Hargis Announces Team Award Winners for 2017-18 Season

PITTSBURGH—The Pitt swimming & diving team held its annual banquet Sunday morning at the University Club on campus as head coach John Hargis presented the program's individual awards for the 2017-18 season and said a final farewell to the team's four seniors.

Those seniors—swimmers Boris Kulizhnikov, Lina Rathsack and Amanda Richey and diver Meme Sharp—finished their Pitt careers as one of the most accomplished graduating groups in Pitt swimming & diving history. In total, they compiled 29 ACC scoring performances, 11 First Team All-ACC recognitions, 10 Pitt school records, nine NCAA Championships appearances, eight All-Conference Academic awards and seven Dean's List recognitions at Pitt.

Highlighting the banquet, Coach Hargis announced the creation of a new award—the Marian Clark Gold Standard Award—to honor Clark's contributions to Pitt swimming & diving as a student-athlete and coach spanning nearly 30 years. Pitt sophomore Barb Schmele was the inaugural recipient of the Clark Gold Standard Award.

Here is a full listing of Pitt swimming & diving's 2017-18 award winners:

2017-18 Pitt Swimming & Diving Team Awards
Marian Clark Gold Standard Award: Barb Schmele

Panther Hammer Awards: Samy Helmbacher, Amanda Richey

Academic Excellence Awards: Brian Lovasik, Rachel Brown

Most Improved Awards: Brian Ramsey, Val Daigneault, Sam Jenkins, Krista Jones

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