Dec. 1, 2011
AKRON, Ohio -
The Illinois State swimming and diving teams both head to Ohio this weekend to compete in two separate competitions. The swimming team will compete in the Zippy Invitational at Akron, while the diving team competes at Miami of Ohio at the Miami University open diving meet.
This is the 12th straight year the Redbird swimmers compete at the Zippy Invite. Preliminary heats start at 9 a.m. on Friday and Saturday, with finals for both days starting at 6 p.m. Prelims for Sunday start at 9 a.m. with the finals scheduled for 4 p.m. The top 24 swimmers from the prelims qualify for finals.
"It is a meet I know the student-athletes and I always look forward to," Head coach Steve Paska said. "It is a good chance to see swimming programs not usually seen in the Midwest. We have emphasized the importance of swimming fast in the morning, and it is something we train the swimmers for all year. If they want to come back and swim in the finals, they will have to be ready to swim hard at 9 a.m. all three days. I think this team is definitely prepared to do so."
Last year the Redbirds finished second in the Invite with 1146 points, coming up short only to Ohio (1562 points). Paska thinks this competition is a great experience to the newcomers of the 2011-12 season.
"I am excited to see how the freshmen respond to this type of meet format," Paska said. "It is the first time we are competing in a championship format meet, and it's great experience to gain now before the Missouri Valley Conference in February."
The Redbirds are coming off a 190-110 loss at a dual meet against the Illini, where freshman Cecilia Holmes won first place in the 1000-yard freestyle with a personal best time (10:25.24). The meet also earned freshman Samantha Schuckles a first place in the 100-yard backstroke (58:89), a season best time for the Hoffman Estates, Ill., native. Freshman Katherine Nelson also had a first place finish, with a season best swim in the 50-yard freestyle (24:43).
While the Redbird swimmers are at Akron, the divers will be in Oxford, Ohio, at the Miami University open diving meet. The competition starts Thursday with the platform event, but the Redbirds will not compete until Friday in the 3-meter board and Saturday in the 1-meter board. Prelims start at 2 p.m. Eastern time, with finals for both days scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
This will be the first year the Illinois State divers compete at Miami of Ohio. Head diving coach Phil Hoffmann is thrilled to compete against top level diving teams, including MVC rival Southern Illinois.
"It is great experience for the divers to be able to see a conference team before the Missouri Valley Conference meet," Hoffmann said. "It is not usual that we would get an opportunity like this, and I believe it will really help prepare our divers."
Senior diver Brittany Tazzioli is coming off an incredible performance on the 1-meter board (271.27) at the previous dual meet that qualified her for the NCAA diving regionals in March.
Live results for the Zippy Invitational can be found at
http://www.wagonwheelchallenge.com/swimstats/.
Live streaming from the Zippy Invitational can be found at
http://mac-sports.com/Schools/Akron/LiveStreaming.aspx.
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