The College Swimming and Diving Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) selected six assistant coaches to receive the Jean Freeman Scholarship.  The scholarships are given annually to six assistant coaches whose exceptional contributions have brought recognition to their college or university, and whose leadership, integrity, honesty, competitive attitude and personal graciousness epitomize those characteristics reflected by Jean Freeman, longtime women's swimming coach at the University of Minnesota.

This year's award winners are Margaret Zagrobelny of Johns Hopkins University, Matthew Salig of Amherst College, Kelsey Reagan from Youngstown State University, Johnathan Fergusson of Southern Illinois University, Hannah Hagy of Case Western University, and Zachary Mertens of Drury University.

The scholarship will provide each of the six selected assistant coaches with registration and lodging at the Centennial CSCAA Convention and Awards Banquet. Airfare is generously provided by CSCAA partner All Sports International.  

Recipients were selected by a committee composed of members of The Summit for Empowering Women in Swimming, of which Jean was a founding member.   Since its establishment in 2012, the Freeman Scholarship has enabled many of the nation's top rising assistants to rub elbows with the country's top coaches.  Twenty of the past 54 selections went on to become Head Coaches.  Two-thirds of the past selections received promotions within one year of receiving this scholarship.

Margaret Zagrobelny, Johns Hopkins University In her first season at Homewood in 2018, Zagrobelny helped the Blue Jay men to a fourth place finish at the NCAA Championships as JHU produced 37 All-Americans. The Hopkins women took 13th place and produced 24 All-Americans.  Now during her fourth year at Johns Hopkins and fifth year coaching, Margaret helped lead the Hopkins men to their national runner-up finish and women to a 9th place finish.  

“Marge is always striving to create an environment where her athletes feel safe to bring more of themselves to the table, while challenging their limits. No one cares what you have to say until they know how much you care.... We all listen to everything Marge has to say because she cares so much.  She has been a rock for the team through the past three season, she is at the start of an amazing career!”- Scott Armstrong, Johns Hopkins University

Matthew Salig, Amherst College Matt Salig completed his first season as an assistant coach on the Amherst staff. Prior to Amherst, Salig served as a volunteer assistant at Penn State while continuing to train as a postgraduate. Aiding Head Coach Nick Nichols, Salig helped lead the Men’s and Women’s programs at Amherst to a 3rd place finish at the NESCAC Championships and a 12th place finish for the Women at the 2022 DIII NCAA Championships.

“Matt arrived at Amherst with swimming knowledge well beyond his years and immediately earned the trust of the team with his dedication to our program and his continued quest for self-improvement.  Though spare moments are rare in a six lane facility with a large team, Matt was often found between workouts in the pool testing out our next practices.  He’s a student of the sport and clearly a rising star.” – Nick Nichols, Amherst College

Kelsey Reagan, Youngstown State University In Kelsey’s first season with YSU, both teams moved up in the Horizon League Conference standings while still holding high academic stature. Kelsey oversaw the middle distance group and helped the team break multiple school records. Her mission is to create meaningful and lasting relationships with her athletes. 

“I was excited and proud to learn that Kelsey Reagan earned this recognition. She's a true teacher and leader with outstanding communication, organizational, and relational skills. I'm grateful for her commitment to helping our team reach their goals as student-athletes, but even more so for her commitment to helping develop them as young men and women. She undoubtedly and consistently exemplifies what this award stands for.” - Brad Smith, Youngstown State University

Johnathan Fergusson, Southern Illinois University In his three years as Geoff Hanson’s assistant, Johno has been an instrumental part of the Salukis success in the MVC and MAC conferences, including the highest team finish ever for the men in the 2022 MAC Championships (2nd). Fergusson is the primary sprint and breaststroke coach. 

“Johno’s contribution to Saluki Swimming over the past three years has been tremendous.  The countless hours he has put in on the recruiting trail have helped to revamp the SIU program, and the swimmers he’s worked with have improved dramatically.  To our team he is much more than just a great recruiter and coach however.  The Saluki swimmers look to him for mentorship, advice and guidance in many aspects of life beyond college athletics.  Being named a Freeman Scholar this year is a well-deserved honor for him and for the program.” - Geoff Hansen, Southern Illinois University 

Hannah Hagy, Case Western University Finishing up her first year at Case Western, Hannah Hagy played a key role in the Spartans’ transition back to a normal season. Under the leadership of head coach Doug Milliken, Hagy helped lead the Spartans to twelve school-records this season and qualified three athletes to the NCAA championship. 

“Since Hannah arrived at CWRU, she has done nothing but make a positive impact on our program. Her passion, knowledge and energy for swimming and coaching is infectious. Hannah takes any task, problem or situation and displays complete professionalism in working through it. She is a valuable asset to me as the head coach. I truly believe Hannah is a rising star in the swimming world and receiving this scholarship will only help her develop her skills even further.” - Doug Milliken, Case Western University

Zachary Mertens, Drury University Mertens just completed his fifth year on the Drury swimming & diving coaching staff and his third season as a full-time assistant in 2021-22.  He helped lead both the Drury men's and women’s teams to NCAA-II Runner-Up finishes during the 2021-2022 season.

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