MOSCOW, Idaho - Every year, Idaho swimming and diving gets together at the end of the season for a night of celebration hosted by head coach Dr. Mark Sowa as well as diving coach Wei Wei and assistants Elizabeth Levy and Lily Meyer. 

This annual get-together includes the awards issued by the coaches to swimmers and divers who had truly special seasons. In a 24-25 slate that included the best performance at the WAC championships in recent memory, many Vandals made their case for nominations. 

The five awards given out were: Swimmer of the Year, Diver of the Year, Most Improved, Rookie of the Year, and the Vandal Comeback Swimmer of the Year. 

GINGER KIEFER - SWIMMER OF THE YEAR
Sophomore Ginger Kiefer received the team's Swimmer of the Year award after one of the most dominant seasons in Vandal Swim and Dive history. In Idaho's last WAC Championship before the team joins the MPSF, Kiefer left a mark on the school that will last forever.

Kiefer claimed the school record in the 200 yard IM prelims (1:58.84) before rewriting the book once again in the finals (1:58.35), claiming her first of three WAC titles in the process. Kiefer also collected conference titles and school records in the 400 yard IM (4:13.43), and the 200 yard backstroke (1:55.07). Ginger also capped off her remarkable season with a trip to the USA Open Water Nationals, a berth earned by her winning finish in the MPSF Open Water Championships in the fall. 

LAUREN WIERSCHKE - DIVER OF THE YEAR
Sophomore Lauren Wierschke was named the Vandals' Diver of the Year after taking a major step forward in her second season. Just a sophomore, she served as the elder statesman in a diver group infused with youth. 

Wierschke achieved a personal best in the 10M Diving (170.70) at the WAC Championships. She finished in first place in both the 1M (237.75) and the 3M (248.70) vs. Utah Tech in January, as well as second in the 1M (258.23) and third in the 3M (228.90) vs. Northern Colorado.

KATY FOLEY - MOST IMPROVED
Sophomore Katy Foley was honored with the team's Most Improved award after a breakout sophomore season. In just her second season with the Vandals, she achieved five personal bests, including three at the WAC Championships. 

Foley made her first mark of the year earning personal bests in the 50-yard backstroke (26.33) and 100-yard freestyle (52.58) as the leadoff for the Vandal relay team that placed second and third in those events vs. Washington State.. Foley continued to develop throughout the season, which culminated in a career performance at the WAC Championships in Houston. This included personal records at the 50 yard freestyle (23.66), the 100 yard backstroke (55.17), and the 200 yard backstroke (1:59.87). 

HOLLY LENARZ - ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
Freshman Holly Lenarz established herself among the best on the team and in the WAC in her first collegiate season. As of now, she currently occupies four spots in the Vandals' record books at four different events, including the 500 yard freestyle (4:54.53, 3rd in school history), 1000 yard freestyle (10:22.43, 5th), 1650 yard freestyle (17:14.94, 7th) and the 400 yard IM (4:25.05, 7th).

On top of these historic marks, Lenarz also set a season best in the 100 yard butterfly with a time of 58.89 seconds.

TAYLOR WASSEL - VANDAL COMEBACK SWIMMER OF THE YEAR
In her final season with the black and gold, senior Taylor Wassel set multiple personal bests, including six at the WAC Championships, two of which were set back-to-back in the prelims and finals. 
Wassel earned times of 24.54 seconds in the 50 yard freestyle, 26.45 seconds in the 50 yard butterfly, 56.85 seconds in the 100 yard butterfly, and 2:03.43 in the 200 yard butterfly.

The Vandals are looking to finish off the semester strong in finals week before resuming the summer training season in the coming months.

FOLLOW THE VANDALS
To stay up-to-date on the Vandals, follow the team on Instagram (vandalswim_dive), X (VandalSwim_Dive), and visit govandals.com.