Courtesy: Missouri State Athletics
SPRINGFIELD – Missouri State’s swimming and diving head coach Dave Collins announced Tuesday the receipt of National Letters of Intent from four high school seniors and one second-year transfer.
Committing to the Bears for the 2021-22 season were:
- Reese Hodgins (Free, 6-3, Fr., Chanhassen, Minn., Chanhassen High)
- Sira Limbu (Fly/Back/IM, Fr., Warrenville, Ill., Wheaton Warrenville South High)
- David Ribinski (Free, 5-10, Fr., Netanya, Israel)
- Hailey Rissinger (Diving, 5-4, So., Fayetteville, Ark., Fayetteville High/University of Arkansas)
- Payton Smith (Fly/Free, 5-7, Fr., Woodstock, Ga., Etowah High)
“Associate head swimming and diving coach Chelsea Dirks-Ham did a very nice job identifying talent in some areas that we have not traditionally had much of a presence in,” Missouri State head swimming and diving coach Dave Collins said. “This is exciting as we continue to broaden the Missouri State footprint nationally. Each of these signees will come right in and have the opportunity to improve our program in their first season. This recruiting cycle has been different with less opportunities to evaluate recruits and have personal conduct, but I still feel we have overcome the challenges and have a wonderful group making up this class.”
Collins is in his ninth season as head coach at Missouri State and is the reigning Missouri Valley Conference and Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year. Collins led the MSU men to another MAC Championship title last season along with 10 individual conference champions. The MSU women also won their fourth-straight Valley title – also their 12th in 13 seasons and 16th overall.
Joining the Missouri State swimming and diving program next season are:
Reese Hodgins (Free, 6-3, Fr., Chanhassen, Minn., Chanhassen High)
As a junior, Hodgins received All-American, All-Sectional and All-State honors. He helped set school records in the 200 and 400 free relays. His sophomore season at Chanhassen High, he earned All-Conference and All-State honors and was named an All-American in the 200 and 400 free relay. He received All-Conference and Rookie of the Year honors as a freshman. Hodgins enters his senior season as team captain for Chanhassen.
Coach Dirks-Ham on Hodgins
“We are excited to have Reese join us as a Bear in August. We feel that he is on the cusp of a major breakout in his swimming career and we look forward to being part of that process.”
Sira Limbu (Fly/Back/IM, Fr., Warrenville, Ill., Wheaton Warrenville South High)
As a freshman, Limbu was named USA Swimming Scholastic All-American, qualified for the state meet in the 100 fly and was named MVP for her high school team. In her sophomore campaign, she recorded several NCSA Junior National cut times. She swam a 57.20 in the 100 backstroke, 2:07.21 in the 200 IM, 4:29.36 in the 400 IM and 2:03.79 in the 200 backstroke. In her junior season, she swam her personal best in the 200 fly with a time of 2:05.14 which was the NCSA cut. She was preparing for the NCSA Spring Championship meet in Florida when COVID-19 canceled it.
Coach Dirks-Ham on Limbu
“The future is very bright for Sira and we can’t wait to have her join us in August. Sira will make an immediate impact when she arrives on campus and her versatility will be very valuable to the team.”
David Ribinski (Free, 5-10, Fr., Netanya, Israel)
Ribinski is a sprint freestyler coming from the country of Israel. His accomplishments include placing third at the Israeli Senior Championships, the Israeli Champion of all ages from 13-18, placing eighth at the European Youth Championships at age 16, Komen First Championship at age 15 and Criterion for the European Championship Seniors at age 19. His best times include a 22.63 in the 50 free (LCM) and a 50.81 in the 100 free (LCM).
Coach Collins on Ribinski
“David is a very exciting addition to our team. He will come in and make an immediate impact with his speed and raw sprinting ability. David has big meet experience and we expect that to aid in him quickly getting acclimated to college swimming. With his father as his coach at home, David will also bring a high swimming IQ to our program.”
Hailey Rissinger (Diving, 5-4, So., Fayetteville, Ark., Fayetteville High/University of Arkansas)
Rissinger, the sophomore transfer, is coming from the University of Arkansas and will start with the Bears in the spring 2021 season. As a freshman at Fayetteville High, Rissinger earned All-State honors and was runner-up at the state meet. In her sophomore season, she received All-Conference laurels and placed third at the state meet. Her junior season in 2017-18, Rissinger won a state championship, was the conference champion and went undefeated. She earned All-State and All-Conference honors and was named the 2018 Arkansas Diver of the Year. Rissinger went undefeated in the fall of 2018, but graduated early to dive at Arkansas.
Coach Collins on Rissinger
“We look forward to getting Hailey to campus in a few months to join our very accomplished group of divers. From the first conversation, Hailey’s enthusiasm toward the opportunity to come to Missouri State and dive was very apparent. She has a very solid age group background and we look forward to her contributing right away in January.”
Payton Smith (Fly/Free, 5-7, Fr., Woodstock, Ga., Etowah High)
As a freshman, Smith was the county champion and earned Cherokee County All-County Team honors. She also was named the most valuable swimmer and she was ranked top 20 in the state in the 100 fly and 500 free. In her sophomore season, she won All-County again, was a NCSA Junior National Qualifier and was top 10 in the state in the 100 fly and top 20 in the 200 free. During her junior campaign, Smith received All-State Second Team and All-County Team honors. She was the county champion in the 100 fly and placed 2nd in the 200 free. She ranked in the top five for the 100 fly and top 10 in the 200 free and 400 IM. Smith also qualified for NCSA Junior Nationals again her junior season. Due to COVID-19, Smith’s senior season has not started yet.
Coach Dirks-Ham on Smith
“We are very eager to have Payton join us in the pool. Payton will be impactful within our team and conference in the butterfly events. We are very excited to watch her continue to develop as an athlete within our program and we love her attitude and desire to be a key contributor to our program.”