SEATTLE, Wash. - Bryson Chiu, a native of Carmel, Indiana, made quite a splash during his first year at Seattle University. A member of the Redhawk swim team, Chiu qualified for the NCAA Division II Swimming and Diving Championships and earned honorable mention All-America recognition for his performance at the national meet.
Chiu completed a stellar season in 2007 with a 14th place finish in the finals of the men's 200 breaststroke at the national meet with a time of 2:08.60. By finishing in the top 16, Chiu earned his first honorable mention All-America award of his career.
The freshman also contributed to the Redhawks' 11th place finish in the men's 200 freestyle relay, as the four-man team finished in a time of 1:25.05. Chiu and his teammates won the "B" final in the men's 400 medley relay in a school-record time of 3:23.23, earning a ninth place overall. In the 200 individual medley during the NCAA Championships, Chiu finished in 13th place with a time of 1:54.63.
"The national meet of course was a treat. Having teams from all over the country at one meet is certainly a highlight. But at the same time, getting to nationals was the biggest highlight," said Chiu.
Craig Mallery, the tenth-year head coach of the Seattle University swimming teams, has been impressed with Chiu's consistency of posting great competitive performances.
"Bryson combines talent, work ethic, and high competitive drive. These traits, amongst others, will support further improvement." said Mallery.
Chiu finished fourth in the 200 backstroke at the Pacific Collegiate Swimming Conference Championships in Long Beach, Calif., with a time of 1:55.19. He won the 200 individual medley with a time of 1:53.28 to qualify for the NCAA Division II Swimming and Diving Championships.
"I learned the importance of taking an active role to contribute to your success. It's you that needs to tell the coach your needs and wants. At the same time you should trust your coach, you should know what you need to do for yourself to improve." said Chiu.
After a stellar high school career at Carmel High School, where he was an All American in the 100 meter backstroke and 200 individual medley, Chiu wanted to head west to attend college. He looked at some schools in California, but settled on Seattle University after falling in love with the city on a recruiting trip.
"Seattle is an extremely dynamic city with a lot of different places to visit. Along with the city, the people and campus contributed to my decision. The people I met along the trip, mostly the swim team, were fun and nice. The campus was all in close radius and within walking distance" said Chiu.
Chiu posted solid times during the regular season as he prepared for the conference and national meets. He finished second twice against swimmers from Division I school University of Washington. In the 200 individual medley he finished second with a time of 1:57.57, just 43/100ths of a second behind UW's Jonathan Banker. He also finished second in the 100 backstroke in 54.19 seconds.
In Riverside, Calif., Chiu defeated Cal Baptist's Justin Vergara in the 200 individual medley by 5/100ths of a second with a time of 2:00.16. Against Whitworth College, Chiu won the 100 backstroke with a time of 55.97 seconds and led off the winning 200 medley relay team, who finished in a time of 1:38.01.
Chiu also thrived in the classroom his freshman year. His work ethic and commitment to balanced success impresses Mallery, and the coach believes that Chiu will be a major part of the continued growth of the Seattle University men's swim program, which earned its best showing at the Division II Swimming and Diving Championships with a ninth-place finish.
"I was extremely pleased for him and have tremendous respect for him," said Mallery of Chiu's freshman year. "I was not surprised by his performances this season."