NORMAL, Ill. – The Illinois State swimming and diving team will head to St. Louis Friday to compete in a dual meet against the Washington-St. Louis Bears. The meet begins at 6 p.m.
Friday will mark the Redbirds' first dual meet of the spring semester. Head coach Steve Paska is looking forward to getting back into regular-season competition.
"The Redbirds are looking forward to competing once again. For some of the girls, it has been awhile since their last competition," Paska said. "What is peaking my curiosity is seeing where these young ladies are in terms of their racing ability and competitiveness, because we only have a little over 30 days until the conference meet.
"Coach (Brad) Shively has done a marvelous job with his team. Finishing in sixth place at the NCAA Division III National Championship last year, that speaks for itself. The Bears are a talented group of swimmers and divers."
Head diving coach Phil Hoffmann is excited about seeing where his girls are after a successful training trip in Puerto Rico.
"Our girls had a great training trip in Puerto Rico, one of the best I have had in my eight years here," Hoffmann said. "They trained very hard and I am looking forward to seeing them perform.
"My focus is on (the Missouri Valley Conference Championship) February in Carbondale, so each one of these meets is a chance to see where we are, and what we need to improve and clean up before we get there. I think a meet this soon after a training trip is perfect for us and I look forward to having the meet, as well as being on the road."
Next weekend will be a busy one for the Redbirds, as they host Nebraska-Omaha on Jan. 24 at 12 p.m. The team will then hit the road for the Butler Invitational on Jan. 25.
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