Leonard, Burke Represent Pride in GNAC Weekly Awards

WINTHROP, Mass. – For the first time this season, the Regis College women's swimming and diving team earned weekly awards from the Great Northeast Athletic Conference, sweeping the honors after the Pride's victory over Saint Joseph's College Saturday, as the league office announced the honorees Monday.

Junior Sarah Leonard (Brockton, Mass.), the defending GNAC champion in the 50 backstroke, was named GNAC Female Athlete of the Week. Freshman Julia Burke (North Andover, Mass.), part of Regis's first-year group that has already made an impact, received GNAC Female Rookie of the Week recognition.

Leonard won two individual events and was part of both relays with the best time Saturday. She led off the 200 medley relay with a 50 back split of 29.63 seconds, establishing a lead that her teammates would not give up in winning the event in 2:00.54, just 1/100ths of a second off the team's season-best time. She won the 50 backstroke by 0.41 seconds with a time of 29.55 seconds, and then she finished first in the 100 backstroke in 1:04.14, a season-best time both personally and for the team. Leonard ended the day by swimming the second leg of the 200 freestyle relay, posting a 50 free split of 26.16 seconds as her quartet ended up with the best time in the event at 1:46.95, the fastest time for the Pride this year.

Burke also won two individual events Saturday. She first swam the second leg of the 200 medley relay, posting a 50 breaststroke split of 35.85 seconds to help the Pride win the event with an overall time of 2:00.54. Burke won the 50 breaststroke with a season-best time of 35.72 seconds and the 100 breaststroke by almost four full seconds in 1:18.60, both a personal and team season-best mark.

Leonard becomes the first GNAC swimmer not from Simmons to receive the Athlete of the Week award this season. In addition, Leonard and Burke are the first Pride female swimmers to earn a weekly award from the GNAC in almost exactly one year, since Jessica Higgins received GNAC Women's Athlete of the Week honors Nov. 20, 2017.

The Pride will host the Regis Invitational Saturday, Dec. 1, at the Regis Aquatics Center, with sessions starting at 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.