Dec. 10, 2013
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – University of Notre Dame junior swimmer Zach Stephens and freshman diver Joe Coumos claimed Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Male Swimmer and Diver of the Week accolades after strong performances at last weekend’s Hawkeye Invitational, the league announced Tuesday.
Stephens earned his first career conference swimmer of the week honor, and became the second Irish swimmer to earn top ACC weekly recognition this season, joining senior Frank Dyer (Nov. 19). Coumos added his second diver of the week citation in 2013-14 after sharing his earlier ACC award in the same week with Dyer.
Stephens was one of the standouts on the swimming side for Notre Dame at the Hawkeye Invitational, helping lead the Irish to a dominant win over a field that included No. 23 Iowa. The Bloomsburg, Pa., native set a program-record with a preliminary swim of 1:44.34 in the 200 IM last Friday, ultimately sharing the race victory with a 1:46.48 final effort. Stephens added wins in the 100 breast, swimming a Notre Dame season-best 53.24 in the ‘A’ final, and as a member of the 200 free and 200 medley relay (team-record 1:26.11) and the 400 free and 400 medley relay (team-record 3:11.15) squads, earning a total of five NCAA B-cut times and two relay provisional times during the invitational.
A 2013 All-American and one of a record Irish nine swimmers who qualified for last season’s NCAA Championships, Stephens is currently ranked in the top-15 nationally in the 100 breast, 200 breast and 200 IM.
Coumos continued his sensational rookie season with three top-four finishes at the Hawkeye Invitational, opening the competition with a team season-best and career-high 398.20 points off the 3-meter board. The effort was the Tomball, Texas, native’s fifth score in the 3-meter event this season that surpassed the 350-point total, the most on the Notre Dame roster. Coumos added a runner-up finish in the 1-meter dive (333.50 points) and a fourth-place result in his first career appearance in the platform event (290.60 points).
After its annual winter training trip to Puerto Rico in early January, Notre Dame resumes its 2013-14 dual meet schedule on Jan. 11 at Northwestern.
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