FAIRFAX, Va. - Head coach Peter Ward and the George Mason swimming & diving team welcome 12 new faces to the program for the 2015-16 season. The class is composed of eight men and four women.
“We are very excited to announce this year's incoming class,” said coach Ward and his staff. “This group will make an immediate impact in both our program and the Atlantic 10 Conference. They include Junior National qualifiers, Scholastic All-Americans, and even former NAIA Championship finalists. This is a very deep class and they will provide excellent support to our upperclassmen in taking another step up in the Atlantic 10 conference.”
Niles Biolley joins Mason from Ventura, California and was a school record holder at El Camino High School in the 200-yard IM and the 100-yard backstroke. The freshman was also a two-time county champion and a Channel League champion in the same events while earning 2014-15 USA Swimming Academic All-American honors.
Hagen Dietrich is one of three new swimmers to join Mason from the Bolles School in Jacksonville, Fla. along with Leonis Lau and Kimani Maina. Dietrich earned MVP honors at Cape Fear Academy for Swimming and made Second Team Florida Swimming. Lau swam three years at Bolles School while Maina earned Most Improved Club Swimmer with his club in Edmonton, AB, and also competed in the Commonwealth Games, World Junior Championships and Canadian Age Group Nationals.
Ryan Frayne brings several accolades with him to Mason from Frank W. Cox High School in Virginia Beach, Va. Frayne is a 2012 Virginia state champion and a two-time Scholastic All-American as well as a 2015 NAIA All-American. Jordan Witherow is the second male from Virginia, a five-year swimmer with Lee-Davis High School and member of the National Honor Society.
Rounding out the men's incoming class, Leo Rivoal joins the Patriots from New York, N.Y. and is a NCSA Junior National qualifier in the 100 and 200-yard backstroke. John Warker III is a 2014 and 2015 All-American with All-State and All-League Central Penn honors and was a three-time district medalist at Wilson High School in Reading, Pa.
Marla Albanese is one of four new freshmen to join the women's squad and comes to Mason from Eden Prairie High School in Minnesota where she earned All-State, All-American and honorable mention All-Conference honors. She is also a school record holder, state champion and was named the 2014 team MVP.
Hannah Denison swam three years with USA Swimming as she added several awards to her trophy case including 2013 Most Outstanding, 2013 Competitive Spirit, 2014 Breakout Swimmer of the Year and 2015 Virginia Swimming All-State honors. The Richmond, Va. native was a 2014 and 2015 Scholastic All-American and a NCSA Junior National qualifier the same seasons.
The final two swimmers of the 2015-16 female class are two Virginia natives as well: Melanie Howard-Hutton, a two-year member of the diving team at West Springfield High School and Christina McLemore, a regional and district champion while swimming at Grassfield High School in Chesapeake, Va.
