Swimming and Diving Preps for Season Opener
9/28/2009 12:00:00 AM | Swimming & Diving
Sept. 28, 2009
Houston - The University of Houston swimming and diving team will kick off the 2009-10 season with a Timed Trial Season Opener on Sept. 30 at 3 p.m. The intrasquad scrimmage will take place at the Campus Recreation and Wellness Center Natatorium, the Cougars home pool.
The meet is free and open to the public.
The meet will consist of five individual events with one relay. All swimmers will swim no more than three individual events, while the diving team will have an exhibition event at the halfway point of the meet. There will be a 10-minute break following each event.
"The coaching staff is really excited for the start of the season," head coach Mark Taylor said. "This will be a great opportunity for us to test the freshman and brush the dust off of our returners to get ready for the Phill Hansel duals."
The schedule of events includes:
200-yard Freestyle
100-yard Butterfly
100-yard Backstroke
Diving Event
100-yard Breaststroke
200-yard IM
3X100-yard Freestyle Relay
Following the opener, Houston will take the next week and a half off before hosting the Phill Hansel Duals Weekend on Oct. 9-10.
As the Cougars prep for the open of the season below is a preview of what lies ahead in 2009-10.
The bar was raised last season and the 2009-10 squad has a lot to live up to. However, with an abundance of talent on the University of Houston swimming and diving team it won't be hard to reach and even surpass the success from a year ago. After finishing 17th at the NCAA Championships last season, Houston welcomes five newcomers to the team, while returning 11 letterwinners.
"We really feel like we are going to have a lot of improvement this year as a team," head coach Mark Taylor said. "The team is closer and more excited because they realized some of the goals they set (last year) and as a team they have been getting together to set team goals and those goals that they are setting are very high."
Houston will look to the guidance of seniors Anastasia Pozdniakova and Jessica Shamburger.
Pozdniakova returns for her senior campaign after winning the 1-meter competition at the NCAA Championships, while finishing as the runner-up in the 3-meter event. At the Conference USA Championships, Pozdniakova swept all three diving events, marking the first time a diver had accomplished that feat since 2006, on her way to being named the C-USA Diver of the Year.
Shamburger will be looked to guide the swimming squad that must replace Sasha Schwendenwein and Andrea Pa'lmai, two seniors from last season's team. Shamburger performed strong at the C-USA Championships, recording three personal bests at the annual meet. She also finished in the top 10 in all three events she competed in.
When Houston adds all those pieces together it looks to be another exciting year for Cougar swimming and diving.
"The girls took care of business over the summer and they are in better shape than they have ever been and that's what makes the coaching staff so excited," Taylor said.
FREESTYLE
Returning for her sophomore season, Kim Eeson will guide the Cougars in the freestyle events.
A native of Harare, Zimbabwe, Eeson took home two second place finishes in the 500 and 1,650-yard freestyles at the Conference USA Championships, setting two personal bests. She also turned in a top five finish in the 200-yard freestyle.
Eeson also spent the summer training in preparation for the FINA World Championships, where she swam in five events.
"Kim is doing a great job as a leader and she will get closer to making the NCAA meet this year if she doesn't outright make it," Taylor said.
Rachel Holcomb is also in her second year of competition for the Cougar swim team. The El Paso, Texas, native set three personal records at the C-USA Championships in the 200, 500 and 1,650-yard freestyle events.
Newcomers, Christine Salinas and Haley Weathers will provide back-up in the freestyle events. Salinas comes to Houston from Magnolia, Texas, where she was a member of the district and regional champion swim team. Weathers transferred to UH after spending a year at Sam Houston State.
Also excepted to make a contribution in the freestyle events are Kimmy Ballo, Olga Bordatcheva, Beccy Hillis, Natalie Newcomb, Holli Pisarski and Jessica Shamburger.
BREASTSTROKE
After strong freshman seasons, Beccy Hillis and Olga Bordatcheva return to lead in the backstroke. Natalie Newcomb will also provide speed.
Hillis finished strong last season, including a strong showing at the C-USA Championships. She set the school record in the 200-yard breaststroke with her fourth place finish at the championship meet. Hillis also holds the second fastest time in the 100-yard breaststroke.
"Beccy is such an outstanding swimmer and she brings a lot to the team," Taylor said. "She is a very fast swimmer and a hard worker."
Bordatcheva looks to make an impact in 2009-10, after being hampered for much of last season as the result of a leg injury. In addition, Newcomb is coming off a strong off season and after proving to be a strong utility swimmer a year ago, she will be expected to step up in her second season.
"Natalie has improved by leaps and bounds this year," Taylor said. "She has gone from being a good utility swimmer to looking like she is going to step up and move up in scoring this year."
We are thrilled to have her back this year in such great shape. She is very hungry to have success."
Reka Kovacs, Holli Pisarski and Catherine Finley will have the expertise of the three veterans to guide them in their first season at UH.
Kovacs has proven to be a strong swimmer out of Budapest, Hungary. She took home a silver medal at the Hungarian Long Course Championships. Pisarski will be looked upon to lead in the sprint breaststroke events, something Taylor feels the team has been lacking the last few years.
Houston willl have a bit of history on its side when Finley jumps into the pool for the first time as a Cougar. Her mother, Helena, was a former Houston swimmer and Finley is also a member of the Honors College.
BACKSTROKE
Jessica Shamburger and Rachel Johnson will emerge as the top returners in backstroke this season.
Shamburger currently holds a top 10 time in each of the backstroke events in the Cougar record books. She is also the lone senior swimmer on the squad. Shamburger returns for her final season, determned and focused on reaching her full potential.
"Jessica has done an outstanding job and she is really focused on making the NCAA meet this year and she is doing everything that we are showing her to prepare for that," Taylor said.
Johnson, after a strong showing at the C-USA Championship, will provide back-up to Shamburger in the backstroke events.
Kimmy Ballo, joins the talented duo from Round Rock, Texas, where she set the team record in the 100-yard backstroke and as a member of the 200-yard medley relay.
BUTTERFLY
Andrea Kells will be the lone competitor in the butterfly events this season. In addition to her swimming duties, Kells will also serve as one of the team captains.
Kells registered three top 10 finishes last season at the C-USA Championships and her C-USA time in the 100-yard butterfly ranks as the eighth fastest time in school history.
"Andrea is doing better now than she has the whole time that she has been at Houston," Taylor said. "With the leadership and example that she is setting she is going to see big drops (in her times) this season."
INDIVIDUAL MEDLEY
With the loss of Andrea Pa'lmai at the conclusion of the 2008-09 season, the Cougars will have huge void to fill this season in the IM events. Expected to fill that void is Rachel Johnson and newcomer Reka Kovacs. Beccy Hillis will also make a significant contribution.
Johnson was not primarily an IM swimmer last season, but she recorded a personal best in the 200-yard IM at the C-USA Championships.
Hillis swam all three IM events a year ago, finishing fifth at the C-USA Championships with a personal best in the 400-yard IM. Also, in addition to swimming the breaststroke events, Kovacs will also swim the IM events in her freshman season.
DIVING
Once again the Cougar diving team will not be lacking in talent when the season opens. Leading the way in her senior season will be Anastasia Pozdniakova.
Pozdniakova is the reigning NCAA Champion in the 1-meter competition and the runner-up in the 3-meter event. Pozdniakova also swept the diving events at the C-USA Championship for the first time since 2006, becoming the C-USA Diver of the Meet and the C-USA Diver of the Year.
Returning for her junior season is Lacey Truelove. Truelove recorded 10 second place finishes last season to help Houston take the 1-2 punch in 10 diving events last season. She also spent the summer competing at the 2009 Canadian National Championships and the 2009-10 World University Games.
After being named as the C-USA Freshman Diver of the Year, Jessalyn Almond will improve on an impressive freshman season. A season ago, Almond was the only freshman to score in all three diving events at the C-USA Championships. She claimed Houston's third-straight Freshman Diver of the Year distinction and seventh overall for the program.
Guiding the Cougar divers, in her 21st season, is the 2009 NCAA Coach of the Year, Jane Figuieredo.
" We are extremely excited about this season," Figuieredo said. "We have Anastasia, our NCAA Champion, returning for her senior year with our goal being to repeat and the return of Lacey Truelove, who scored at the NCAA meet her freshman year. Last season's, Freshman of the Year, Jessalyn Almond, looks to have a great year and score at this year's championships."
We have a tremendous opportunity this year for all three divers to score and do well at this years NCAA Championships. We will always continue to improve and for the divers to represent our program with excellence."
SCHEDULE
Another tough schedule awaits the Cougars during the 2009-10 season. They will compete against some of the nation's best teams, in addition to hosting the Phill Hansel Duals Weekend and the Cougar Classic.
"To be the best you have to compete against the best and I know it's an often used adage but it fits perfectly well with our schedule this year," Taylor said. "We have got a great deal of competition in dual meets this year, but we also open with a high powered invitational where a lot of teams will try to hit NCAA marks at our recreation center."
The year will open on Sept. 30 with the annual Red & White team, an intrasquad scrimmage that serves as a kickoff to the year ahead. The Cougars will then take a week of to prepare of the Phill Hansel Duals Weekend. Participants at the dual include, Rice and Florida International, both competed at the meet last season.
Houston closes out the month of October on the road, traveling to Durham, N.C., for duals against Duke and Georgia Tech (Oct. 30) and then a Halloween dual against UNC-Wilmington and Emory waits the Cougars. UH is 1-0 all-time against Emory, while competing against the remaining schools for the first time in program history.
The Cougars return to their home pool on Nov. 20-22 for the Cougar Classic Fall Invitational, swimming against SMU, LSU, UNLV, Texas A&M, Arkansas, Tulane, Kansas, and New Mexico.
Following the new year, UH will then travel north for a dual against North Texas (Jan. 22) and SMU (Jan. 23), before closing out the month at the Campus Recreation and Wellness Center against Rice, LSU and Tulane on Jan. 29-30. The Cougars will also host a dual against Texas A&M on Feb. 5 before closing out the regular season against Texas for the Second Annual Sprint for the Cure Meet to raise cancer awareness.
For the sixth consecutive year, Houston will host the annual Conference USA Championship on Feb. 24-27. The 2010 NCAA Championship is scheduled for March 18-20 in Purdue, Ind.
"We have a battle on our hands but I think it is going to be a fun battle," Taylor said.
Players Mentioned
