and Alex do it gave everyone the confidence that they could do it,” Mahowald said.

In the eyes of Mahowald, the NCAA Championships were a big step, but it is just the first step to getting to the 2028  Olympic Trials.

Mahowald referenced the new facility at the Wellness   Center as a big reason for the success of South Dakota in many ways, between training, recruiting and community.

“[It] definitely helped to be able to train together and use different training methods,” Mahowald said. “USD is an easy sell.”

Mahowald received the Coach of the Year award at the Summit League Championships, but knows that it isn’t just about himself.

“It’s always an honor to get that award,” Mahowald said. “I cannot accept that alone.” 

While the team won many individual races at the Summit League Championships, they finished second as a team in both men’s and women’s, and        Mahowald doesn’t want to stop there.

“Continue to pursue       conference titles,” Mahowald said. “I have a lot of runner-up trophies. I like the winning ones more.” 

Junior Charlie Matthews and freshman Maddox Mork also qualified for the Zone Championships competition. Mork finished 18 in the three meter dive, and Matthews finished 19 in the one meter dive.