Oregon State University Vice President and Director of Athletics Scott Barnes announced Monday that intercollegiate women’s swimming will be discontinued by OSU at the end of the 2018-19 season.
Barnes said the decision to discontinue swimming is based upon Oregon State’s commitment to offer all student-athletes a quality, equitable and competitive NCAA experience in keeping with the Athletics Department’s strategic plan; provide quality and equitable facilities for all teams; and balance financial requirements for athletics facilities.
“This decision followed a comprehensive review of all sports,” Barnes said. “Facility requirements contributed to this decision as we realize that OSU campus pool facilities do not meet NCAA standards.”
OSU women’s swim team holds home meets at the city-owned Osborn Aquatics Center.
“It is cost prohibitive to renovate existing campus swimming facilities,” Barnes said. “A new swimming and diving facility would cost about $20 million to build, not including the cost of annual maintenance. Investing in competitive swimming program facilities would negatively impact the ability to serve facility requirements for all sports and all OSU student-athletes.”
OSU’s swimming roster includes 21 student-athletes and two coaches.
“Oregon State University will provide campus resources to assist all team members.” Barnes said. “All student-athlete scholarships will be honored as long as they maintain university progress toward graduation.”
OSU will assist any student-athlete that wishes to enter the NCAA transfer portal at any time during their tenure at the university. Student-athletes will be immediately eligible to compete in swimming at any institution per NCAA regulations.
“I want to commend the efforts of Coach Buffin, Coach Wong and each of our swimming student-athletes. They have represented OSU and our swimming program with utmost class,” Deputy Athletic Director for Administration and Senior Woman’s Administrator Marianne Vydra said. “We are mindful of the effects this decision will have on current team members, their families and alumnus of the program, and we will do everything in our power to assist personally the young women and staff move forward as they seek opportunities beyond OSU swimming.”
With the discontinuation of swimming, OSU will field a total of 17 intercollegiate sports that includes 10 programs on the women’s side: gymnastics, volleyball, golf, rowing, basketball, indoor track and field, outdoor track and field, softball, soccer, and cross country. Men’s sports include football, basketball, baseball, soccer, golf, wrestling and rowing.
“Moving forward, Oregon State Athletics will sponsor approximately 550 opportunities for its student-athletes to compete at the highest level of NCAA intercollegiate sports,” Barnes said.
Oregon State recently finished ninth out of nine teams at the Women’s Pac-12 Swimming and Diving Championships this weekend. They were as high as 20th at NCAA’s in 2004 and have had nine All-Americans.
Saori Haraguchi was NCAA champion in the 200 butterfly in 2008. She was also fifth in the 400 IM and eighth in the 200 IM that year.
Birte Steven was as high as second in the 200 breaststroke at NCAAs in 2004 and was third in the 100 breast that year as well. Steven was sixth in the 200 breast at NCAAs in 2003.
Most recently, Samantha Harrison was seventh in the 1650 in 2015.
Mari Embertson, Naya Higashijima and Amy van Loben Sels were also NCAA A-finalists in their careers with the Beavers. Embertson was seventh in the 400 IM in 2004, Higashijima was eighth in the 200 fly in 2003, and van Loben Sels was eighth in the 50 free in 1994.
The above press release was posted by Swimming World in conjunction with Oregon State Swimming and Diving. For press releases and advertising inquiries please contact Advertising@SwimmingWorld.com.
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Mark Worden
Dam!
University of Washington, Oregon, Oregon State, no swimming. Ridiculous.
Glen Silvers Midwest we still have swimming programs.
I went to hs in Oregon, was recruited by Fresno State, who cut swimming and diving my junior year(they’ve since restarted the program, but that didn’t help us).
Most go south to CA.
Katie Winters did you continue somewhere else?
??
??
La Ra
🙁
Noooooo
Its bad when beavers can’t swim .
Well that is just crazy ..
Beavers are great swimmers!
Peggy Haslach beavers and ducks with no swimming programs… smh
Brooke Lee right!,
Ouch
??
This is such bullshit one of the best sports out an they want to cut it from college an high school.. If u promote it maybe it could bring in money the football an baseball.. Swimming should be more Main stream
Bailey Stevens, good thing you didn’t go there!
Stephen Anderson dang, yep very glad I didn’t
That’s terrible.
No swimming Beavers?
Sad news!!!!
Paige Orlando ?
Ridiculous
What a depressing thing
So sad!
So sad!
Or, in short, another result of the disastrous Title IX!
I wonder if a new $20 million football stadium would be cost prohibitive?
Kimberly Bimber Smith not for that OUTSTANDING football program… PAC-12 conf is on last legs financially – shocking
Looks like Puget Sound and Oregon Masters are going to be powerhouses in the 18-24 Age Group
I bet they would happily swim elsewhere than not at all. Sad to lose these programs.
Carol Inman Greeman they swim at the same place for the last 20 plus years. The facility does not need to be replaced, it serves the city and the women’s team wonderfully.
So sad for these athletes.
This is horrible, they want to continue roaring, over swimming, they are completely dismayed, thank goodness my kids don’t want to go to school there. There is a major problem here
Sara Stacy
Sad Day
Terrible!
Maya Philipp
So wrong, hardest working and academically sound athletes a school could wish for. Colleges and Universities, now all about the $$$$, not the kids, just a business anymore ?
John Steelhammer couldn’t agree with you more!
No way!! How sad.
Not even the women’s programs are safe anymore. USA Swimming stands idle yet again…
John McCormack A single women’s program is cut in the course of a few decades, compared to the dozens of men’s programs cut every year… Yet you think they’re some how equal?
Steven Rose no idea where you are drawing that conclusion. Pt is that yes men’s programs have been devastated and NOW women’s programs aren’t safe either
John McCormack ??
Must be that scintillating 33-65 record since 2010 for the Beaver FB team.
Just say you need resources for football.
?
Sad news for the PNW. Swimming is such a great sport.
Boo hiss?
No one makes $10 million in the National Swimming League.
Julianne Paige I don’t like your school anymore
How does a football school in a power 5 conference not have enough money for a swim program
Tucker Rivera ask Clemson
Jan preach‼️
Tucker Rivera they Choose to spend it only on sports that have a ball
Brad Dunn
This is shameful
Oh no. Love those Beaver swimmers and having them close to home. I think this is terrible!!
I see Title IX in their future☹️
Bummer
Dean Pugh
??
Ridiculous…best students on campus!
Well one thing is for sure the overall GPA of the Beavers student athletes will now take a nose dive
Julie Keller James what’s going on in Oregon??
Shawn what the heck is going at OSU. Maybe the Duck can pick up swimming!! They have a wonderful facility
Hey athletic department, you should of been investing as much time and money in this program as the athletes and coaching staff have. Swimmers work as hard as any athlete in any sport year round in hopes to be able to compete at the college level. My heart goes out to those swimmers today.
Boo hiss.