The St. Catherine University swimming and diving team has had a solid start to the 2015-16 season thanks in large part to emerging first-year star Alissa Ellingson (Eagan, Minn./Eagan). The sprinter had a handfull of impressive performances in back-to-back meets this weekend to lead the Wildcats. For her stellar weekend, Ellingson has been named the Wildcat Athlete-of-the-Week.Â
Friday, the Wildcats cruised to a second-place finish at the University of St. Thomas JoAnn Andregg Invite. Ellingson did her share to contribute when she turned in her fourth victory in the 100 Butterfly this season with a time of 1:00.54 – just four-hundredths off her season-best time. She also clocked a career-best swim in the 200 Freestyle at 2:01.22 to place second. The Wildcats got strong performances from Ellingson both the 200 Freestyle and 200 Medley Relays that placed second and third, respectively.Â
Saturday, the Wildcats earned a third-place finish at Macalester College's Roger Ahlman Invite with Ellingson playing a huge role in that outcome. Ellingson swam lead-off on the Wildcats' 200 Freestye Relay that clocked a time of 1:43.78 that was just one-tenth of a second behind St. Thomas in first place. She earned a first-place victory in the 100 Individual Medley crushing the competition by over three seconds with a time of 1:03.18. Ellingson also collected a second-place swim in the 100 Butterfly adn a fourth-place finish in the 100 Breaststroke.Â
Ellingson and the remainder of the Wildcats will return to the pool Friday for a dual with the College of Saint Benedict. The meet is scheduled for 6 p.m. at Saint John's University in Collegeville, Minnesota.Â
