Team shots and action shots from 1976-77 Swimming team. Words over the photos read: Great Moments from 75 Years of Athletics, 1976-77 Women's Swim and Dive: Athenas Win 4 SCIAC Titles in First Year
1976-77 Men's and Women's Team Photo. Below: A clipping from a November 12, 1976 win over Cal Poly Pomona
Posted: May 16, 2021

CMC75 Moments: 1976-77 Women's Swim and Dive Finishes Second in SCIAC in Debut Season

As part of the buildup to the 75th Anniversary celebration for Claremont McKenna College (visit CMC's 75th Anniversary Countdown Page to learn more), we are reliving many of the great moments from CMS athletic department history over the 75-day countdown from April 17 to July 1. If you were a part of this great moment and would like to add to the memories, or if you would like to submit your memories of your own favorite CMS Athletics moment, fill out the form on our main 75th Anniversary page.

Clipping from a swimming victory Great Moments from 75 Years of Athletics
1976-77 Women's Swim and Dive: Athenas Win 4 League Titles

 Starting up a women's athletic department from scratch in 1976 was a tough task, mitigated somewhat by the existence of women's club sports at the Claremont Colleges, prior to CMC going co-educational. Scripps swimmers used to combine with Pomona College's women's swimmers on a club team, and when Scripps was brought into the same umbrella with Claremont Men's College and Harvey Mudd, several of those swimmers overnight went from being part of Pomona's club to being varsity athletes for Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (then abbreviated SCHM for Scripps-Claremont-Harvey Mudd).

Between a veteran presence and some talented freshmen, the debut season for Athena Swimming and Diving was a success by any standard, as SCHM tied for second with a 4-2 mark in SCIAC meets. They came right out of the chute as a varsity program with an impressive win on November 12, 1976, when they defeated Cal Poly Pomona 45-34 (clipping at right).

At the SCIAC Championships in the winter, the Athenas reached the top of the podium four times, led by Shannon Daley, who swept the two breaststroke events, taking the SCIAC title in both the 50-yard and the 100-yard races. Kristina Albrecht also added a SCIAC Championship in the 50-yard backstroke, and the duo combined to help the Athenas win the 200-yard medley relay in their debut season. 

Daley added another breaststroke sweep in 1978 to give her four SCIAC titles in two seasons with the fledgling program. The Athenas would use the momentum from its quick start to bring in several quality swimmers, including CMS Hall of Famer Brett Eppich, who won four breaststroke titles at the SCIAC Championships in her career as well, and helped the Athenas finish in the top 20 at their first NCAA Division III Championships in 1982.