Jan. 7, 2005
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Following a successful winter break training trip to the Bahamas that included a 104-61 dual meet victory over Youngstown State on Dec. 18, the Wildcats are ready to make their run toward the Big Ten Championships beginning Saturday against Tennessee at the Norris Aquatics Center.
"We had a very successful training trip in the Bahamas and a great time enjoying the culture and sights of Nassau," NU Head Coach Jimmy Tierney said. "The girls handled the heavy work load well and we expect it to pay big dividends over the next couple of months."
Northwestern had a number of swimmers set personal bests and even saw some pool records fall during early competition in the fall. The highlight of the early season came via a 159-141 upset of No. 21 Indiana on Nov. 5.
NU also finished first at its own TYR Invitational where freshman Andrea Hupman broke the pool records in the 100 and 200 Free and was named Swimmer of the Meet.
"I am very pleased with the progress of our team," Tierney said. "The athletes have bought into our training plan and we are seeing the positive results so far. I am really excited for the next few weeks. We have some great competition to test ourselves against this month."
That competition begins Saturday against Tennessee. The meet will kick off with a 10 a.m. session followed by a night session starting at 6 p.m. The Lady Vols bring a No. 23 national ranking to Evanston.
Northwestern is receiving votes in the latest College Swimming Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) poll.
"We will swim against a very competitive Tennessee team this weekend," Tierney said. "We have always battled them well -- especially in our home pool. They bring some very talented swimmers and divers to NU. I think we will be ready."