MIAMI (March 2, 2017) – A school-record five FIU swimmers will compete in the upcoming NCAA Division I Swimming and Diving Championships in Indianapolis, Indiana, March 15-18.
Junior
Letizia Bertelli has been invited to compete in the 100 Free, recording the 25
th-fastest time in the nation. The native of Cremona, Italy, notched a school-record time of 48.32 during the first leg of the 400 Free Relay time trails at last weekend's Conference USA Championships in Atlanta, Georgia. Bertelli has also been invited to swim in the 50 Free (22.34 – 44
th-fastest in the nation) and 100 Fly (53.38 – 48
th-fastest in the nation).
That 400 Free Relay team of Bertelli,
Marie Lauridsen,
Naomi Ruele and
Jennifer Deist qualified for the NCAA Championships, breaking the school record with a time of 3:15.23 last weekend in Atlanta, becoming the first relay team in FIU history to qualify for the NCAA Championships.
Joining Bertelli, Lauridsen, Ruele and Deist will be
Carita Luukkanen as the Panthers have also qualified for the 200 Free, 400 Medley and 800 Free Relays.
FIU diving will compete in the NCAA Zone B qualifier in Auburn, Alabama, March 6-8, for a chance to join Bertelli, Lauridsen, Ruele, Deist and Luukkanen in Indianapolis.
Fans are encouraged to follow the Panthers on Twitter (@FIUSwimDive) and become a fan on Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUSwimmingAndDiving) for all the latest Swimming and Diving news. Follow all of FIU's 18 athletic teams on Twitter (@FIUAthletics), Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUSports), YouTube (FIUPanthers), and Instagram (FIUathletics).
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About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports. Athletic events are played in seven different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including FIU Arena and Ocean Bank Field at FIU Stadium.
About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. It is a public research university with colleges and schools that offers more than 180 bachelor's, master's and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU contributes $9.8 billion each year to the local economy. FIU is Worlds Ahead in finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission. FIU has awarded over 200,000 degrees and enrolls more than 54,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell, FIU@I-75, and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. FIU also supports artistic and cultural engagement through its three museums: the Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum, the Wolfsonian-FIU, and the Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has over 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.
