FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The time has finally come for the Nova Southeastern men's and women's swimming teams to enter championship season, as the Sharks will kick off competition at the 2018 Sunshine State Conference Swimming Championship meet on Thursday, Feb. 22 at the Long Center in Clearwater, Fla.
 
The meet itself is a four-day event consisting of both prelims and finals. Thursday through Saturday, prelims will begin at 10:00 a.m. followed by finals at 6:00 p.m. On Sunday, Feb. 25, prelims will remain at 10:00 a.m., but finals will begin at 5:00 p.m. preceded by senior student-athlete recognition. Keep up with the latest results, live video, and meet information by visiting the SSC CHAMPIONSHIP CENTRAL. 
 
In 2017, not only did NSU collect both the men's and women's title, but they also earned the top individual awards as well. Courtney DeVeny captured the SSC Female Swimmer of the Meet award while Franco Lupoli was also named SSC Male Swimmer of the Meet, becoming the fourth NSU male individual to achieve the award.
 
Throughout the regular season, the No. 3 women's team posted an 8-3 overall record, falling only to DI competition, and was a perfect 4-0 against SSC opponents. The Sharks earned first-place finishes in the Shark Invitational, DII Showcase and grabbed second in the Spartan Invitational. The No. 12 men went 6-2 on the season and were 2-1 in league competition, finishing second in both the DII Showcase and the Spartan Invitational.
 
Heading into this year's championship meet, the women's team has already posted the conference's top times in 16 of the championship format events, with 500 free, 1,650 free and 400 free relay being new league records. On the men's side, the Sharks have four of the league's top times amongst its fellow conference members as they head into the meet.
 
Head coach Ben Hewitt has all the confidence in his team for this upcoming weekend, as he explained: "Conference is a special time of year for our team and our staff. We have worked hard preparing for this weekend since we came together as a team in August. Every year has its challenges and this season was no exception, yet our team has handled adversity well and is setting itself up well for a strong performance."
 
Known as the "Conference of Champions", the SSC boasts five teams on the men's side that have been nationally ranked this season, while the women also have four teams.
 
"This is an incredibly competitive and tough conference championship," said Hewitt. "There is tremendous depth across the board and we are going to be challenged by all teams. The Tampa women have had probably one of the best seasons out of any team in the country thus far and they'll provide a significant challenge our women haven't seen all year. The Florida Southern men continue to set the bar by which all standards are met in our conference and I expect them to be on the top of their game similar to the upstart St. Leo and Florida Tech programs. Simply put, we'll have to be at our very best this year to come out on top. We were able to rise to the challenge last year and we will need to reach to that level of courage and perseverance with our young group to emerge as our conference's top team. I've enjoyed working with this team, they've raced well all year and I'm excited to see what they can do in a championship setting."
 
Nova Southeastern already has two women's relay teams, the 200 freestyle and the 200 medley, that have automatically qualified for the NCAA national meet. Emma Sundstedt has also posted automatic qualifying times in the 500, 1,000 and 1,650 freestyle. But for some, this meet provides yet another opportunity to improve upon existing provisional or earn qualifying times to secure a spot at nationals. Seven of the NSU women and three men have already secured provisional times this season.
 
"We have the right blend of senior leadership, experience and youth," boasted Hewitt. "I am excited to see our leaders step up while seeing how our younger athletes grow and mature in this environment. I am confident in our abilities to pursue another championship and be the most exciting team in the meet. It's going to be four very fun days!"
 
Nightly recaps will be available on NSUSharks.com, but be sure to follow @NSU_Swim on Twitter for hourly updates during each session of this upcoming SSC Championship meet.