The UIC swimming and diving teams will return to the pool following a long layoff with a two-day Horizon League meet at Cleveland State with IUPUI starting Friday. Wright State will join the meet on Saturday. It will be the Flames' last meet away from home until the Horizon League Championships in late February.
The event will be scored as two separate meets, one on each day. This will give the swimmers a chance to fine tune several races with heats going off on both days. The individual medley, medley relay, and free relay will alternate between 200 and 400 meter races over the two days. Divers will take on both the 1-meter and 3-meter boards on both days of competition.
The Flames last competed before Thanksgiving at Northwestern's TYR Invitational, where the men finished fifth and the women placed sixth. Training continued over the holidays, and culminated with a trip to Florida right before the spring semester began. "Our winter break was very productive," head coach
Tim Loeffler said, "but the kids are ready to swim in a competitive meet and get ready for the home stretch of the season."
Flames to Watch
- Cydney Liebenberg achieved NCAA Zone Championship qualifying scores on both the 1-meter and 3-meter boards at the TYR Invite. Andrew Lewarchick also qualified on the 3-meter board and won the event.
- Sophia Shalabi set a season-best time in the 100 breast last time out.
- Brianna Hines has won the 500 free in every meet this season. She has also won the 1000 free in every meet it has been contested.
- Lexie Joy set three season bests at the TYR Invitational, including the fastest time in the 200 free in the Horizon League this season.
- Joy, Misha Neal, Hines, and Shalabi have won three out of four 400 free relays, and taken second in the fourth.
- Joseph Perez finished the 100 breast in a personal season-low :59.62, and has the fastest 200 breast time on the team this year.
- Max Pohl has been the Flames' best freestyle sprinter on the season, turning in the team's best times in the 50 and 100. He also has posted the fastest times in the 50 and 100 fly.
- Danny Sivak in the backstroke and Eric Sgarbossa in the breaststroke have been two of the Flames' top specialists.
- Nathan Bosse, Tanner Alms, Jacob Cunningham, and Pohl have teamed to claim two first place finishes, one second, and one third in the 400 free relay.
Scouting the Opposition
- Cleveland State's men defeated Green Bay in a Horizon League meet in November, and took first in a 10-team field at the Magnus Cup.
- The Viking women also topped Green Bay, and took fourth out of 15 teams at the Magnus Cup.
- The Vikings have collected two Male Swimmer of the Week and three Male Diver of the Week awards from the Horizon League. Joe Smith owns two of the diving awards.
- Molly McNamara is a three-time Horizon League Female Swimmer of the Week honoree. She holds the conference's top times in the 100 and 200 fly.
- IUPUI hosted a quad meet with Ball State, Xavier, and Indianapolis last weekend. Their men won two matchups, only losing to Indy, and their women earned a win over Ball State.
- Ben Levart is one of the Horizon League's top distance swimmers. He has the top times in the 500, 1000, and 1650 free.
- Olivia Treski in the 1000 free and Rylee Dahlman on the 3-meter board were event winners in last weekend's meet.
- Wright State last swam in mid-November at IUPUI's House of Champions Invitational. Their men placed sixth, and their women were 12th.
- Mitchell Stover has been the Raiders' top performer in the butterfly and breaststroke events.
- Maddison Eckley and Sofia Aledo Carmona each have multiple top times among Raider women swimmers.
The event will begin Friday afternoon at 5:00 Central, and continue Saturday at noon Central. Results are expected to be available on Meet Mobile during the competition.
