May 9, 2015
San Jose, Calif.-----Riley Spitser, one of two competitors in the 2015 Mountain West Women's Swimming and Diving Championships to earn all-conference honors in three freestyle races, was named the San José State Swimmer of the Year at the team's annual post-season awards banquet.
The junior from San Diego's Rancho Bernardo High was third in the 1650, fourth in the 500 and sixth in the 200. Spitser finished the season as the school record holder in the 200, 500, 1,000 and 1,650-yard freestyles.
Freshman Cari Reiswig from Galt, Calif., was named the team's Diver of the Year. Reiswig became the first Spartan to earn All-Mountain West honors placing fourth in the 1-meter and fifth in the 3-meter for another all-conference recognition in her first conference championship meet. Earlier in the season, she set school records in the 1 and 3-meter dives in a double dual meet with UC Santa Cruz and Simon Fraser.
Freshman Colleen Humel shared three awards - Most Improved with Dominique Yoder; Performance of the Year with Morgan McCormick; and Rookie of the Year with Jenner Johnson. Humel, from Chicopee, Mass., finished her first year as a Spartans with a NCAA Championship "B" cut mark in the 200 and earned All-Mountain West honors in the event with her fourth place finish at the conference meet. She owns the Spartans' #3-all time mark in the 100 backstroke and #2-best time in the 200 backstroke.
Yoder, from Kirkland, Wash., emerged as one of the team's most effective breaststroke specialists by the end of the season. Her best times of 2:18.70 in the 200 breaststroke and 1:03.98 in the 100 breaststroke rank sixth and ninth, respectively, on the San José State career lists.
McCormick led the way in the 200 backstroke with a school and Mountain West record-setting winning performance. With Humel's fourth-place finish, the 200 backstroke was the Spartans' one event in which two San Jose State competitors finished in the top five. McCormick, from Golden, Colo., went on to be named Mountain West Freshman of the Year and represented the Spartans in the 2015 NCAA Championships.
Johnson, a transfer from American River College, was part of the team's breaststroke contingent. Her 1:03.56 time at the Mountain West Championships ranks fifth best on the San Jose State career list.
Senior Amber Nelson was named the team's Scholar-Athlete. The bioengineering major is one of six members of this year's team to earn Dean's Scholar recognition at the University's annual Honors Convocation. She also was the recipient of a 2014 scholarship from her academic major department.
Senior Kayla Nakamoto from Roseville, Calif., rounded out the award winners as the recipient of the Spartan Award in recognition of the team members who best exemplifies the qualities of the classic Spartan. A butterfly specialist, Nakamoto was honored as a San Jose State University Dean's Scholar, was named an Arthur Ashe, Jr., Sports Scholar by Diverse Issues in Higher Education, and was the San Jose State winner of a Mountain West Community Service Award.
To conclude the festivities, Spitser, junior Brynne Beneke from Winsted, Conn., and sophomore Lisa Ellis from Grass Valley, Calif., were introduced as team captains for the 2015-16 season.