Nazareth College Athletics

Communication Sciences and Disorders major… daughter of John and Diane Lesher, Sherrill, N.Y. …returning for her fourth season, Lesher reached the pinnacle in 2006-07 as she captured the national championship in the 400-yard IM and broke a 10-year old NCAA record with a time of 4:22.75, bettering her personal best by nearly five seconds. . . also earned All-American honors in the 200-yard IM by placing fifth at nationals in 2:05.55 and in the 200-yard backstroke by placing 10th in 2:06.06. . . earned an array of other accolades, including Rochester-area College Athlete of the Year by the Rochester Press-Radio Club and Sportswoman of the Year by WHAM Radio. . . named Empire 8 Conference Swimmer of the Week four times, recognized as the Empire 8 Swimmer of the Meet and NYSWCAA Swimmer of the Year after placing first in five events at the Conference Championship meet. . . earned first-team all-conference honors in the 200-yard IM, 400-yard IM, 200-yard backstroke, 800 free relay, 400 medley relay, and 200 medley relay. . .recipient of team’s High Point Award after collecting a team-high 503.20 points. . . named Swimmer of the Year by Rochester Area College Athletics. . . 2005-06: earned All-American honors in both the 200 and 400 IM at the NCAA Division III Championships in Minnesota, placing fifth in both races. . . led the team in scoring with 450.50 points and was named Empire 8 Conference Athlete of the Meet after finishing first in three events — the 200 IM, 400 IM and 200 backstroke. . . also won NYSWCAA titles in the same three races. . . named Empire 8 Swimmer of the Week three times… recipient of team’s High Point Award as Most Valuable Swimmer. . . named Swimmer of the Year by Rochester Area College Athletics. . . 2004-05: qualified for the NCAA Division III championships in three events and earned honorable mention All-American honors after placing ninth in the 400 IM. . . finished as team’s leading scorer with 394 team points. . . won NYSWCAA and Empire 8 Conference titles in the 200 and 400 IM as well as the 200 backstroke. . . named Empire 8 Conference Rookie of the Year. . . recipient of team’s High Point Award as Most Valuable Swimmer. . . named Swimmer of the Year by Rochester Area College Athletics. . . Scholastic: a graduate of Vernon-Verona-Sherrill High School, Lesher was a swimming standout there. . . was a two-time Section Three champion in the 200 IM and twice competed in the state meet in that event. . . competed in track and soccer. . . was the Tri-Valley League champion in the 800-meter run and was part of the school-record breaking 4 x 800-meter relay team.