University of Houston Athletics
Houston Set to Open 2016 at No. 24 Arkansas
1/21/2016 12:00:00 AM | Swimming & Diving
HOUSTON - The University of Houston Swimming & Diving team open their spring season on the road in Fayetteville, Ark at the Arkansas Quad Meet Jan. 22 & 23. The Cougars will compete in the two-day meet against No. 24 Arkansas, Vanderbilt and Clemson at the University of Arkansas Natatorium.
"I'm excited for us to get back to racing, ," said head coach Ryan Wochomurka. "It's been four weeks since we've raced and it's something in training that we have been preparing for as we switch from a more race preparation mode into championship season form."
The two-day meet begins Friday at 5 p.m. with Saturday's session will beginning at 10 a.m. The swimming team will compete against Arkansas and Vanderbilt, while the diving team will face Arkansas and Clemson.
"It's challenging to go on the road and face two SEC opponents. This will be a good challenge for us," Wochomurka said. "More importantly it will be an opportunity for us to hone skills and it's ultimately a preparation for us for the conference meet in four weeks."
Friday's Events:
200 Freestyle Relay, 1000 Freestyle, 200 Freestyle, 100 Backstroke, 100 Breaststroke, 200 Butterfly, 50 Freestyle, 1 Meter Dive, 200 IM, 400 Medley Relay
Saturday's Events:
200 Medley Relay, 400 IM, 100 Freestyle, 200 Backstroke, 100 Butterfly, 500 Freestyle, 3 Meter Dive, 200 Breaststroke, 400 Freestyle Relay
"It certainly gives an assessment but to us it's less about facing a ranked opponent and more about continuing our preparation," said Wochomurka. "It's not something we haven't done before, facing a ranked opponent. We took some ranked opponents down close to the wire this fall. This is an opportunity for us to race in a hostile SEC environment, but it's more about our preparation for the next four weeks."
The Houston swimmers last competed at the Incarnate Word Christmas Invitational where the team finished third overall. Sophomore Caitlin Horner was the top point earner for the Cougars, concluding the three-day invite with 81 points and three podium finishes. Senior Maya Owens captured a first place finish in the 100-yard butterfly.
UP NEXT
The Cougars will host LSU, Rice and Tulane for their final meet of the regular season, Jan. 29 & 30 at the Campus Recreation and Wellness Center. The Cougars will honor five seniors, swimmers Doroteja Bednjanec, Holly Criscuolo, Taylor Derevyanik, Maya Owens and diver Danielle Shedd, Saturday Jan. 30.
COUGARS TO HOST AMERICAN CHAMPIONSHIP
Houston will host the American Athletic Conference Championships for the first time as the best swimmers and divers in the league visit the CRWC from Feb. 17-20, 2016. Following the conference meet, the Cougars will look to close the season at the NCAA Championships, to be held March 17-19, 2016 in Atlanta.
FOLLOW THE COUGARS!
Fans can keep up with the latest in University of Houston Cougar athletics by following us on Facebook (Facebook.com/HoustonAthletics), Twitter (@UHCougars), Instagram (houstoncougars) and YouTube.com (Youtube.com/UHAthletics). In addition, the swimming & diving team has established its own official Facebook (Facebook.com/HoustonCougarSwimmingDiving) and Twitter pages (@UHCougarSwim), which provide regular updates on the team and live results during home meets.
--UHCougars.com--
Players Mentioned
