Aquatics heads to MWC Championships

The U swimming and diving team heads to Oklahoma City this week to compete in the 2008 MWC Championships. The competition begins today and runs through Saturday.

A number of Utah swimmers, particularly on the women’s side, have a great chance at qualifying for the NCAA championships at the meet. Shannon McQueen, Jennifer Fredsall and a solid 400-free relay team are all expected to finish near the top of the conference and move on to the next level.

On the men’s side, Garret Beaman and the 800-free relay team have also been strong this season and could qualify for the NCAA championships.

On both the men’s and women’s fronts, BYU and UNLV are the frontrunners for the conference crown. Utah lost to each of these teams in the dual meet this season.

“We have put our focus on this weekend from the beginning and put the pressure on our athletes to rise to the occasion,” Utah head coach Greg Winslow said. “We are looking to it and we feel confident that we can compete with anyone in the conference.”

Cody Brunner

U women’s track heads to Air Force for MWC Indoor Championship

The Utah women’s track and field team will face its biggest test of the season this week as the athletes travel to Colorado Springs, Colo., for the Mountain West Conference Indoor Championships.

For the Utes, it all comes down to this, as the winners from each event will compete in the NCAA Indoor Championships in two weeks.

The team will be led by Josefin Berg and Haley McAllister, both of whom had first-place finishes at the Wildcat Indoor Open last week.

Seniors Shayla Houlihan, Sarah McFee and Mandie Rowell are also expected to come away with strong performances in their final year of competition.

The team will attempt to best its sixth overall finish last year, where the Utes broke or tied six school records.

The first day of the MWC Indoor Championships is Thursday.

James Boehly