Notre Dame, Ind. — The No. 18 (M) and No. 23 (W) Irish swimming and diving team will travel to West Lafayette, Indiana, to take on Purdue in Notre Dame’s second road meet of the season. The Irish come off a week’s rest to face the in-state rival Boilermakers.
Last Time
Notre Dame handily beat Purdue on both the men’s and women’s sides, the women winning 190-110 and the men emerging victorious, 168-132. The two Irish teams combined for 21 first-place finishes, including a record six-straight for the men. The streak included the 200 fly, 50 free, 100 free, 200 back, 200 breast and 500 free, with Tabhan Afrik winning the 50 and 100 free in back-to-back events. Irish swimmers and divers totaled 56 top-three individual finishes.
The Meet Deets
Notre Dame at Purdue
Date: October 25, 2019
Time: 5 p.m. ET
Location: Morgan J. Burke Aquatic Center (Purdue)
Live timing: http://sidearmstats.com/purdue/swimming/index.htm and Meet Mobile
Head Coach Mike Litzinger’s scouting report: “Purdue is very well-coached on both sides. Their men and women offer different challenges, and their diving is world class. I anticipate a very highly-competitive contest.”
Notre Dame comes off a season-opening win over ACC foe Florida State, with the men and women winning soundly. The Irish then traveled to Lexington, Kentucky, where they battled two talented squads from Kentucky and Indiana. While Notre Dame fell to both teams, the Irish demonstrated impressive individual finishes from consistent veterans including Zach Yeadon, Abbie Dolan and Austin Flaute, as well as exciting splashes made by newcomers, such as freshman Coleen Gillilan.
Now on academic fall break, an extra week off from meets has given the Irish time to focus on fundamentals.
“We are using this week as a mini-training camp and are truly putting in some great work,” Litzinger explained. “Being on fall break will allow us to continue working on our aerobic capacity. Credit goes to our athletes for continuing to work hard.”
In the two weeks of competition for the Irish, Notre Dame athletes have thrice been named ACC Swimmer or Divers of the Week. Yeadon, Flaute and Kelly Straub received the honors after their performances against the Seminoles.
Friday’s matchup with Purdue will provide Notre Dame with another opportunity to capitalize on strengths and build up more aspects of the Irish attack heading into the winter.
“Our strength certainly lies in distance free and butterfly,” Litzinger noted. “However, I’ll be looking at our relay swims to be improved to help the effort.”
The meet begins Friday at 5 p.m. ET. Live timing will be available at the links above and on the Meet Mobile app.