Behind NCAA Swimming Title, Le Moyne's Alison Lesher Stamps Name in NE10 History

Posted: Nov 16, 2020

Alison Lesher, a 2008 Le Moyne College graduate and native of Sherrill, N.Y., is the only individual national champion in the College's history. In March 2008, she captured the national championship in the 200-yard butterfly with a school-record time of 2:01.66 to win by 0.18 seconds. The championship made her the second individual national champion in the Northeast-10’s history (the first was also a women’s swimmer the same week).

The most decorated women's swimmer in the program's history and the only member of the women’s swimming and diving program to be elected to the Le Moyne College Gold Wave and Northeast-10 Conference Halls of Fame, Lesher was a five-time All-American. To go along with her gold medal at the 2008 NCAA Championships, she placed seventh in the 1000-yard freestyle and the 1650-yard freestyle at her final collegiate event. As a sophomore, she placed fifth in the 200-yard butterfly and received the silver medal in the event as a junior.

For her efforts during her junior season, she was named the 2006-07 Northeast-10 Conference Women's Swimming Athlete of the Year. In her career, she was selected as the Most Valuable Swimmer at the 2006-07 and 2007-08 Northeast-10 Conference Championships and won 10 conference championships as a Dolphin. At the time of her graduation, she held eight different school records and still holds five of them, including the time from her national championship race. She also still holds four Rev. Vincent B. Ryan, S.J. Pool records.

In addition to her accolades in the pool, she was named the 2007-08 Le Moyne College Rev. J.J. O'Brien, S.J. Female Senior Athlete Achievement Award recipient, the 2007-2008 Northeast-10 Conference Scholar-Athlete of the Year and the 2007-08 Northeast-10 Woman of the Year. From her NE-10 Woman of the Year recognition, Lesher was selected as a Division II top-10 finalist for the NCAA Woman of the Year award. During her time at Le Moyne, Lesher was named to the Dean's list for eight semesters and was a Presidential Scholar recipient all four years. She was also a three-time Northeast-10 All-Academic selection and was named to the Commissioners Honor Roll each of the four occasions it was awarded.

Alison Lesher Links of Note:

ABOUT THE NE10
Beginning its 40th anniversary season, the NE10 is an association of 14 diverse institutions serving student-athletes across 24 NCAA Division II sports. Together we build brilliant futures by embracing the journey of every student-athlete.

Each year, 4,500 of those student-athletes compete in conference championships in 24 sports, making the NE10 the largest DII conference in the country in terms of sport sponsorship. Leading the way in the classroom, on the field and within the community, the NE10 is proud of its comprehensive program and the experience it provides student-athletes.