Swimming and Diving Returns to Action
1/7/2011 5:48:00 PM | Swimming and Diving
STATESBORO, Ga. - The Georgia Southern Swimming and Diving team (4-1) returns from a seven-week layoff on Saturday, January 8th, as it travels to Ft. Myers, Fla., for the Florida Gulf Coast quad meet against Coastal Collegiate Swimming Association (CCSA) foes Radford, Liberty and Florida Gulf Coast. This will be the Eagles' first competition since posting a first-place finish at the Highlander Invitational on November 20th.
"We have been training very hard and with a great deal of intensity since our last meet in November," said Head Coach Nathan Kellogg. "Specifically, we have focused on being mentally tough and going fast even when we don't feel great. This has produced some high-quality training and will translate into high-quality racing down the road."
Florida Gulf Coast will play host to the four-team meet that begins at 11 a.m. at the FGCU Aquatics Center. This outdoor meet will be the only one for the Eagles this season. It's a challenge Coach Kellogg and his staff feel they are prepared for.
"Racing in an outdoor pool presents challenges that we will have to overcome, especially for our backstroke swimmers," stated Kellogg. "Luckily, they've all experienced swimming outdoors while growing up and we certainly will not use that as an excuse this weekend."
The quad meet marks the second time that Georgia Southern compete against Radford and Liberty this season as the Eagles topped both teams in the Highlander Invitational. This will be the first time GSU competes against Florida Gulf Coast in 2010-11 and the final time that the four teams will face each other until the CCSA Championships at the Gabrielsen Natatorium in Athens, Ga., Feb. 17-19.
The Eagles face a challenging schedule leading to the CCSA Championships as they will compete against 12 conference opponents over a four-week span to close out the regular season.
"We will face the top teams in the CCSA over the next four weeks leading into the CCSA Championships," said Kellogg. "We specifically set the schedule this way because this is the time of the season where we look for our swimmers and divers to raise their level of competition and focus on being at their best."
Follow the Eagle Swimming and Diving team on GeorgiaSouthernEagles.com/swimming&diving or get short updates on facebook.com/GSAthletics or twitter.com/GSAthletics. For in-game scoring, visit twitter.com/GSScores or follow live stats by clicking on the "live stats" link in the schedule section at the bottom of the athletics website www.GeorgiaSouthernEagles.com.
