Falcons Host BYU and Utah in Conference Dual Meets
1/20/2010 12:00:00 AM | Women's Swimming and Diving
Jan. 20, 2010
The Air Force men's and women's swimming and diving teams are back at home this week for a pair of conference dual meets. First, the Falcons host BYU on Thursday, Jan. 21 at 6:00 p.m., while welcoming Utah to the Cadet Natatorium on Saturday, Jan. 23 at 1:00 p.m.
Last Time Out...
Facing conference rival UNLV on the road last weekend, the Air Force men's and women's swimming and diving teams were swept by the Rebels. The men fell to 23rd-ranked UNLV, 164-129, while the women dropped a 208-80 decision to the Lady Rebels.
Senior Kyle Van Valkenburg swept the diving events for the Falcon men, while Josh Hammervold (100 breast) and Benjamin Gunn (200 back) also posted wins. On the women's side, four Air Force swimmers placed in the top three of their respective events (Caitlin Teresky, 1650 free; Becky Gleason, 200 fly; Katrina Castellanos, 200 breast; Haley Holcombe, 100 fly), while senior diver Chelsea Tompkins posted season-best marks to finish third in both springboard events.
Scouting the Falcon Men...
The Air Force men's swimming and diving team enters this weekend with a 1-3 overall dual record and 0-2 mark in the Mountain West Conference.
Eight different Air Force men's swimmers rank in the top five in the Mountain West Conference in their respective events, led by junior Benjamin Gunn, who holds the league's fastest times in the 100 and 200 backstroke and 200 IM, while ranking fourth in the 100 butterfly. Meanwhile, junior Tom Hansen leads the conference in the 400 IM, while ranking third in the 200 back and fourth in the 500 free.
Senior Sean O'Keefe is the second-fastest in the MWC in the 500 free, 1000 free and 1650 free, while holding the fifth-fastest mark in the 200 free. Sophomore Corydon Butler ranks third in both the 500 and 1650 freestyle events, while freshman Jon Jones is third in the 200 free. Junior Josh Hammervold ranks among the top five in three different events, the 200 IM (third), 200 breast (fourth) and 100 breast (fifth), while also ranking among the league's top five is freshman Mark Hansen in the 400 IM (third) and junior Eric Robinson in the 200 fly (fourth).
Scouting the Falcon Women...
The Air Force women's swimming and diving team enters this weekend with a 2-6 overall dual record and an 0-5 ledger in the MWC.
Six women's swimmers rank in the top 25 in the Mountain West Conference in their respective events, led by freshman Katrina Castellanos, who is 19th in the 200 breaststroke. Cassie Fletcher and Rachel Roberts are ranked 23rd in the 100 free and 1650 free, respectively, while Haley Holcombe holds the league's 25th-fastest mark in the 400 IM. In addition, Kaeli Kluesner (200 back) and Becky Gleason (400 IM) are ranked 25th in their respective events.
Scouting the Cougars...
The BYU men enter this week's competition with a 2-2 dual record and 0-2 mark in the Mountain West Conference, while the women are undefeated at 8-0 and 5-0 in the MWC.
Among the top performers for the BYU men are Hayden Palmer, who owns the second-fastest time in the conference in the 400 IM, and John Kendrick, who is ranked in the top five in both the 200 freestyle and 500 freestyle. In addition, Vytenis Slenys has posted the league's fourth-best mark in the 200 IM.
Leading the women is Rachel Grant, who holds the league's fastest mark in both the 200 fly and 400 IM, while ranking second in the 200 IM and third in the 100 fly. Natasha Menezes ranks in the top five in the conference in the 200, 500, 1000 and 1650 freestyle events, while Candice Smith (100/200 back), Sara Baldwin (100 breast/200 IM), Kirsty Ferrell (100 free/100 fly) and Michelle Menezes (1000 free) all rank among the top five in their respective events.
Scouting the Utes...
The Utah men currently hold a 2-3 overall record and 0-2 conference mark, while the women are 6-4 overall and 3-2 in the MWC. The Utes will visit Wyoming on Friday before facing Air Force this weekend.
Major Robinson, who has the MWC's fourth-fastest time in the 200 backstroke, leads five Utah men who are ranked in the top five in the conference. Bryan Michaels (1650 free), John Baque (200 breast), Karson Applin (100 fly) and Eric Bonicelli (200 fly, 400 IM) all rank fifth in their respective events.
On the women's side, Hannah Caron leads the MWC in the 100 butterfly and is ranked fourth in both the 100 free and 200 IM. In addition, Natalie Edge (50 free) and Maiya Otsuka (200 breast) are also ranked in the top five in their respective events.
Up Next...
The Falcon swimmers are off next weekend, while the divers will host the annual Air Force Diving Invitational, Jan. 29-30. Meanwhile, the entire team wraps up the 2009-10 dual slate on Feb. 6 with a home meet versus Wyoming.
