The Wolfpacker

May 2016 Issue

The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports

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20 ■ THE WOLFPACKER TRACKING THE PACK NC STATE MEN'S SWIMMING CLEANS UP ACC AWARDS The NC State men's swimming and diving team swept the annual conference awards for the second consecu- tive year. Head coach Braden Holloway was named ACC Men's Coach of the Year, senior Simonas Bilis earned ACC Male Swimmer of the Year honors and Justin Ress was tabbed ACC Male Freshman of the Year. Bilis became just the fourth student-athlete in ACC history to win the top swimmer award in two consecutive seasons. Holloway won the coaching award for the third time in his five years since taking over his alma mater's program. The Wolfpack has earned ACC titles in 2015 and 2016. The program improved from one male swimmer qualifying for the 2012 NCAA Championships to tying the program's highest placement ever in 2016 with a fourth-place finish. "On behalf of the swimming and diving coaching staff and men's team, I thank the ACC office and my fellow ACC coaches for acknowledging our coaching staff's hard work and presenting us with this Coach of the Year award," Holloway said. "I have great coaches that work with me, and together our work can help guide our student-athletes toward success. "This award is a reflection of not only this staff 's dedication to the program and the student-athlete's process, but a reflection of the desire these young men have to succeed and their passion for tradition on a day-to-day basis." Bilis ended a successful campaign at NC State with an NCAA title in the 400 freestyle relay and 19 All-Amer - ica honors, which is the most of any student-athlete in school history. He was a 16-time ACC champion, and he is the school and conference record holder in seven events. The Panevezys, Lithuania, native finished his career as the fastest male swimmer in the conference in the 50, 100 and 200 freestyle, and he posted top-three finishes in all three events at the NCAA Championships. Ress — a Cary, N.C., native — was a member of the Wolfpack's 800 freestyle relay that earned an ACC title and a runner-up finish at the NCAA Championships. He earned top-eight finishes in the 200 backstroke, 200 individual medley and 200 freestyle at the ACC Championships. He qualified individually for the NCAA Championships in both the 200 individual medley and 200 backstroke. WOLFPACK SWIMMING TO BE ON DISPLAY AT OLYMPICS NC State men's swimming will be well represented at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games this summer. Junior Soren Dahl and sophomore Anton Ipsen of Denmark, and senior Simonas Bilis from Lithuania all qualified for the Olympics. The trio — fresh off of helping NC State win back-to-back ACC champion- ships — will be joined by transfer Andreas Vazaios. The 21-year-old Vazaios, who began his college career in Greece and will join the Pack in the fall, competed in the 200 individual medley in the 2012 Olympics and has qualified for the 2016 games in the same race. NC State swimming and diving has produced 11 previous Olympians over the years. Dahl qualified in the 200 freestyle and 800 freestyle relay April 17, while Ipsen qualified in the 400 freestyle at the Danish Olympic Trials. Bilis swam fast enough in the Canada Trials to represent Lithuania in both the 50 and 100 freestyle. Dahl helped Denmark gather a berth at the 2015 World Championships in the 800 relay, and then clocked one minute, 49.12 seconds in the 200 freestyle to finish in the top four. Ipsen qualified in the 400 freestyle at the Danish Open April 13 in Copenhagen, Denmark. He won the finals session with a clocking of 3:48.39, which was the 13th-fastest in the world at the time. Bilis was the first to qualify April 8 at the Canadian Olympic and Para swimming trials in Toronto. The Pan - evezys, Lithuania, product qualified in the 50 and 100 freestyle. He clocked 48.64 in the 100 prelims April 8, and 22.10 in the finals of the 50 April 10, which was the 10th-fastest time in the world. Former Wolfpacker Cullen Jones, a three-time medal- ist in Beijing and London, has a chance to make his third consecutive U.S. Olympic team when he competes in the U.S. Olympic Trials in Omaha, Neb., from June 26-July 3, along with a handful of current Wolfpack swimmers. Jonathan Boffa, a 2014 alum, is looking to make the Italian team. Junior Lotta Nevalainen will head to the European Aquatics Championships in London May 16-22. She'll be looking for a spot on a relay team for her native Finland to represent the Wolfpack's women's program. NC STATE VOLLEYBALL ASSISTANT GAINS INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE New NC State volleyball assistant coach Nicki Holmes led the United States Air Force women's team to the championship at the 2016 HQ AirCom Volleyball Championships in mid-March at London, England. The United Kingdom hosted the event, which fea- tured Royal Air Force personnel competing against other nations' Air Force Teams. Holmes was the head coach for the last two years at North Carolina Central. "It was an amazing experience, not only from a professional standpoint but also from a personal stand- point," he said. "I was able to reconnect with my Air Force roots and the wonderful members of the team allowed me to relive those times. "Anytime you get an opportunity to coach inter- nationally, it's always a great experience and bonus professionally." The USAF met Germany in the championship match on the third day of competition and earned a 3-0 vic- tory in a best-of-five-sets format to claim the 2016 HQ AirCom Volleyball Championship. Holmes earned his Bachelor of Science degree in general studies (core engineering curriculum) from the U.S. Air Force Academy. He served as an officer in the U.S. Air Force for seven years and was hand-selected to the premier space unit in the United States Military. FORMER WOLFPACK FOOTBALL PLAYER DIES Former NC State offensive lineman Desmond Rob- erts died in a car crash at about 6:15 a.m. on April 19 in Warrenton, N.C. In addition, 7-year-old Anthony Roberts passed away. However, 5-year-old Joshua Roberts was eventually transferred to Duke University Hospital. Roberts' car crossed the center line and struck and killed 29-year- old Brittany Nicole Silver. The 26-year-old Roberts played six games for the Wolfpack from 2007-08 before transferring to Fayette- ville State. The former Gaston (N.C.) Northampton West High standout committed to NC State over offers from North Carolina, East Carolina, Penn State and Virginia Tech. ■ Red And White Notebook Justin Ress was named ACC Male Freshman of the Year, giving the Wolfpack men a sweep of the conference's annual swimming awards for the second straight season. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE MEDIA RELATIONS

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