SWIM: Tulane adds seven for 2016-17
Nov 18, 2015 | Women's Swimming and Diving
NEW ORLEANS – Tulane swimming & diving head coach Katie Robinson announced the addition of seven student-athletes for the 2016-17 academic year Wednesday morning. Swimmers Olivia Johnson, Gabby Viera, Jordan Morling, Jessica Weitz, Morgan Tacik, Claire Golba and diver Nina Lazar will join the Green Wave in the fall of 2016.
"We are overjoyed to welcome this class to our Tulane family," Robinson said of the signing class. "These women will undoubtedly be among the top in our conference immediately and we have every reason to believe they will help us in our goal to be nationally ranked. What is even more exciting is the fact that these women come with outstanding personalities and attitudes that will help them be successful in the pool, classroom and in serving our community. We can't wait to have them on campus."
Johnson hails from West Lafayette, Indiana and has spent the last year swimming for Fishers Area Swimming Tigers. She has competed mainly in distance events, notching top times of 16:53.48 in the 1650 free and 10:01.49 in the 1000 free at the SCY Senior State meet. The Silver Medal Club honoree also competed in the 400 IM (4:19.36), 200 breast (2:20.08) and 100 breast (1:04.95) for the Tigers, as well as her previous club, Boilermaker Aquatics. A member of the National Honor Society, Johnson will graduate from William Henry Harrison High School in May 2016.
"Over the past couple years I've watched Olivia grow and mature into a fierce competitor with a heart of gold," Robinson said of Johnson. "I am personally very excited to welcome her to our family as she is the first commitment I've had at Tulane from my home state and connected with her so well early on in the recruiting process. She will immediately be a force to recon with in our conference, potentially scoring amongst the top in distance free, IM and breaststroke events. She also has current times that break our school record book which will help us to continue to strengthen our distance free program."
Viera will join her Parkway West High School team this year as a senior, but has competed for CSP Tideriders for the past three years. The St. Louis, Missouri native has ranked among the top 50 in the nation over the past few years in both butterfly and backstroke events, and was a three-time recipient of a USA Swimming Top 10 National Age Group Award. Viera finished first at the 2015 Speedo Champions Series Region 8 Sectionals in the 100 fly (54.02) and has made the finals of both the Region 8 Sectionals and NSCA Junior Nationals in both butterfly and backstroke events.
"Gabby is truly a world-class athlete and will be a dominating force within our conference and nationally," Robinson said. "She will immediately make an impact in the fly and back events competing for the championship title at conference, and significantly help our relays be at the top of The American. Already she has times that would crush our school records and I have no doubt Gabby will qualify and compete at the highest level at the NCAA Championships. To top it all off, Gabby has an infectious, bubbly personality that we can't wait to add to our team. The sky is the limit with Gabby here at Tulane."
Morling, a St. Charles, Illinois native, competed the last three years for St. Charles Swim Team. She notched top times in the 400 IM (4:20.68), and 100 back (55.76) at NSCA Junior Nationals. Morling finished second in the 100 back (55.89) and fourth in the 200 IM (2:04.40) at the IHSA State Championships as a junior, en-route to earning team MVP honors for her high school team.
"Jordan hits the jackpot with a combination of superb academic strength and times that will have her competing for the top spot at our conference championships in the backstroke and IM events," Robinson said. "Sarah [Woodbury] and I have gotten to know Jordan very well over the past year and she is such a lovely young woman that we couldn't be happier to welcome to our family here at Tulane. Jordan comes highly recommended by her esteemed coaches for her hard work ethic, team-first attitude, positive personality and her underwater kicking prowess. Jordan will be a key component in raising our team to a national level."
Weitz hails from Charleston, South Carolina and has competed for Porter-Gaud High School, as well as Live To Play (LTP) Racing Club. She saw great success at the South Carolina LC Senior State Championships in 2015, setting a number of top times at the meet. Weitz also competed at the 2015 North Carolina Speedo Champions series, setting top times in the 50 free (25.05) and 100 back (59.11) at the event.
"Jessica is a ray of sunshine and someone we've had a recruiting eye on for a while," said Robinson. "She is a joy to be around and has improved her times significantly in the past couple years. She has a heart for service that is absolutely in alignment with our team values. Jessica has a lot of potential and will improve our team with her selfless positive energy that she gives so effortlessly. We are very much looking forward to adding her to our family."
Tacik has spent four seasons on the West Forsyth High School varsity team, helping her squad to three runner-up conference finishes and back-to-back second-place regional finishes. The Lewisville, North Carolina native was named conference swimmer of the year as a sophomore, and earned NiSCA High School All-American honors as a sophomore and junior. Tacik has spent the last 12 years swimming for Northwest North Carolina Riptyde, and over the past two years she has qualified for winter Junior Nationals while also earning USA Swimming Scholastic All-American honors.
"We are thrilled to welcome Morgan to our family," said Robinson. "She is incredibly strong in a variety of events and it will be fun to see which ones become her staple at Tulane. She has current times that place her in the top 8 at our conference in at least four events, illustrating how important she will be in helping Tulane rise to the top of The American. She succeeds in some of the most grueling events in swimming, which speaks volumes about how tough and tenacious she is. Not only will Morgan help our team athletically, she will also be a huge help in keeping our team GPA nationally ranked. Sarah [Woodbury] and I can't wait to coach Morgan in the years to come."
Golba will join the Green Wave after competing for Archbishop Alter High School. The Kettering, Ohio native earned a third-place finish in the 100 back as a junior at Ohio State Championships with a time of 56.31. Golba set her career-best time in the event at the 2014 YMCA Short Course National Championships with a time of 55.38. She has competed at the YMCA Short and Long Course National Championships each of the past three years, notching a number of top-30 finishes, including two top-10 finishes in the backstroke.
"Claire fits Tulane so well from both an academic and athletic standpoint," Robinson said. "She has huge aspirations within the medical field and a deep rooted desire to be amongst the best in the pool. Sarah [Woodbury] and I see a large amount of potential in Claire that we can't wait to coach. Already, she has current times that would place her in the top 8 in the backstroke events at the AAC Championships. She has a powerful hold on the water and rips it up underwater too. We as a staff have high hopes for Claire as she continues to develop into one of the best backstrokers within our conference."
Lazar hails from Coquitlam, British Columbia, Canada and has competed for iDive Vancouver for the past four years. At the 2015 B.C. Winter Provincials Lazar notched top scores in the 1-meter (10 dives) (411.40), 1-meter (5 dives) (229.30), 3-meter (5-dives) (245.30) and Platform (208.90). She was a senior national Qualifier in the 1-meter and 3-meter in each of the last two years and a Junior National finalist in the 1- and 3-meter in 2015.
"We are extremely excited to add Nina to our team," diving coach Chris Devine said. "She has shown interest in Tulane for quite a while and when she arrived on campus we instantly knew she would be a perfect fit for our program. She is a hard worker both in the pool and in the classroom. She has qualified to Canadian senior and junior nationals multiple times, so the quality of diving she brings can only add to our team. She will be an immediate contributor and will be competing for the conference championship the moment she steps on campus."
