Nova Southeastern University celebrated its 2019 Hall of Fame induction class at the Rick Case Arena in Davie, Florida on Tuesday night. Two swimmers, Erin Black and Oskar Nordstrand, were inducted as well as Taylor Collins (golf), John Gartin (coach, women’s rowing) and Miles Mikolas (baseball).
The Nova Southeastern swimming and diving program started in the fall of 2010, and Black and Nordstrand are the first swimmers to be inducted into NSU’s Hall of Fame. The Sharks have won 17 individual national titles from eight different swimmers. Black and Nordstrand were the first two national champions for the program.
Black and Nordstrand made the trip to Davie for the occasion, with Black traveling all the way from Alaska and Nordstrand making the trip from Sweden.
Erin Black (2011-2013)
Photo Courtesy: Andy Ross
Originally from Fort Myers, Florida, Erin Black was the first female swimmer in program history to become an NCAA Division II Champion and is the first women’s swimmer to be inducted into the hall of fame. Black finished her career at Nova Southeastern with two National Champion titles, 12 All-American honors and two Sunshine State Conference golds. During her first year as a Shark, she made waves at the 2012 SSC Championships, winning both the 500-yard freestyle and the 200-yard freestyle, as the conference awarded her the title of SSC Swimmer of the Year.
The next month, Black became the first Shark to earn a swimming National Champion crown in the 500-yard freestyle. During the meet she also earned six All-American nods. As a senior, Black became a two-time National Champion after grabbing the gold in the 500-yard freestyle for the second-straight year, while earning All-American honors in five other events.
Photo Courtesy: Andy Ross
“It’s really nice to be a part of the program and start something for a lot of people to come through,” Black told Swimming World. This was the first year swimmers were eligible to be inducted into the Nova Southeastern Hall of Fame based on the criteria since the swimming and diving team only began in 2010.
During her time as a Shark, Black was named to the 2012 All-SSC First Team and the 2013 All-SSC Second Team, while picking up two SSC Swimmer of the Week laurels. She was also honored with back-to-back NSU Female Athlete of the Year Awards. To this day, her times still rank her among the Top-5 in four events across program history, including the 200-yard freestyle, 500-yard freestyle, 1,000-yard freestyle and 1,650-yard freestyle.
“It’s awesome to be back!” she said. “The weather is great so that’s fantastic and it’s really awesome to see everything that has been built and grown and how things have changed. It’s only been five years but I feel like it is growing and building. It’s nice to see the progression and everything increasing and moving forward.”
Black earned her undergraduate degree from NSU in Exercise and Sport Science in 2013, going on to earn her MBA in International Business in 2015, also at NSU. She is a bush pilot, flying Beechcraft 1900 for Alaska Central Express, which services cargo shipments across the entire state of Alaska – she is based out of Anchorage.
Black still uses lessons she learned in school while swimming at Nova, specifically dealing with nerves.
“I think dealing with issues especially in the cockpit, I’ve learned that moving forward it is good to have good nerves and that’s something I’ve learned behind the blocks or getting up and public speaking. You have to take a deep breath and deal with it.”
Oskar Nordstrand (2011-2013)
Photo Courtesy: Andy Ross
Originally from Stockholm, Sweden, Oskar Nordstrand is the first male in the swimming program history to be crowned an NCAA Division II National Champion and the first men’s swimming representative in the Hall of Fame. Nordstrand left Nova Southeastern as a 12-time All-American and five-time Sunshine State Conference Champion. During his senior year, he was named SSC Co-Swimmer of the Year after capturing the gold in the 500-yard freestyle, 1,000-yard freestyle and 1,650-yard freestyle. During that same year he earned his NCAA gold medal in the 500-yard freestyle. As a junior, Nordstrand earned All-American honors in three individual events and two relays at the 2012 NCAA Division II Championships. Prior to that meet, Nordstrand accumulated 57 points at the SSC Championships, winning both the 500-yard freestyle and the 1000-yard freestyle.
“It’s definitely a big honor to be inducted,” Nordstrand said. “We have worked so hard to bring the swim team to what it is today from what it was nearly ten years ago. I think this is a great milestone for other swimmers to come here and be part of the program.”
To this day, his times still rank him in the Top-5 in four events in program history, including the 200-yard freestyle, 500-yard freestyle, 1,000-yard freestyle and 1,650-yard freestyle. Additionally, during both years at NSU, he was named to the All-SSC First Team. Nordstrand was an enormous contributor to the NSU program in its infancy as both a leader in and out of the water and he approached each practice with grit.
Photo Courtesy: Andy Ross
“It feels so weird to be honest to be back in town. It brings back so many good memories from being here and walking by the pool and meeting all the old friends and faculty but it’s definitely an overwhelming feeling.”
Nordstrand earned his pilot’s license while at NSU and had a minor in Business. He is currently a pilot based out of Stockholm looking to take on Europe and Asia commercial routes after receiving his European license in June. Nordstrand also works as a banking financial advisor in Sweden.
The biggest lesson he said he has learned from being a swimmer at NSU was being part of a team.
“In Sweden, swimming is a very individual sport. But here in the US, you definitely get to incorporate everyone from the team in a different way, which I like it and I think we can learn from that back in Sweden and in many other places in the world.