Kansas University senior Amy Gruber and sophomore Jenny Short have qualified for the NCAA Championships on March 17-19 in West Lafayette, Ind.

They advanced following their performances at the Big 12 Conference swimming and diving championships last week.

“Today is a great day for Kansas swimming,” KU coach Clark Campbell said. “Amy automatically qualified and is ranked very high in the events she will compete in. Jenny’s invitation in the 100 backstroke is a pleasant surprise for us.”

Gruber automatically qualified in three events during the Big 12 Championships. She finished second in the 100 freestyle with an automatic qualifying time of 49.49. The Bigelow, Ark., native also qualified in the 200 freestyle with a Kansas-record time of 1:47.01 and with a second-place finish in the 100 butterfly with a time of 53.59.

Short swam an NCAA “B” standard time and finished fifth in the 100 backstroke with a time of 55.39 at the Big 12 Championships. With her time, she was ranked 34th of the 35 swimmers invited to compete in the NCAAs in the 100 backstroke. The Olathe native will compete in both the 100 and 200 backstrokes.