2010-11: With the intentions of graduating early, this season may be the last for Nichols with the Nanooks; as usual, Nichols was a driving force in dual meets in both the breaststroke and individual medley events; at the dual meet in January versus Simon Fraser University, Nichols recieved her NCAA Division II B-cut in the 400 IM with a short course meter time of 5:11.21; in February at the PCSC Championships Nichols helped the 200 Medley Relay to the Nanooks highest relay finish ever, 2nd, swimming the breaststroke leg and finishing with a time of 1:49.21; she came away with a pair of season bests and 11th place finishes in the 200 and 400 IM with a 2:11.25 and 4:43.50, respectively; her time in the 200 IM landed Nichols her second NCAA Division II B-cut; she also had season bests in the 200 Breaststroke with a 2:26.87 and a 9th place finish and her unofficial swim in the 100 Breaststroke with a 1:09.47; she also helped the 400 Medley Relay to a 3rd place finish; Nichols was one of two Nanooks who recieved Conference All-Academic Honors for having a cumulative GPA of over 3.5; was recognized for Academic Honors by the Athletic Department.
2009-10: Returning to the Nanooks for her second year, Nichols had a solid season; in November at the Toshiba Classic Invitational she helped both the 200 and 400 Medley Relays by swimming the breaststroke legs, letting them finish 18th with a time of 1:49.78 and 17th with a time of 3:9.43, respectively; the PCSC Championships in February were filled with season bests for Nichols with a 13th place finish in the 200 IM and a time of 2:10.43, a 17th place finish in the 100 Breaststroke wiht a time of 1:08.58, and a 12th place finish in the 200 Breaststroke with a 2:26.81; Nichols also swam breaststroke in the 400 Medley Relay, helping it the its 4th place finish and a tim eof 3:56.15; was recognized for Academic Honors by the Athletic Department; recieved the John C. Gilmore Award for having the highest GPA for the swim team that year.
2008-09: Nichols had a stunning first year with the Nanooks; at the Nike Cup Invitational in November, Nichols achieved her first NCAA Division II B-cut in the 200 IM with her prelim swim of 2:08.15, finishing 13th with a 2:08.23; she also set the Varsity Record in the 200 Breaststroke with her 11th place finish with a 2:23.28 and her 400 IM swim with a time of 4:32.80 landed her an A-cut and a trip to the National Championships; in February at the PCSC Championships Nichols helped the 800 Freestyle Relay set the Varsity Record with a 7:47.03 and a 4th place finish; she had a pair of 6th places in the 100 and 200 Breaststrokes with a lifetime best of 1:05.84 and 2:25.11, respectively, earning her All-Conference Honors; in March at the NCAA Division II Swimming and Diving National Championships she came away with a lifetime best swim in the 200 IM with a time of 2:08.13 and a 23rd place finish; recognized for Academic Honors by the Athletic Department.
Prior to Alaska: Attended Irmo High School in Columbia, SC; participated in swimming and track; was the captain of her high school swim team and received All-State, MVP and Top-10 awards; won the 2008 South Carolina YMCA State Meet; qualified for First Nationals Competition at Senior Sectionals in the 100 Breastroke with a time of 1:08.45 at Georgia Tech; member of the YCSC Mudcats Swim Team.
Coach Lemley on Courtney: "I was absolutely thrilled when Courtney signed with us last summer. We've needed more depth in the breaststroke events for the last couple of years and she joined our team with 100 and 200 yd breaststroke times slightly faster than our team records. Courtney also had the highest cumulative GPA of any swimmer I"ve ever recruited which fits the model of student-athlete I want representing our team and our department."
Personal: Daughter of Christopher and Margaret Nichols; currently majoring in Biology with a minor in German and will graduate in May.
