Student-Athlete of the Week - November 20, 2006

Name: Ashely Vrieze
Sport: Women's Swimming
Year: Senior
Position: Backstroke/Freestyle

Ashley Vrieze was San Jose State's top performer this past weekend in the annual Speedo Cup at Belmont Plaza Olympic Pool in Long Beach, Calif. She helped the Spartans to a fifth-place team standing among 22 scoring squads.

On day one of the three-day event, Vrieze first swam a lifetime-best 24.41 in 50 freestyle preliminaries in the morning. She began the evening session by leading off the fifth-place Spartan 200 freestyle relay, producing a 24.71 50 freestyle split as SJSU turned in a season-best time of 1:37.54. After racing 24.47 in the finals of the 50 freestyle to finish in 10th place, Vrieze closed the first day by leading off the fifth-place Spartan 400 medley relay, swimming a season-best opening 100 backstroke split of 58.44. The Spartans timed 3:54.47 on the relay, a season best by over four seconds.

On day two, Vrieze registered two school records. In morning prelims, she swam 57.15 to better the school mark in the 100 backstroke. Alana Lella had previously swam 57.16 at the 2004 WAC Championship. At night, she led off the seventh-place Spartan 200 medley relay with a school-record 50 backstroke split of 26.50. The previous SJSU record belonged to current teammate Lauren Mar, who went 26.81 to lead off the 200 medley relay at the 2006 WAC Championship. The SJSU relay finished seventh in 1:47.19, a season best by over a second and a half. Vrieze also raced 57.34 in the finals of the 100 backstroke to touch the pads in fourth, which matched the highest placement finish by a Spartan at this year's Speedo Cup, individual or relay.

On the third and final day, Vrieze won the consolation final of the 200 backstroke, finishing ninth in 2:05.26, a season best and a marked improvement from her 2:08.04 in morning prelims. The time was the best by a Spartan this season in the 200 back, and Vrieze's best since 2004. She concluded the meet by anchoring the first Spartan 400 freestyle relay of the season to a fifth-place finish in 3:32.36. Her split of 52.70 was a lifetime-best 100 freestyle relay split.

For the weekend, Vrieze compiled two school records, three individual top-10 and three relay top-five finishes.

Past 2006-07 Spartan Foundation Student-Athletes of the Week

August 28 - Jessie Shull - Women's Volleyball
September 5 - Tiffany Hall - Women's Cross Country
September 11 - Yonus Davis - Football
September 18 - Jennifer Sentfleben - Women's Volleyball
September 25 - Dwight Lowery - Football
October 2 - Adam Tafralis - Football
October 9 - Nicole Irwin - Women's Soccer
October 16 - Marissa Dayton - Women's Soccer
October 23 - Nicole Irwin - Women's Soccer
October 30 - Yonus Davis - Football
November 6 - Patrick Perry - Football
November 13 - Jessie Shull, Women's Volleyball
November 20 - Ashley Vrieze, Women's Swimming