DENVER ? Six WAC teams are back in action this week, looking to make waves of their competition, while the other two teams will have several weeks off to prepare for meets in late January. On Jan. 8, New Mexico State will welcome North Texas to Las Cruces, N.M. for a mid-week competition. Boise State will take on two WAC foes, first traveling to San Diego to meet the Toreros on Jan. 9, before heading to Reno, Nev. to take on the Wolf Pack. Hawai?i will host Big Ten foe Wisconsin on Jan. 12, while Idaho will travel to Seattle to compete with the Washington Huskies. Both Northern Arizona and San Jose State will be back in action on Jan. 26, with the Lumberjacks welcoming Grand Canyon to Flagstaff and the Spartans welcoming Cal State East Bay to San Jose.
ATHLETE OF THE WEEK ? Northern Arizona senior Natalie Hughes has been named the Western Athletic Conference Swimming & Diving Athlete of the Week, for the week of Dec. 31-Jan. 6. This is the first WAC Athlete of the Week honor for Hughes this season and the second of her career, earning the honor in 2006.
Hughes, a native of St. Clair, Mich. (St. Clair), captured a first and second-place finish in diving events in dual meets versus No. 4 Arizona and Oregon State on Jan. 4. Hughes won the three-meter event with a career-high score of 318.75 and placed second on the one-meter with another career-high mark of 293.99. Her three-meter score ranks second-best in school history, while Hughes’ one-meter score is the third-best all-time. In both diving events, Hughes finished ahead of four divers from the University of Arizona.
Other nominees included: Tara Hahto of Boise State led the Broncos to a third-place finish at the UC Irvine/Ayres Hotel & Suites Invitational, as she finished second in the 50-yard breaststroke (32.13), fifth in the 200-yard breaststroke (2:30.78) and eighth in the 100-yard breaststroke (1:10.23) ... Stephanie De Lima of Hawai’i finished in the top three in all three diving events at the Hawai’i Diving Invitational, placing second in both the three-meter springboard (288.65) and platform (240.05) and third in the one-meter springboard (266.90) ... Caitlin Macky of San Jose State captured a total of nine first-place finishes (four individual and five relay) in a pair of dual meet victories over Cal State Bakersfield and a first-ever Spartan victory at the UC Irvine Relay Invitational, touching the wall first in the 200-yard Individual Medley (2:13.24), the 400-yard Individual Medley (4:46.51), the 100-yard breaststroke (1:09.16) and the 200-yard breaststroke (2:29.97) events.
NORTHERN ARIZONA’S HUGHES RECORDS CAREER-BEST DIVES ? Northern Arizona’s Natalie Hughes captured a first and second-place finish in diving events in dual meets versus No. 4 Arizona and Oregon State on Jan. 4. Hughes won the three-meter event with a career-high score of 318.75 and placed second on the one-meter with another career-high mark of 293.99. Her three-meter score ranks second-best in school history, while Hughes’ one-meter score is the third-best all-time. In both diving events, Hughes finished ahead of four divers from the University of Arizona.
SAN JOSE STATE WINS FIRST-EVER UC IRVINE/AYRES HOTEL & SUITES RELAYS INVITATIONAL ? After coming off back-to-back dual meet victories over Cal State Bakersfield, the San Jose State Spartans captured their first-ever title at the UC Irvine/Ayres Hotel & Suites Relays Invitational. The Spartans finished first out of eight teams, including conference foes Boise State and San Diego. San Jose State put together five first-place efforts and finished second in another four events. Senior Brie Marhenke, junior Lauren Mar and freshman Caitlin Macky led the way as part of three winning relays each. Top highlights for the Spartans included winning the 200 and 400-yard freestyle relays, with the team of Marhenke, Mar, Meghan McCurley and Daphne Yeung matching the meet record of 1:36.93 previously set by WAC rival Nevada in 2002.
FRESNO STATE TO ADD SWIMMING & DIVING IN 2008-09 ? Fresno State Athletics Director Thomas Boeh announced on Jan. 8 the addition of two women’s sports in a move that reflects the University’s continued commitment to Title IX compliance.
The announcement marks the return of women’s swimming and diving which last competed in the 2003-04 academic year. This addition comes after the recommendations of the Gender Equity Plan Task Force, a 13-member campus-community panel charged by the University President John D. Welty to develop a new five-year gender equity plan that will guide the university to maintain Title IX compliance in its athletics program.
Boeh said he expects coaches to be hired and student athletes recruited in time for the teams to compete in the 2008-09 academic year. The intention for the new swimming and diving team will be to practice and compete at a Clovis Unified high school in the near term. The university master plan includes phased construction of a competitive aquatics center.
Boise State Broncos
Boise State returns home from Irvine, Calif., after the Broncos earned a third place finish at the UC Irvine/Ayres Hotel and Suites Invitational on Jan. 5-6 ... the Broncos were led by freshman Tara Hahto, who finished second in the 50-yard breaststroke (32.12), fifth in the 200-yard breaststroke (2:30.78) and eighth in the 100-yard breaststroke (1:10.23) ... senior diver Jennifer Dorling also tallied a fifth-place finish in the three-meter event with a total of 191.10 points ... up next, Boise State will take on two conference opponents, first traveling to San Diego, Calif. on Jan. 9 to take on San Diego, before heading to Reno to compete against Nevada on Jan. 12.
Hawai?i Rainbow Wahine
Hawai?i played host to the Oregon State Beavers on Dec. 19, falling 109.5-77.5 ... the Rainbow Wahine were led by sophomore Emma Berry, who touched the wall first in the 500-yard freestyle with a time of 4:58.98 ... the Rainbow Wahine also hosted the Hawai?i Diving Invitational on Jan. 4-5 ... Hawai?i was led by freshman diver Stephanie De Lima at the Hawai?i Invitational, who boasted two second-place finishes and one third-place finish in the three diving events ... up next, the Rainbow Wahine prepare for a weekend competition on Jan. 12 when they host the Badgers of Wisconsin in a dual meet in Honolulu, Hawaii.
Idaho Vandals
Idaho returns to the mainland after competing against Minnesota during its winter training trip in Kona, Hawaii ... the Vandals lost the dual meet against the Golden Gophers on Jan. 5 by a score of 127-56 ... the Vandals were led by freshman Alyson O’Brien, who finished third in the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 1:55.77 and fourth in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 54.09 ... Adrianna Quirke, Cortney Hanson and Eliz Jagusch all recorded second-place finishes in events against the Golden Gophers ... up next, the Vandals will travel to Seattle, Wash. on Jan. 12 to take on the Huskies of Washington.
Nevada Wolf Pack
Nevada returns home from Honolulu after taking on St. Cloud State on Jan. 5, where no team scores were kept ... before the holiday break the Wolf Pack split two dual meets with conference foe Idaho on Dec. 7-8 ... the Wolf Pack won nine of 10 events versus the Vandals on Dec. 8 and a total of 17 of 24 in the two days of competition ... the Wolf Pack were led by junior Courtney Eads, who won three individual events on Dec. 7 and another two individual events on Saturday ... senior Nonie Wainwright and sophomore Margaret Doolittle were also double winners on the second day of competition ... up next, the Wolf Pack will travel to Reno to take on WAC foe Nevada on Jan. 12.
New Mexico State Aggies
New Mexico State concluded the UNLV Winter Invitational on Dec. 17 with a fifth-place finish that included season-best performances and school record tying marks ... the Aggie 200-yard freestyle relay team of Kelly Conrad, Tessa Bain, Carolyn Bohn and Stephanie Peacock finished fourth overall, tying the Aggie school record in the event ... individually, Conrad led the way for the Aggies with a pair of seventh-place finishes in both the 50-yard and 100-yard freestyle events ... freshman Kirstin Pickett guided the Aggies in both diving events, finishing fourth in the one-meter and eighth in the three-meter ... the Aggies prepare for a mid-week home meet on Jan. 8 when North Texas visits Las Cruces.
Northern Arizona Lumberjacks
Fourth-ranked Arizona and Pac-10 powerhouse Oregon State proved a bit too strong for Northern Arizona, as the Wildcats earned a 174-122 win while the Beavers won by a score of 176-123 over the Northern Arizona on Jan. 4 ... the Lumberjacks were led by senior diver Natalie Hughes, who captured a first and second-place finish in diving events ... Hughes won the three-meter event with a career-high score of 318.75 and placed second on the one-meter with another career-high mark of 293.99. ... the Lumberjacks will have three full weeks off before returning to competition on Jan. 26 when Grand Canyon makes the trip to Flagstaff to compete.
San Diego Toreros
San Diego returns home from Irvine, Calif., after taking fourth-place at the UC Irvine/Ayres Hotel and Suites Invitational on Jan. 6 ... the Toreros best finish came with the 3 x 100-yard backstroke team of Joy Miller, Aileen Fedrick and Kristen Yoon, as they took second-place with a time of 3:07.29 ... San Diego also captured a pair of fourth-place finishes, in both the 800-yard freestyle relay (8:06.17) and the 200-yard freestyle relay (1:43.70) ... the Toreros will wrap up their home schedule on Wednesday, Jan. 9 when conference foe Boise State comes to San Diego.
San Jose State Spartans
San Jose State put together a successful weekend away from home, defeating Cal State Bakersfield in a pair of dual meets on Jan. 4-5, before winning its first-ever UC Irvine/Ayres Hotel & Suites Invitational title on Jan. 6 ... the Spartans were led by freshman Caitlin Macky, who compiled a team-best nine combined wins (four individual and five relay) wins over three days ... Macky touched the wall first in the 200-yard IM (2:13.24), the 400-yard IM (4:46.51), the 100-yard breaststroke (1:09.16) and the 200-yard breaststroke (2:29.97) ... up next, the Spartans will have three weeks off before returning to action at home versus Cal State East Bay on Jan. 26.
WAC CHAMPIONSHIP RETURNS TO SAN ANTONIO ? The 2008 edition of the WAC Championship returns to Palo Alto Natatorium in San Antonio, Texas. Nevada will look to defend its 2007 title in hopes of capturing its second WAC championship in a row. The championship will be held Feb. 20-23, 2008.
WAC Championship Tickets:
All-Session Passes (includes all 10 sessions) are $30 for adults and $20 for children ages 18 and under.
Single-Session tickets will be available for purchase at the event (the pool will be cleared aat the conclusion of each session). Prices are as follows:
Relays Wednesday evening $5
Prelims Adults $6, Children $4
Diving Adults $6, Children $4
Finals Adults $7, Children $4
An All-Session ticket order form is available online at www.wacsports.com, and is also attached to the end of the weekly Swimming & Diving release.
WAC Championship Apparel:
Swimming & Diving Championship Apparel is now available online or for purchase at the event. Items available include t-shirts, long sleeve t-shirts, and hooded sweatshirts.
A Swimming & Diving Championship Apparel brochure is available online at www.wacstore.com, and is also attached to the end of the weekly Swimming & Diving release.
NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP ? The 2008 NCAA Swimming and Diving Championship will be held in Columbus, Ohio, March 20-22. Hawai?i tied for 27th in 2007.
Zone Diving (5): March 13-15 or 14-16, 2008
Zone A: University of Buffalo (March 14-16)
Buffalo, New York
Zone B: Auburn University (March 14-16)
Auburn, Alabama
Zone C: Ohio State University (March 14-16)
Columbus, Ohio
Zone D: University of Houston (March 14-16)
Houston, Texas
Zone E: U.S. Air Force Academy (March 13-15)
Oklahoma City Community College
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Finals: March 20-22, 2008
Columbus, Ohio
McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion
Host: Ohio State University
For Ticket Information: 1-800-GOBUCKS
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