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‘She swam beautifully,’ says proud dad after Albury’s 16-year-old Sienna Toohey powers to world titles berth

Albury swim star Sienna Toohey after her win in the women’s 100 metres breaststroke at the national selection trials in Adelaide on 10 June, securing her place at the World Aquatics Championships in Singapore next month. Photo: NSWIS. The father of Albury swimming sensation Sienna Toohey has described his daughter as a “champion kid” – […]

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Two female swimmers in a pool after a race

Albury swim star Sienna Toohey after her win in the women’s 100 metres breaststroke at the national selection trials in Adelaide on 10 June, securing her place at the World Aquatics Championships in Singapore next month. Photo: NSWIS.

The father of Albury swimming sensation Sienna Toohey has described his daughter as a “champion kid” – in and out of the pool – after her stunning win at the Australian selection trials in Adelaide on 10 June.

The 16-year-old claimed the women’s 100m breaststroke with a personal-best time of 1:06.55, securing her spot at the world titles in Singapore next month (27 July to 3 August).

Paris 2024 Olympian Ella Ramsey entered the event as the favourite but was pipped at the post by the Albury Swim Club member.

“She swam beautifully,” said proud dad Damian Toohey, who is the principal at Albury High School.

“She was in good form going in [to the trials], she’s put in a lot of hard work and it’s taken a big commitment – but it’s paid dividends.

“It’s been a great couple of days for her and she got very emotional after that race because it’s just such a massive goal to swim for Australia. When you reach that, it’s almost overwhelming.”

Mr Toohey said Sienna had spent the past six weeks travelling back and forth to Canberra with her mum, Simone, for more intensive training at the AIS’s ACT Performance Hub with head coach Shannon Rollason.

The pair would leave on a Sunday night and return Thursday, in time for Sienna to hand in school work and assignments and reconnect with her family and friends for the weekend, he said.

But it’s been the support of long-term Albury Swim Club coach Wayne Gould, 71, miles upon miles of laps in the local pool, surrounded by an incredible swim “family”, that has helped hone this young superstar’s skills, according to Mr Toohey.

He recalls the early days when the family would head off to the Albury pool on a Friday night with Sienna and her brothers Archie, now 18, and Jed, now 13, in tow.

All keen swimmers, the kids went down the “well-trodden path” from Gould Swim Academy to the Albury Swim Club where Sienna would eventually land with accomplished breaststroke coach Jo Gibbs at the age of nine … and the stage was set.

“Jo always said, ‘Don’t push them too hard too early’,” Mr Toohey recalled.

“We could turn her into an out-and-out champion right now but …

“So Sienna was doing PSSA [Primary Schools Sports Association] events and training three or four times a week – she wasn’t flogged but just developed technique and she loved her swimming.”

Sienna was already winning medals for swimming at state level but at the same time she was also proving a highly talented water polo player, under the tutelage of none other than Wayne’s daughter Kristy, Mr Toohey said.

She played for Albury team Pool Pirates and two years ago made the Australian Under-15 water polo squad.

But there came a time when the “big decision” had to be made, he added.

Sienna came to the attention of former Australian Olympic head swimming coach Leigh Nugent, who worked with Wayne and Sienna and encouraged her at 13 “to have a crack” towards realising her potential.

It’s been an incredible journey of dedication, discipline and determination ever since.

In an interview with the NSW Institute of Sport (NSWIS) after her incredible achievement, Sienna said she was “very happy” with herself.

“I really wanted to make the national team, and I knew that if I didn’t make it in the 100m, I always had the 50m tomorrow,” she said. “But I’m definitely happy that I’ve done it now.”

Sienna has now sealed her place in the Dolphins squad that will compete at the World Aquatics Championships in Singapore.

Her parents revealed they had not quite been prepared for this imminent overseas trip but their daughter was no stranger to international competition, having competed in Japan last year.

“She’s had unbelievable experiences and she has great people around her,” Mr Toohey said.

“There are a lot of people involved in getting Sienna to where she is, and the building blocks Swimming Australia have put in have provided incredible opportunities to get racing experience that build to winning a national-level race.”

Mr Toohey said there was no doubting the calibre of swimmers in the Albury-Wodonga and wider region.

“We are punching above our weight and the swim clubs do a great job,” he said.

“We love our sport on the Border and there are a lot of people putting in a lot of time and effort into training and supporting our kids.

“Sienna is very proud of coming from Albury and it’s a big thing to represent our community.”

For Sienna, it’s been a huge dream to be on the pool deck competing alongside role models she has idolised for many years, according to Mr Toohey.

She had been met with kindness from swimmers who had proven role models both in and out of the pool – “and every part of her said, ‘I want to be part of that’,” he said.

Describing his daughter as a “calm, loving kid who adores her brothers”, Mr Toohey revealed Sienna didn’t mind her downtime at home on the couch.

With a super-close circle of friends at Albury High, she was the type of person who was just as happy cheering on the success of others as she was striving for her own, he said.

But in the pool, this young girl now being hailed as the “future of Australian swimming” is a tenacious competitor.

“Leigh [Nugent] said she swims fearlessly – and I think that says it all,” Mr Toohey said.



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DVIDS – News – U.S. Wins Opening Beach Volleyball Match at Military Games

Team USA’s No. 1 men’s beach volleyball squad defeated Lithuania, 2-0, in their opening match of the 5th Conseil International du Sport Militaire Military World Games on Copacabana Beach here July 17. Navy Senior Chief Petty Officer John Goings of Jacksonville, Fla., and Coast Guard Petty Officer 2nd Class Zachary Walden of Cape Maine, N.J., […]

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Team USA’s No. 1 men’s beach volleyball squad defeated Lithuania, 2-0, in their opening match of the 5th Conseil International du Sport Militaire Military World Games on Copacabana Beach here July 17.

Navy Senior Chief Petty Officer John Goings of Jacksonville, Fla., and Coast Guard Petty Officer 2nd Class Zachary Walden of Cape Maine, N.J., prevailed by scores of 21-11 and 21-12 over Andrius Cesnauskas and Tomas Vievesis.

Walden delivered nine aces on his 28 service attempts and Goings converted 12 of his 15 attack attempts as the U.S. duo soared to victory in 38 minutes.

Walden, 26, a Coast Guard firefighter from Virginia Beach, Va., cherishes being a member of the U.S. Armed Forces’ inaugural CISM beach volleyball team.

“It’s huge to be in Rio, the epicenter of beach volleyball outside the U.S.,” Walden said. “It’s the experience of a lifetime and a career highlight already.”

Team USA No. 1 will play the other five countries in their group and the top two teams will advance to the medal rounds.

“I think we have a pretty solid chance” Walden said. “The U.S. and Brazil, internationally on the pro tours, are the premiere teams. That should carry down into our lower levels. We have a pretty good shot against the other countries.”

Air Force Tech Sgt. David Dean of Duke Air Field, Fla., and Army Sgt. Gary Ang of Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, will compete as the No. 2 U.S. men’s team.

On the women’s side, Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Kerry Karwan of Alameda, Calif., will team with Navy Lt. Cmdr. Lauren Nilsen of Stuttgart, Germany, as the No. 1 U.S. duo.

Coast Guard Lt. Mary Arvidson of Air Station Corpus Christi, Texas, and Air Force 1st Lt. Brooke Cultra of Ramstein, Germany, will compete as Team USA’s No. 2 squad.

Beach volleyball will be played every day on Copacabana Beach throughout the games.

Story by Tim Hipps, U.S. Army Installation Management Command







Date Taken: 07.19.2011
Date Posted: 07.03.2025 14:24
Story ID: 512816
Location: WASHINGTON, US






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M. Cross Country, Indoor Track & Field Win RMAC Brechler Awards

By: Tim Flynn Story Links 2025 RMAC Brechler Award winners COLORADO SPRINGS – The Colorado School of Mines men’s cross country and men’s indoor track & field teams have won Brechler Awards from the RMAC for achieving the highest team GPA in the conference in 2024-25. The men’s cross country team […]

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2025 RMAC Brechler Award winners

COLORADO SPRINGS –

The Colorado School of Mines men’s cross country and men’s indoor track & field teams have won Brechler Awards from the RMAC for achieving the highest team GPA in the conference in 2024-25.

The men’s cross country team produced a 3.595 GPA to win their first-ever Brechler Award, while the men’s indoor track & field team wins its second straight and fifth overall with a 3.563 GPA. 

Established in 2013, the Brechler Awards recognize the conference’s top team GPA in each of its 22 sports. Grades were used from the 2024-25 academic year and all student-athletes who were on the institution’s NCAA eligibility list were included in the GPA calculation. The award is named after Paul W. Brechler, a former RMAC Commissioner (1976-1990), who, along with his wife Wanda, were the first inductees into the RMAC Hall of Fame. 

Under head coach Chris Siemers, the Mines men’s cross country team claimed its fourth NCAA Division II championship in 2024 after sweeping the RMAC and NCAA Regional titles, as well. The Orediggers were undefeated during the season, and had six all-Americans at the NCAA Championships.

Head Coach Matt Sparks‘ indoor track & field team achieved its highest-ever national finish coming in third at the NCAA Division II Indoor Championships thanks to six first-team all-America podium finishes. The Orediggers were also a strong second at the RMAC Indoor Championships with six individual conference champions. 

The Brechler Award winners will be recognized during the 2025 RMAC Hall of Fame & Awards Banquet on Thursday, July 10, at the Colorado Springs Marriott.



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LC State Warriors’ volleyball camps open to all skill levels, starting July 7th

LEWISTON, ID – Starting Monday, July 7th, the LC State Warriors will be hosting their All-Skills Volleyball camp, and then for one day only — a volleyball youth camp. With this volleyball camp having different levels of skill, it does not matter; the LC States camp welcomes all levels of skill in the sport. “If […]

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LEWISTON, ID – Starting Monday, July 7th, the LC State Warriors will be hosting their All-Skills Volleyball camp, and then for one day only — a volleyball youth camp.

With this volleyball camp having different levels of skill, it does not matter; the LC States camp welcomes all levels of skill in the sport.

“If you are a beginner that is perfectly fine, we welcome you we would love to teach you the basics and the fundamentals of our sport when it comes to people, let’s say with a higher skill level, we are going to teach you the same maybe go into more depth and more technical into what we’re teaching you” Esther said.

With this camp, Coach Esther wants the takeaway for the kids to have a strong work ethic.

“They work hard, work ethic can be applied both on and off the court, and help players embrace that mentality that would be perfect at the end of the day,” Esther said.

Coach Esther and her fellow teammates have been looking forward to this camp for a while.

“Having our little spikers come into town and having to teach that age group brings a lot of joy not only to me but to my fellow teammates as well,” Esther said.

The All-Skills camp will be running July 7th through the 8th, then LC State will host their youth camp on July 9th.

If you want to sign up, the link to the website will be here.



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Princeton University

PRINCETON – Roko Pozaric ’25 will represent Canada at the 2025 World Aquatics Championships. The event will take place from July 11th to August 3rd in Singapore where the team will have the opportunity to qualify for the 2028 Olympic Games. Having recently won the Roper Trophy, Pozaric graduated as a four-time All-American and three-time […]

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PRINCETON – Roko Pozaric ’25 will represent Canada at the 2025 World Aquatics Championships.

The event will take place from July 11th to August 3rd in Singapore where the team will have the opportunity to qualify for the 2028 Olympic Games.

Having recently won the Roper Trophy, Pozaric graduated as a four-time All-American and three-time NWPC Player of the Year after becoming the men’s water polo team’s all-time leader in goals with 281 while sitting second in assists (172).

He has helped transform the program into a national contender, winning the conference title four years in a row, making it to the Final Four in 2023 behind a program record 28 wins, finishing ranked fifth in the country the last two seasons and beating two of the water polo “big four”, in Cal and Stanford, during his career.

 



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Baruch Names Chazia Weste Associate AD for Administration and Finance

Story Links Release Courtesy Baruch Athletic Communications NEW YORK – Chazia Weste has been named the new Associate Athletic Director for Administration and Finance for the Baruch College Athletics Department. The announcement was made by Baruch College Director of Athletics & Recreation, Heather MacCulloch on Wednesday. Chazia comes to Baruch College after spending the past […]

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Release Courtesy Baruch Athletic Communications

NEW YORK – Chazia Weste has been named the new Associate Athletic Director for Administration and Finance for the Baruch College Athletics Department.

The announcement was made by Baruch College Director of Athletics & Recreation, Heather MacCulloch on Wednesday.

Chazia comes to Baruch College after spending the past ten years at Monroe University (NJCAA D1) in New Rochelle, New York. She is a professional with ten years of experience in athletic business operations with comprehensive knowledge of budgeting, supervising personnel, and management.

“We are thrilled to welcome Chazia Weste as Baruch’s new Associate Athletic Director for Administration and Finance. Chazia brings a wealth of experience in athletic administration, financial planning, and strategic operations that will be instrumental in strengthening the foundation of our department.” Director of Athletics & Recreation Heather MacCulloch said. “Her commitment to excellence and student-athlete success aligns perfectly with our mission, and I’m confident she will make an immediate and lasting impact at Baruch.”

Chazia spent the past three years as the Associate Director of Athletics – Business Operations at Monroe. The first year in this position was spent with Monroe University NJCAA D3 (Express) in the Bronx, New York assisting during their transition in Athletic Directors, while the remaining two years were spent at Monroe University D1 (Mustangs) in New Rochelle, New York. 

During her overall time at Monroe University, she also worked as the Assistant Athletic Director, Athletic Business Manager, Athletic Administrative Assistant, and Student Administrative Assistant in the Sports Information Department.

She graduated from Monroe in 2015 earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting. She then pursued getting two masters, one in Finance at Iona University (’17), followed by a second in English Literature from Mercy University (’21).

Since 2020, she is also a member of Sigma Tau Delta International English Honor Society and has been a member of the National Association of Black Accounts (NABA) since 2014.    

 

“I’m honored to join Baruch College as the Associate Athletic Director for Administration and Finance. It’s incredibly exciting to be part of such a dynamic and successful program, and I’m especially grateful for the opportunity to learn from and work alongside Athletic Director Heather MacCulloch.,” said Weste, “Her visionary leadership has elevated Baruch Athletics, and I look forward to contributing to the continued growth and excellence of this thriving department—supporting our student-athletes, coaches, and community every step of the way.”

With her decade of experience in collegiate athletics as well as her academic focus in Accounting and Finance, Weste is an ideal fit for this role.


For the latest news on the CUNY Athletic Conference, log on to cunyathletics.com – the official site of the CUNY Athletic Conference. Also, become a follower of the CUNYAC on Instagram (@CUNYAC), Twitter (@CUNYAC) and YouTube (@CUNY Athletic Conference), and “LIKE” Us on Facebook (CUNY Athletic Conference).





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Washburn volleyball coach Chris Herron, 2007 Final Four team to hall of fame

TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) – Washburn volleyball head coach Chris Herron and the Ichabods 2007 Final Four team are headed to the hall of fame, the team announced Wednesday night. Coach Herron enters his 25th season as Washburn’s head coach. He’s amassed over 600 wins with the ‘Bods and is a four-time MIAA Coach of the […]

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TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) – Washburn volleyball head coach Chris Herron and the Ichabods 2007 Final Four team are headed to the hall of fame, the team announced Wednesday night.

Coach Herron enters his 25th season as Washburn’s head coach. He’s amassed over 600 wins with the ‘Bods and is a four-time MIAA Coach of the Year.

As for the 2007 Final Four team, they went 38-4, helping Washburn to its most successful season in school history. The Lady Blues finished the season ranked 3rd in the country.



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