ATLANTA – The Georgia Tech swimming and diving program added three men and six women in the early signing period, head coach Seth Baron announced Wednesday.
On the men’s side, the Jackets inked in-state products Brian Huff of Marietta and Sam Morgan of Gainesville, while Ryan Riebesell of Hoover, Ala., rounds out the early signees.
The six new additions for the first-year women’s program are: Meghan DeVinney (Phoenix, Ariz.), Elizabeth Foster (Frankfort, Ky.), Laura Heiser (Sinking Spring, Pa.), Ashley Kracke (Vestavia Hills, Ala.), Kathleen Wood (Wake Forest, N.C.) and Laurissa Prystaj (Fairport, N.Y.).
“Overall, we are very pleased with our early signing for both the men and women,” said Baron. “Not only is this a great group of athletes, but also a great group of students.”
For the men, Huff and Riebesell will have an immediate impact in the team’s sprint corps. Riebesell, who attends Hoover (Ala.) High School, owns personal bests of 21.22 in the 50-yard freestyle and 46.76 in the 100 free. Huff, who attends Marietta’s Pope High School, has posted times of 21.59 in the 50 free, 47.03 in the 100 and 1:43.17 in the 200.
Morgan will join Tech’s strong group of distance swimmers. His personal bests are 4:36 in the 500 free, 9:22 in the 1,000 free, 15:39 in the 1,650 and 4:05 in the 400 individual medley.
“On the men’s team, we addressed one of our weaknesses by receiving commitments from two very good sprinters in Brain Huff and Ryan Riebesell,” added Baron. “They will be able to make a strong contribution in both individual events as well as relays. Sam Morgan is going to add some depth to our distance events and will continue to keep those events strong for our team.”
The women’s squad added depth across the board in the early signing period. DeVinney, who attends Phoenix’s Westview High School, will add strength in the sprint free and butterfly areas. She owns personal bests of 23.94 in the 50 free, 51.79 in the 100 and 1:51.94 in the 200. She has gone 55.70 in the 100 fly and 2:05.95 in the 200 fly.
Foster, the sister of current men’s breaststroker Robbie Foster, attends Franklin County (Ky.) High School. She owns times of 56.08 in the 100 fly and 2:05.70 in the 200 IM. Heiser, of Wilson High School in Sinking Spring, Pa., is a strong breaststroke performer, posting times of 1:04.51 in the 100 and 2:21.08 in the 200.
Kracke, a student at Vestavia Hills (Ala.) High School, will strengthen Tech’s backstroke and distance freestyle group. She owns times of 58.35 in the 100 back and 2:06.43 in the 200 back, while going 5:07.68 in the 500 free and 10:34.44 in the 1,000 free.
Wood, who attends Wake Forest/Rolesville (N.C.) High School, will also contribute to the distance freestyle events, posting times of 5:08.11 in the 500 and 10:25.73 in the 1,000. She owns a personal best of 4:34.24 in the 400 IM.
Prystaj, of Fairport (N.Y.) High School, was the 2001 New York state high school diving champion. She also qualified for Junior Nationals in the three-meter and platform events.
“On the women’s team, we improved ourselves in every event across the board, both swimming and diving. We added a lot of strong athletes and depth to our women’s team. This is a great step in the right direction for a team that will only be two years old next season.”
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