With a new season underway, Liberty Women’s Swimming and Diving looks to build on a strong 2025-26 season while preparing to compete for a conference championship — this time on their home pool deck.
The American Conference Swimming and Diving Championships will take place Feb. 17-20 at the Liberty Natatorium.
The Lady Flames finished second in their first year as members of the American Conference at the meet last February. After being conference champions for seven consecutive seasons between the Coastal Collegiate Sports Association and Atlantic Sun Championship, Liberty is looking to claim the top spot in its second season in the American Conference.
The 2026-27 roster features both returning swimmers and divers as well as many newcomers. Liberty has five seniors this season: swimmers Emily Harstad and Sadie Stricklin and divers Shannon Icard, Chloe LaCount and Kayla Walsh.
The roster also includes several sophomores and juniors looking to make an impact this season such as Aly Bozzuto, who last year was voted the Most Outstanding Swimmer of the American Championshipand earned automatic NCAA qualification for the meet in all three events in which she competed.
With a mix of swimmers and divers, creating a supportive team culture is important to the team’s success.
“I am really thankful for the culture on our team,” Icard said. “One of the big themes is unity because swimming and diving are different sports, but we are still one team and compete together. A few of our core values include character, commitment, relationships, results and attitude.”
For the diving team, experience is particularly important. Icard made Liberty history by being the first diver to compete at the NCAA Division I Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships last year. She finished 34th overall and set a program record in platform diving.
“I am really proud of qualifying for NCAAs last year, and my goal is to compete with confidence and consistency as I close out this chapter in life,” Icard said.
On the swimming side of the team, there are several athletes who made an impact last year at the conference championships. Sophomore Riley Leach finished as a runner-up in the 400 individual medley andis in the record books as the third-fastest time in that event in program history.
Head Coach Jake Shellenberger enters his 18th season alongside Associate Head Coach Jessica Barnes. In addition, Diving Coach Abigail Jensen is a new addition to the coaching staff this year.
As the season continues, there are several opportunities for the Lady Flames to defend their home pool, such as the TYR ‘85 invite in November and the senior meet against Campbell in January. The biggest test for this Flames team will be the conference championships in February.
“I am definitely looking forward to our conference championship meet in February. We get to host it here at Liberty, so that will be a cool experience and it’s a really big meet,” Icard said.
With the experience, fresh talent and the championships coming to the Liberty Natatorium, the Flames have positioned themselves for a productive 2026-27 season. The team works towards meshing the new team members with the returners and working together to bring home a championship.
“As a team, my goal is that we continue to encourage one another and compete with energy and intention,” Icard said.
Sizemore is the POV editor for The Liberty Champion.