TOWSON, Md. - The Landmark Conference announced its 2023-24 Women's Swimming & Diving All-Conference Teams.
Swimmer of the Year - Bella Mugno (Catholic University)
Diver of the Year - Nicole Stofko (University of Scranton)
Rookie of the Year - Tara Wiarda (Catholic University)
Coaching Staff of the Year - University of Scranton (Chris Brown)
After securing gold in the 100-yard and 200-yard backstroke events, along with contributing to two relay victories, Wiarda earned the title of Landmark Conference Rookie of the Year. Her standout performance included a win in the 200-back with a season-best time of 2:05.60, coupled with a personal best of 2:10.95 in the 200 IM finals, securing a fourth-place finish. Wiarda's exceptional efforts amassed 55 individual points for the Cardinals, further bolstered by her pivotal roles in the 400 medley relay and 800 free relay victories, contributing an additional 80 points to the team's tally.
Wiarda's accolade also marks the second consecutive Rookie of the Year honor for the Cardinals, following Katie Herman's recognition at the 2023 championship. Furthermore, Wiarda joins an esteemed group as the fifth swimmer from the women's program to be lauded as the league's Rookie of the Year.
Meanwhile, Mugno emerged as the top scorer for Catholic, achieving personal bests across all her events. She clinched four gold medals in the 100 breaststroke, 200 breaststroke (swimming a personal best of 2:23.84), 400 IM, and 800 free relay.
Mugno's remarkable performance solidifies her as the fifth Cardinal to be bestowed with the title of Swimmer of the Year, following in the footsteps of Katie Herman, who received the honor in the previous year's competition.
Stofko's outstanding performance in both the one and three-meter diving events earned her the title of Diver of the Year. She displayed remarkable skill, amassing a total of 323.85 points on the one-meter board and 302.0 points on the three-meter board.
As a sophomore, Stofko joins a distinguished lineage of Scranton divers who have been honored as the league's Diver of the Year. She follows in the footsteps of Colleen Berry, recognized from 2012 to 2014, and Jeanna Gailius, who achieved the remarkable feat of being named Diver of the Year in all four years of her tenure as a Royal from 2020 to 2023.
In addition to guiding outstanding individual performances, Brown and his coaching staff received well-deserved recognition, earning the program's fourth Coaching Staff of the Year award. Their guidance propelled the Royals to their fourth conference title, marking a significant achievement as the first since 2010, with Scranton securing the top position in the team standings with an impressive 848 points.