Utah Swim and Dive Looks to Jump Over Rebels on Friday
(Photo by Matt Gubler | Daily Utah Chronicle)
October 29, 2019
After failing to make a splash against the Arizona State Sun Devils, both the University of Utah men’s and women’s swim and dive teams look to redirect their seasons this Friday against UNLV.
Looking back to their last competition against the Sun Devils, Utah had a few victories throughout the day. The first winner in an individual event was Sarah Lott in the 100 back. Lott performed at a very high level, almost matching her top time so far this season (55.02). Other winners for the Utes included Leyre Casarin, who captured the 100 free with a time of 51.75. Audrey Reimer took the 200 back, sporting a time of 2:00.34. Charity Pittard finished off the pool for the ladies with a win in the 200 IM.
As for the gentlemen, Utah had solid showings. Rahiti De Vos claimed the spot of top performer for the Utes. He won the 500 free (4:34.79) and was second in the 1000 (9:33.71). Other individual winners for the men included Andrew Britton with the 100 breast (56.73) and Brody Lewis, who finished the 200 breast in 2:07.45.
Over on the boards, Lizzy DeCecco continued a string of impressive performances this year by taking third. Emma Ruchala came in second in the 1m for the Utes with a score of 231.83. Luke McDivitt made a statement on the 3m when he beat reigning Pac-12 Platform Champion and member of the Egyptian Olympic Team, Youssef Selim. McDivitt’s win over Selim was extra sweet as it was also his first personal victory of his collegiate career. Tony Chen took second for the Utes in the 1m, finishing with a score of 298.65.
“I think we rebounded nicely after a rough start,” said Head Coach Joe Dykstra to Utah Athletics after the event. “I challenged them at the break to improve and credit to the team, they did. We had some hard, close races, and that competitive experience will help us moving forward.”
Head dive coach Richard Marshner commented on his team as well.
“It is still early, but we are making the progress that we need to,” said Head Diving Coach Richard Marschner. “We are trying to polish things up as we go forward.”
While many personal victories came out of last weekend, the Utes still eventually fell short. This made the women’s record 1-2 and the men’s 0-3. Looking forward, Utah must come together as a team and have a stronger showing.
The Ute men will need to be in top form, as UNLV’s Cameron Castron, who won the WAC Swimmer of the Week, will be competing against them. UNLV has had strong showings against both the Nevada Wolfpack and CSU Bakersfield.
Definite keys to success include both McDivitt and Lott once again being present and sweeping their competition. Lott and McDivitt will also need their surrounding teammates to come ready to play. If the Utes perform to what they have hinted they are capable of doing, Friday’s competition will be very competitive indeed.
