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FAIRBANKS — Though the Alaska Nanooks have temporarily lost their best swimmer, fourth-year coach Scott Lemley calls this his best team — in part because of a national champion newcomer from Spain.

“We’ve got all the strokes covered. We have more depth, (and) the places we were weak last year I think we’ve shored up really well,” Lemley said Wednesday from the Patty Center. “Plus the returning swimmers are going to be stronger.”

Those returnees include Russian sophomore Mariya Pavlovskaya, who set five team records last year; senior Samantha Zinsli, a freestyler who has a part in nine team records (four individual and five relays); junior Jacqueline van Driessche of Seward (five individual records); versatile sophomore Kinsey Laine; and vastly improved butterflyer Abbey Jackson, a sophomore from Petersburg.

The Nanooks open their campaign with a pair of “tune-up” dual meets against Lewis and Clark College, a Division III school in Portland, Ore. The squads meet at 6 tonight and 12:30 p.m. Saturday at the Patty Center Pool.

Absent from the roster this year is Kelly Becker of Tualatin, Ore., who as a freshman placed 10th in the 200-yard butterfly at the 2007 NCAA Division II Championships. She also qualified for the 2008 championships, but could not attend after becoming academically ineligible.

Becker is still enrolled at UAF but is focusing on academics this year. The plan is for her to return to the squad in 2009, Lemley said.

“I suggested it would be a good idea to focus on studying (this year) ... and she agreed,” Lemley said. “We still have complete confidence in her as an athlete. ... We’ll be a stronger team when she comes back next year.”

One newcomer who is drawing attention already is Courtney Nichols of Columbia, S.C. She was prepared to attend Clemson University and walk on to its swim team, but then learned she likely wouldn’t make the Tigers’ travel squad.

“At the last moment we enticed her away from that to come up here,” Lemley said.

Nichols is comparable to Pavlovskaya, Alaska’s best swimmer last season.

“She’s slightly faster than Mariya in the 100 and 200 breaststroke. She’s slightly slower than Mariya in the 200 and 400 IM (individual medley),” Lemley said. “She’s going to be a huge part of our success this year.”

But the biggest impact from a newcomer should come from Mar Brunet, a 25-year-old senior from Mallorca, Spain.

At the Blue-Gold intrasquad meet last Saturday, Brunet swam what would have been a provisional NCAA qualifying time of 59.75 seconds in the 100 backstroke. Lemley sees her getting much faster as the season progresses.

“She’ll be the fastest swimmer in our conference, and we have Division I teams,” Lemley said. “And if she qualifies for nationals, which I’m sure she will, I think she has the potential to be the fastest 100 and 200 backstroker in the country (in Division II) this year.”

Brunet is just happy for the opportunity to be part of a university team. Back home, clubs offer competitive swimming but the focus is much more individual, she said.

Though she comes from a warm island in the Mediterranean, Brunet said she’s adjusting to Fairbanks just fine.

“It’s just different, and I think it’s not a problem because I put a coat on,” she said of the climate change. “I feel good here because all of my teammates, my coach, they support me with ... my classes, my English, my practice.”

The Nanooks initially believed Brunet would be a junior with two years of athletic eligibility, but the NCAA determined she’s a senior who thus can only swim one year in Fairbanks. UAF will appeal that decision, Lemley said.

“They looked at her transcripts and they interpreted it, and we’re going to ask them to reinterpret it,” he said.

Brunet was initially excited about spending at least two years in Fairbanks.

“It’s the last opportunity for doing my dreams and I want to stay here for a long time,” she said.

Brunet is talented enough to swim for a Division I school, but is not eligible to because more than five years have elapsed since she first enrolled in college, Lemley said.

The D-II Nanooks, though, are elated to have her. Brunet will likely lead off the medley relay teams in the backstroke. Pavlovskaya and Nichols will compete for the breaststroke portion, with Jackson or junior Kathryn Niemi doing the butterfly leg and Zinsli or van Driessche anchoring as the freestyler. The goal, Lemley said, is to qualify a medley relay for nationals. The Nanooks are also stepping up their training this season with a 16-day camp at altitude over the Christmas holidays in Flagstaff, Ariz.

Contact staff writer Matias Saari at 459-7591.