Oct. 23, 2008
NORMAL, Ill. -
The Illinois State swimming and diving team will face two conference opponents this weekend as the Redbirds travel to Evansville, Ind., Friday night to compete in a double dual-meet against Evansville and Missouri State. The Redbirds will hope to continue their success as they head in to the double dual meet with a 3-0 record.
This marks the fifth-consecutive weekend of events for the Redbirds, and head coach Steve Paska feels the team is ready to compete this weekend.
"One thing I'm emphasizing is definitely the idea that once again we have to get up and race and racing is what it is all about this weekend," Paska said. "It's a matter of being ready to compete and the girls have been ready to do that, week in and week out since we began this five-week stretch. I know they are ready to challenge themselves and compete against two solid swim programs. I am looking forward to seeing how they respond to the challenge of competing against two Missouri Valley Conference teams."
The Redbirds will face both Evansville and Missouri State at the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Championships in February and Paska feels this meet will be a good indicator as to how the girls fit amongst conference competitors.
"It's going to be an exciting meet for the student-athletes because we get to see them now in October, and we will get to compete against the same student-athletes again in February at MVC Championships," Paska said. "I think it will give us an early-season idea of where we stand. I know the team is excited to swim against conference opponents."
After qualifying for the NCAA Zone C Diving Regionals last weekend, junior Katelyn Prorok will lead the team on the diving boards this weekend. Head diving coach Phil Hoffmann is looking forward to the competition the divers will face this weekend.
"We will be seeing all but one of the Missouri Valley Conference divers in competition on Friday," Hoffmann said. "I look forward to giving a benchmark on where the girls are and seeing how they respond. I also look forward to seeing how Katelyn performs after qualifying for zones. I want her to continue her performance from last week and to use it as a building block for the rest of the year."
The Illinois State diving team's upcoming competition at the UIC Diving Invitational, originally scheduled for Sunday at 10 a.m., has been cancelled due to a coaching change at UIC.
