University of Houston
LSU
Swimming and Diving Falls to LSU
1/17/2003 12:00:00 AM | Swimming & Diving
Jan. 17, 2003
HOUSTON - The University of Houston swimming and diving program wrapped up its 2002-03 home season Friday afternoon with a 131-93 loss to LSU at the UH Natatorium.
With the loss, the Cougar dropped to 3-4 in dual meets this season.
In the eight individual swimming events, both teams split first-place finishes with four apiece. However, the Tigers took top honors in both relay events and captured second place in seven individual events to win the meet.
Senior diver Yulia Pakhalina swept both diving events to lead the Cougar scoring attack. Three days after being named Conference USA Diver of the Week for the eighth time in her career, Pakhalina posted the 53rd and 54th wins of her collegiate career in 56 outings.
The Penza, Russia, native scored 377.03 points on the 3-meter springboard to record her 27th consecutive win in that event. She followed that later in the meet with a score of 337.20 points to take top honors on the 1-meter board.
Redshirt freshman Azul Almazan finished second on the 3-meter board with 302.48 points and joined Pakhalina as the only divers to score more than 300.00 points in any diving event.
Junior Lucile Turpin was the first swimming winner of the day for the Cougars, placing first in the 500-yard freestyle with a time of 2:09.79. That time shaved more than three seconds off the Cougars' previous season-best mark in that event.
Senior Falon Hopkins followed that with a first-place time of 24.76 in the 50-yard freestyle and took top honors in the 100-yard butterfly.
Sophomore Kristin Bay captured first place in the 100-yard backstroke with a time of 1:00.79, edging LSU's Megan Wolters by only 1/100th of a second.
Seniors Pakhalina, Hopkins, Jessica Blake and Veronica Smith were honored in pre-meet ceremonies.
Besides concluding their 2003 home season, the Cougars also said goodbye to their home facility. Beginning next fall, the UH swimming and diving program will compete at the new, $54 million Campus Recreation and Wellness Center, which is scheduled to open this spring.
The Cougars return to action at 7 p.m., Friday, Jan. 24, as they face C-USA rival TCU in Dallas, Texas, in an NCAA dual meet. Following that meet, UH will have only three more dual meets and the C-USA and NCAA postseason remaining on their schedule.
