Clearfield Grad Mikesell Earns All-American Honors in Swimming

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Clearfield graduate Paige Mikesell, a sophomore at IUP, was named an All-American by the College Swimming and Diving Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) Wednesday, April 8.
(Photo courtesy of IUP Athletics)

Mikesell earned All-America honors in three events, including the 100 and 200-yard butterfly and 200-yard freestyle.

Due to the cancellation of the 2020 NCAA Division II Swimming and Diving Championships, the CSCAA Board adjusted the selection criteria for all collegiate Divisions.

The result was an unprecedented number of selections in what is largely acknowledged as unprecedented circumstances. Greg Earhart, Executive Director explained that the Board of Directors sought to not penalize any student-athlete who had not had the opportunity to compete for a spot on the All-American team.

“Our sport is replete with previously-unheralded swimmers and divers who have gone on not just to All-America honors, but also to national championships and Olympic Team spots,” Earhart said.

Mikesell entered the championships with the second-fastest 200 fly time in Division II at 1:59.22. She was just :00.05 shy of national leader Courtney Sherwood of Tampa as Mikesell looked for the individual crown in the event.

She also had the sixth-fastest 100 fly time in the country at 54.09 and the fifth-fastest 200 free time at 1:49.32.

This is the second straight year that Mikesell has earned All-American honors, but her first as an individual. She was part of the 13th-place honorable mention All-American 400-medley relay squad as freshmen in 2019.

The CSCAA also released its selection criteria for All-American honors. In Division II for events not yet contested at the championships, all individual and relay qualifiers selected to compete were named All-American in those events.

This isn’t the first time the association adjusted All-America criteria. The first CSCAA All-America team was published in 1924, 13 years before the first men’s NCAA Swimming and Diving Championship. The first women’s All-America team was published in 1975, seven years prior to the first NCAA Women’s Swimming and Diving Championship. During much of that time, the team was selected by a panel of coaches. In 1985 the honor was standardized around the NCAA Championships with the top eight finalists receiving first-team recognition and consolation finalists being named Honorable Mention.