The U swimmers probably didn’t sleep in as much as the average student over the Winter Break. They were busy training in Colorado Springs, Colo.
At the Air Force Invitational, the U swim team got a chance to train and compete at the Olympic Training Facility. Although the competitions did not count toward the final regular season standing, Ute head coach Mike Litzinger was very pleased with his team’s performance.
Daniel Godfrey and Courtney McKinney led the Utes in the men’s and women’s pentathlons.
The Invitational consisted of training and a pentathlon meet, where each swimmer swam five events.
Following the Invitational, the Utes were able to take five days off to rest and recuperate.
Now, the Utes prepare for another meet with a PAC-10 team. This time, the Utes head to Seattle for a meet with the Washington Huskies.
“This will be a very interesting meet because we recruit against them a lot,” Litzinger said. “Washington is also in the process of rebuilding their program. Both our men’s and women’s teams are pretty even [with Washington].”
It will also provide the Utes not only with a chance to see other swimming schools not in the Mountain West Conference, but also a time to prepare them for the upcoming conference competition that begins next week. “It’s pretty much a good practice run for us?but every meet is just as competitive as the next.”
That meet, which has been changed on the original schedule from Jan. 11 to Jan. 12, will be a swimmers-only event, as Washington does not have a diving team. Litzinger is disappointed that his divers will not be able to compete, but he knows that will not lower the level of competition. “We’re going to be hampered on that end of things, but I think it’s going to be a very competitive meet,” he said.
The next home meet for the U will be on Jan. 18 against New Mexico.