Slavik, Zelen Set for Nationals After Being Named MIAC Males’s & Girls’s Swimmers of the Yr

By: Frank Rajkowski, SJU Writer/Video Producer

COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. – Not many swimmers are in a position to compete on the stage Haley Zelen and Brayden Slavik do.

So it is no shock every athlete finds lots to admire within the different.

Zelen, a College of Saint Benedict junior who transferred from Division I Wisconsin previous to this season, and Slavik, a Saint John’s senior who earned All-American honorable point out distinction a yr in the past, have been named the MIAC girls’s and males’s swimmers of the yr after their standout performances at this season’s convention meet Feb. 11-14.

It marks the primary time a CSB and SJU swimmer have received the award in the identical season, and the primary time a CSB swimmer has received the award ever.

Slavik received the 1,650-yard freestyle for the third season in a row, breaking his personal college, convention and meet report with a time of 15:32.16. He additionally received the 400 particular person medley (3:57.55) and the five hundred freestyle (4:29.70).

Zelen, in the meantime, grew to become the primary CSB athlete in any sport to earn All-MIAC honors in seven occasions. That included particular person titles within the 100 butterfly (54.10), 100 freestyle (50.99) and 50 freestyle (23.07).

“It’s super exciting both of us were able to do so well,” Zelen mentioned. “It shows how much talent there is in these programs. We each get pushed a lot in practice and that makes both of us better.”

Zelen has a deep connection to each the CSB and SJU packages. Her mom Deanne (Siverson) set a number of college information and completed within the high three within the MIAC within the 100 and 200 breaststroke throughout all 4 of her seasons with the Bennies, together with a convention title within the 200 as a sophomore in 1995-96. She was additionally part of the 200 medley relay that completed seventh on the NCAA Division III nationwide meet in 1998, incomes All-American honors.

Her father Matt was a 13-time All-MIAC and All-American swimmer for the Johnnies who received the NCAA Division III nationwide title within the 50 freestyle as a senior in 1998-99 and nonetheless holds SJU college information within the 50 and 100 freestyle and 100 butterfly.

He additionally received eight profession particular person convention titles – a program report Slavik has now tied.

“Anyone who swims here knows all about her dad,” Slavik mentioned. “He’s all over the record books. And I know her mom was a really amazing swimmer too.”

But Slavik – whose older sister Mads swam at CSB earlier than graduating in 2023 – mentioned Zelen is fairly superb herself.

“Her consistency is what impresses me so much,” he mentioned. “Whatever meet she’s at, or whatever pool she’s swimming in, she doesn’t slow down at all. She’s always swimming at such a high level.”

Zelen is equally impressed by Slavik, whom she’s had the possibility to get to know higher as a result of he is courting her roommate and fellow Bennie swimmer Claire Canfield.

“I’m a sprinter, so to watch him swim distance is really impressive,” she mentioned. “His endurance is crazy. He keeps up such a fast pace for so long. It’s amazing to see.”

Both Zelen and Slavik have certified for this yr’s Division III nationwide meet, scheduled for March 18-21 in Indianapolis.

Zelen – the primary CSB swimmer to qualify for nationals since Katie Kuhlmann in 2002 – enters the competitors seeded second within the 100 butterfly, making her an actual risk to carry dwelling a nationwide championship. She can also be seeded seventh within the 50 freestyle and nineteenth within the 100, which means she could have loads of probabilities to hitch her mom and father as All-Americans.

The high eight swimmers in every occasion earn All-American standing and the following eight finishers are honorable point out choices.

“She’s such an amazing athlete and I’m really proud of everything she’s accomplished this season,” mentioned CSB head coach Mandy Wolvert, who was named this season’s MIAC girls’s swimming coach of the yr. “She set her goals and she’s been so good about going after them.”

Slavik is seeded fourth within the 1,650, the occasion by which he completed fifteenth at nationals a yr in the past. He may even compete within the 500, the place he’s seeded twenty first, and the 400 IM, the place he’s seeded twenty seventh.

“It’s not just the success he’s had in the pool that has meant so much to this program,” SJU head coach Ben Gill mentioned. “It’s also the way he handles himself as a person. He has a constant drive to get better, and when guys see that at the top of the roster, it has a huge impact on the team culture.”

Both swimmers mentioned having the opposite at nationals means extra help.

“Last year, I was kind of on my own except for my head coach,” mentioned Slavik, a psychology main. “It will be nice to have another familiar face there. It’s another person to bounce things off.”

“We’re both going out there to represent these schools as best we can,” added Zelen, an accounting main. “It would be so cool if both of us can do really well.”