ATHLETE OF THE WEEK (Nov. 3 - Nov. 9)
New Mexico State’s Maria Spies and Hawai?i’s Raquel Bartlow have been named Western Athletic Conference Swimming and Diving Athletes of the Week, respectively, for the week of Nov. 3-9.
Spies, a freshman swimmer from Magdenburg, Germany (Sportgymnasium Magdeburg), swept the breaststroke events in dual meets against Houston and Rice on Nov. 6. En route to taking top honors, Spies broke the school record in the 100 breast (1:03.74) and then improved her school record in the 200 breast (2:17.40). She was also a member of the 400-free relay team which posted the WAC’s fastest time of the season (3:30.70) and a third-place finish. On Nov. 8, Spies earned a pair of second-place showings in the 100 and 200 breaststroke at the Mean Green Duals in meets against SMU, Colorado State, Arkansas and North Texas.
Bartlow, a junior diver from Long Beach, Calif. (Woodrow Wilson HS), won three out of the four diving events at the Anteater Shootout, hosted by UC Irvine last week. On Nov. 7, Bartlow won the 1-meter and 3-meter events with scores of 242.85 and 292.10, respectively. Her 3-meter score of 292.10 ranks as a WAC-best so far this season. Bartlow’s performances helped the Rainbow Wahine defeat Pepperdine, 69-44.
This Week in WAC Swimming- Fresno State and Boise State kick things off in Western Athletic Conference Swimming and Diving this week when the two up and coming programs face off in Boise, Idaho. The Northern Arizona Lumberjacks head north to Moscow, Idaho to take on the Vandals in the other WAC matchup of the week. Also, NAU then travels to Washington State to battle the Cougars on Saturday, Nov. 15. Meanwhile, the Hawai?i Rainbow Wahine host the Hawaii Senior Championships. The three day event begins on Friday, Nov. 14 and runs through Monday Nov. 16.
TEAM NOTES
Boise State Broncos
The Broncos come off a 197-102 loss to WAC foe San Jose State but return back to Boise this week in a dual meet against Fresno State. BSU hasn’t swam at home since dual meets against Utah and Washington on Oct. 4-5.
Fresno State Bulldogs
After a bye week, the Fresno State swimming and diving team will return to the pool Saturday, Nov. 15, on the campus of Boise State to face the Broncos at 11 a.m. The Bulldogs took a break from action last week after traveling south to face San Diego State. Boise State is 1-4 entering this weekend's meet, while Fresno State is 0-3 after their last meet against the Aztecs in San Diego, where many Bulldogs claimed event victories and continued earning lifetime bests.
Hawai?i Rainbow Wahine
The Rainbow Wahine coming off of a tough Big West Shootout last weekend in Irvine, California. Hawai?i travels back to the island to host the Hawaii Senior Championships. The three day event begins on Friday, Nov. 14 and runs through Sunda, Nov. 16.
Idaho Vandals
The UI Swimming and Diving Team left California last Saturday with five dual meet wins at the Big West Shootout, after promising performances by the Vandal freestylers, and divers. Diving in only their second competition, Amanda Morrow, Sara Hansen, and
Leah Schwisow combined for 36 points on the day. The divers’ efforts helped the Vandals past UC-Irvine, Cal-Poly, and Cal-State Northridge. The Vandals will look to build off of their momentum heading into their first home meet of the season against Northern Arizona University. Idaho will host the Lumberjacks on Friday, Nov. 14, at 5 p.m.
Nevada Wolf Pack
The University of Nevada swimming and diving team split its home double dual two weeks ago with Washington State and UC Davis. The Wolf Pack defeated UCD 157-105 but fell 136-126 to WSU. WSU scored a 184-78 victory over UCD to go 2-0 on the day. Nevada’s next competition is a Nike Cup in Long Beach, Calif. Nov. 20-22.
New Mexico State Aggies
In the first road contest of the season, NMSU split a meet in Houston, Texas, defeating Rice, 151-143, and falling to Houston, 152-146 on Nov. 6. NMSU then beat North Texas, 177-123, at the Mean Green Duals, Saturday, Nov. 8 in Denton, Texas. The Aggies fell in a very competitive meet to Colorado State, 160-140, SMU, 205-95, and Arkansas, 216-84. Sophomore Mariesa Cloud led the Aggies with a pair of third-place finishes on both the 1-meter and 3-meter springboard. In the breaststroke events, freshman Maria Spies collected a pair of second-place showings.
Northern Arizona Lumberjacks
The NAU swim and dive team came away with a win and a loss after a double-dual meet at New Mexico on Nov. 1. The Lumberjacks beat the Lobos of New Mexico by a score of 177-123, but lost to BYU 177.5-122.5. NAU is 4-4 overall this season in dual meet competition. The Lumberjacks will continue competition on the road when they travel to Idaho for a dual meet at 6:00 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 14.
San Diego Toreros
San Diego participated in the Big West Shootout last week hosted by UC Irvine. The Toreros faced off against four opponents earning a win over Cal State University Northridge 96-34. They posted losses to Brigham Young University, UNLV, and UC Davis. Freshman Sarah Geerdes had a strong performance on the day. She had a 50 freestyle time of 24.73 for eighth place, a seventh place finish in the 100 freestyle with a time of 53.16, and a seventh place finish in the 200 breaststroke with a 2:29.02 time. The Toreros return to the in a week for the Nike Cup on November 20-22 in Long Beach, California.
San Jose State Spartans
San Jose State won 13 of 16 events, with seven individual victories coming from a trio of true freshmen when the Spartans defeated WAC foe Boise State 197-102 on Nov. 1. It marked SJSU eighth straight win as it improved to 8-1 in dual meets on the season. The Spartans are idle from competition for another week, in order to prepare for the annual Nike Cup, held again in Long Beach, Calif., this year, from Thursday, November 20, through Saturday, November 22.
FRESNO STATE COMPETES IN SWIMMING AND DIVING FOR FIRST TIME IN 5 YEARS ? 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. Jeanne Fleck was chosen to head up the program in the 2008-09 season.
WAC CHAMPIONSHIP RETURNS TO SAN ANTONIO ? The 2009 edition of the WAC Championship returns to Palo Alto Natatorium in San Antonio, Texas. Nevada will look to defend its 2007 and 2008 titles in hopes of capturing its third straight WAC championship. The championship will be held Feb. 25-28, 2009.
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 at 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
WAC Championship Apparel:
Swimming & Diving Championship Apparel will be available online or for purchase at the event. Items available include t-shirts, long sleeve t-shirts, and hooded sweatshirts.
NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP:
Regionals: March 12-14 or 13-15, 2009
Finals: March 19-21, 2009
College Station, Texas
Student Recreation Center Natatorium
Host: Texas A&M