Feb. 20, 2002
EVANSTON, Ill. - Northwestern swimming and diving returns to Ann Arbor, Mich., this week to compete in the newly expanded, four-day Big Ten Conference Championships hosted by Michigan, last year's top finisher.
The Wildcats head into the competition ranked 16th in the nation. They are one of six Big Ten squads in the top 25. Penn State leads the pack at No. 14, followed by NU (16), Wisconsin (17), Michigan (18), Indiana (19) and Purdue (21). Iowa and Minnesota each received votes but did not make it into the final Top 25.
The 'Cats tied for fourth at the 2001 Championships in Bloomington, Ind. Michigan won the title for the 17th time in the program's history. At the meet, graduate Tashy Bohm took home her third consecutive title in the 200 backstroke while sophomore Vicky West (Redlands, Calif./Redlands) picked up her first conference crown with a school-record time of 16:17.20 in the 1,650 freestyle.
NU went 2-2-1 in conference duals this season, defeating then-No. 24 Minnesota (184-114) and then-No. 18 Penn State (151.50-148.50). It fell to then-No. 24 Wisconsin (181-118) and No. 17 Michigan (134-106). The tie came against Indiana in the season opener (150-150).
The goal for the 'Cats this weekend is not only to win the team title, but also qualify as many individuals as possible for the NCAA Championships being held next month in Austin, Texas. Only two NU swimmers have already received automatic berths to NCAAs: Rachel Johnson (Champaign, Ill./Centennial) and Carmen Cosgrove (Perth, Western Australia/Nebraska) both posted NCAA qualifying times in the butterfly against Georgia-Cosgrove in the 100 and Johnson in the 200.
The Big Ten has expanded the championships to four days beginning Wednesday. The complete schedule is listed below. Times and order is subject to change.
Wednesday, Feb. 20
Finals (7 p.m.) * 200-yd medley relay * 800-yd freestyle relay
Thursday, Feb. 21
Prelims (11 a.m.) * 500-yd freestyle * 200-yd individual medley * 50-yd freestyle * 1-meter diving (prelims, 1 p.m.) (final, round I)
Finals (7 p.m.) * 200-yd freestyle relay * 500-yd freestyle * 200-yd individual medley * 50-yd freestyle * 1-meter diving (final, round II) * 400-yd medley relay (timed final)
Friday, Feb. 22
Prelims (11 a.m.) * 400-yd individual medley * 100-yd butterfly * 200-yd freestyle * 100-yd breaststroke * 100-yd backstroke * 3-meter diving (prelims, 1 p.m.) (final, round I)
Finals (7 p.m.) * 400-yd individual medley * 100-yd butterfly * 200-yd freestyle * 100-yd breaststroke * 100-yd backstroke * 3-meter diving (final, round II)
Saturday, Feb. 23
Prelims (11 a.m.) * 200-yd backstroke * 100-yd freestyle * 200-yd breaststroke * 200-yd butterfly * Platform diving (prelims) * 1,650-yd freestyle(all but last heat of timed final)
Finals (7 p.m.) * 1,650-yd freestyle (last heat of timed final) * 200-yd backstroke * 100-yd freestyle * 200-yd breaststroke * 200-yd butterfly * Platform diving (final) * 400-yd freestyle relay