Nov. 6, 2014
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The University of Notre Dame men’s swimming and diving team is set to host two Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) foes Friday and Saturday, Nov. 7 and 8 for a double-dual showdown at Rolfs Aquatic Center. The meet kicks off Friday evening at 5 p.m. and will resume Saturday morning at 10 a.m.
“We are very excited to host the defending ACC champion Hokies and our former BIG EAST rival Pittsburgh this weekend,” Irish head coach Matt Tallman states. “Both teams will bring a lot of talent, ad we will need to fix our easily correctable mistakes from the Purdue meet if we want to come out with victories over either opponent.”
The Irish are 1-1 heading into the showdown with the Panthers and the Hokies, having won the Dennis Stark Relays versus Olivet Nazarene but stumbling against Purdue last weekend.
Against Purdue, the Irish logged some of their fastest times for the month of November in comparison to seasons past. Notable swimmers for the Irish include backstroke specialist Bogac Ayhan – who led the 200 medley relay team to a win in the first event of the meet (1:30.72) before winning the 100 back with his 50.16 mark – and former NCAA entrants Cameron Miller and John Williamson. Miller placed second in the 100 breaststroke (55.53) while Williamson earned points for the Irish with his first-place victory in the 200 fly (1:48.26), an event he currently holds the school record in.
While much has been said of Tallman’s 14-man senior class, his nine-man freshman rotation has so far complemented their Irish teammates fairly well early in the season. Freestyler Justin Plaschka came in second in the 50 free (21.05) and took third in the 100 free (46.72) before leading the A-team to second place in the 400 free relay (3:04.74). Frenchman Benjamin Jany won the 500 free in his first outing with the Irish, clocking in at 4:35.66, while New Jersey native Robert Whitacre took third in the 100 back (50.60) and participated on several relay teams.
In the diving competition, seniors Nick Nemetz and Ted Wagner are joined by sophomores Joseph Coumos and James Lichtenstein and freshman Peter Myers. Coumos, the lone Irish diver at NCAAs in 2014, took second in the 1-meter event and will look to lead the Irish again this weekend. Nemetz, a former BIG EAST Diver of the Year, edged Coumos for third place in the 3-meter competition (363.60), while Lichtenstein, Myers and Wagner finished sixth, seventh and eighth respectively.
Concerning his expectations for the meet this weekend, Tallman says, “Racing well in dual meets has a lot to do with having the right mindset. If the guys can get out of the pool every time knowing that everything they did was done with purpose, and executed correctly, then the score will take care of itself.”
The double-dual meet is the second of three meets the Irish have in November, as they travel to Michigan State on Nov. 14.
For full results from this weekend’s meet, follow the Live Stats links located above, or download Meet Mobile on your phone/mobile device, or check out the team’s Twitter and Facebook pages for up-to-the-minute updates.
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