Villanova University

March 3, 2010

VILLANOVA, Pa. - An incredible freshman campaign for Villanova swimmer Hayley Edwards (Pilesgrove, N.J.) will continue at the 2010 Swimming & Diving Championships later this month. Edwards learned on Wednesday evening that her time in the 1650 yard freestyle is low enough to have qualified for the national championship meet. Edwards, already a BIG EAST and ECAC champion, will be the first Wildcat swimmer since 2007 to compete in the national championships.

Edwards qualified for the NCAA meet by having a "B" qualifying time which was low enough to earn her the opportunity to compete for a national championship. She currently has a personal best time of 16:18.88, a mark which ranks as the 28th best in the country among championship qualifiers.

At the BIG EAST Championships on February 20, Edwards lowered her previous personal best by a whopping 22 seconds en route to a 16-second margin of victory. She recorded a time of 16:20.39, which set a pool record at Trees Pool in Pittsburgh. It wasn't certain whether that mark would be good enough to qualify for the national meet, and Edwards returned to Trees Pool for the second time in as many weeks on February 27. There, she lowered her personal best once again, setting an ECAC meet record and reestablishing a Trees Pool mark with her new time of 16:18.88.

"Hayley's selection to the NCAA Championships highlights the phenomenal season that she has had," Villanova head coach Rick Simpson said. "In an event as grueling as the mile it is extremely difficult to come back one week later and drop more time, like Hayley did at the ECAC meet."

The NCAA Women's Swimming & Diving Championships will be hosted by Purdue from March 18-20 at the Boilermaker Aquatic Center in West Lafayette, Ind. The 1650 freestyle race will be held on Saturday, March 20.

In addition to competing in the 1650 race, Edwards will also swim in the 500 free during the NCAA meet. She is currently ranked 56th in the nation in the 500 free with a personal best time of 4:46.47. The 500 freestyle will be held on the first day of the championships on Thursday, March 18.

During the 2009-10 season, Edwards has excelled in a number of different events. At the BIG EAST Championships, she won conference titles in the 1650 free, 500 free and 200 butterfly. Her winning times in all three events met NCAA "B" qualifying standards.

The last Villanova swimmer to qualify for the national championships was Jenny Somerville, who competed at the NCAA meet each year from 2005-07. Like Edwards, she also competed in both the 500 and 1650 yard freestyles.

Villanova women's swimming has a long history of success at the national level. The Wildcats have won two national championships in the history of the program, including Lisa Flood in the 100 breaststroke and Maddy Crippen in the 400 individual medley.