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October Athletes of the Month Selected

USA Water Ski has selected Ian Trapp (Zachary, La.) and Danyelle Bennett (Zachary, La.) as its Male and Female Athletes of the Month for October. The University of Louisiana-Monroe Water Ski Team was selected as Team of the Month. Trapp, Bennett and the University of Louisiana-Monroe Water Ski Team are now eligible for the United States Olympic Committee’s Athletes and Team of the Month honors.

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The University of Louisiana-Monroe (ULM) won the national team title for the second consecutive year at the 29th Collegiate Water Ski National Championships, Oct. 25-27, at Bennett’s Water Ski & Wakeboard School. Louisiana-Monroe tallied 12,860.0 points in winning its 20th national title.
Five teams from each of the National Collegiate Water Ski Association's four regions competed in two divisions. Division 1 included: Alabama, Auburn, Clemson, Purdue, Wisconsin, Missouri State, Louisiana-Lafayette, Louisiana-Monroe, Texas, Arizona State, Sacramento State and Cal Poly. Division 2 included: North Carolina, Rollins, Illinois, Michigan, Texas State, Texas A&M, UC-Davis and San Diego State.

National team champions were declared in both divisions. Individual medals for slalom, tricks and jumping were awarded based on athletes' placements within their division. Overall titles were awarded in each division to athletes competing in all three events.

In Saturday's events, Louisiana-Monroe's Natalia Berdnikova won the Division 1 women's tricks title, scoring 4,190 points, and the Division 1 women's overall title, tallying 1,750.0 points; Steven Critchley of Louisiana-Lafayette won the Division 1 men's jumping title with a leap of 176 feet, while Adam Seldmajer of Louisiana-Monroe won the Division 1 men's overall title with 1,740.0 points.

Jenna Mielzynski of Rollins won the Division 2 women's tricks title with 2,570 points and the Division 2 women's overall title with 1,050.0 points. RJ Williams of North Carolina won the Division 2 men's tricks title, scoring 1,160 points, and Bobby Hall of Texas State won the Division 2 men's overall title. Texas State won the Division 2 team title, finishing with 6,090.0 points.

In Friday's events, Aliaksei Zharnasek of Louisiana-Monroe won the Division 1 men's tricks title, tallying 6,560 points, while Berdnikova won the Division 1 women's jumping title for the fourth consecutive year, leaping 146 feet. Brandon Barrett of San Diego State won the Division 2 men's slalom title, scoring 1 buoy at 38 feet off, and Michaela Cooper of Rollins won Division 2 women's slalom, scoring 2-1/4 buoys at 35 feet off.

In Thursday's events, Ian Trapp of Louisiana-Lafayette won the Division 1 men's slalom title, scoring 1 buoy at 41 feet off, while Berdnikova won the Division 1 women's slalom title, scoring 2 buoys at 38 feet off. Brent Norwood of Texas A&M won the Division 2 men's jumping title with a leap of 129 feet, and Mielzynski won the Division 2 women's jumping title with a leap of 131 feet.