Swimming and Diving Team Prepares for Highlander Invitational
11/18/2010 6:05:00 AM | Swimming and Diving
STATESBORO, Ga. - The Georgia Southern Swimming and Diving team (4-1) returns to competition Thursday, November 18, as it travels to Radford, Va., for the Highlander Invitational. This is the Eagles first competition since last month's double-dual meet in Statesboro.
"We are expecting some good competition from the CCSA teams we are familiar with to a few teams we have never competed against," said Head Coach Nathan Kellogg. "Hopefully this mix of traditional rivals and new competition will give our women a spark."
The three-day meet will be the first multi-day meet this season for Georgia Southern as it will compete against seven other schools, four who are members of the Coastal Collegiate Swimming Association (CCSA). Georgia Southern will face CCSA foes Radford, Campbell, Liberty, and North Carolina A & T. GSU competes against Millersville, Youngstown State and Mount St. Mary's in the pool for the first time.
Coach Kellogg and his staff see the Highlander Invitational as an opportunity for the team to prepare both mentally and physically for the CCSA championships in Athens, Ga., which takes place at the end of the season.
"This format is identical to the format used at the CCSA Championship that we will be competing in later this season," stated Kellogg. "In this dynamic, our women can focus on one or two individual events per session as opposed to three or four events in dual meets. This format also allows us opportunities to put our best relays together, something we aren't always able to do in dual meets. In a prelims/finals format, the finals session is so exciting, it's amazing what kind of effect that type of atmosphere has on swimmers and divers. "
Georgia Southern returns to the pool after sweeping its double-dual meet at home last month, beating College of Charleston (128-99) and Savannah College of Art and Design (139-73) October 23, at The Recreation Activity Center.
The Eagles won 12 of 13 events, including three events where the Eagles finished first, second and third. Leading the Eagles were Ali Campbell (Ft. McMurray, Alberta, Canada), Devan White (Kennesaw, Ga.) and Lindsay Goodman (Knoxville, Tenn.), who all finished first in three events.
"Since our last dual meet on October 23rd, we've really pushed the envelope in terms of our training intensity," stated Kellogg. "Our swimmers and divers have been very consistent and we have been pleased with their attitudes and efforts over the past month or so. We've also done some things to establish that we can swim fast and dive well anytime, even when we are tired. Because of this, I think our confidence is growing and hopefully it shows this weekend."
The Invitational starts at 9:30 a.m. Thursday and Friday, with preliminaries, and the finals begin both nights at 6 p.m. The final preliminary is set for 9 a.m. Saturday, with the last final beginning at 3:15 p.m.
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