Courtesy: Colorado State Athletics
FORT COLLINS, Colo. – Holding on to traditional local matchups, Colorado State’s women’s swimming and diving program has branched out for the upcoming season with a series of fresh opponents as the Rams enter the campaign riding a 23-dual unbeaten streak.
Coach Christopher Woodard‘s team will be required to come out fast with rival Wyoming first on the slate, which is littered with a trio of trips east. The Rams head to Laramie on Oct. 6 to face the Cowgirls, followed by a pair of October home meets with a double dual against Mountain West foes Air Force and New Mexico (Oct. 13-14 at EPIC), followed by a visit from Denver (Oct. 27, Pink Out).
Starting in November, the team heads into unchartered waters, starting the month with a double dual at Queens University on Nov. 3, with Old Dominion also in attendance. The first half closes as the team heads to the Iowa Invitational Nov. 30-Dec. 2, then the second half kickstarts with a trip to face Florida Gulf Coast and Miami on Jan. 8.
The Rams will be competing against Queens, Old Dominion, FGCU and Miami for the first time in program history.
“We’re excited about the approach we’ve taken with our schedule this season. We have kept our local rivalries intact while adding the challenge of heading east to face four teams we’ve never competed against before. At the midpoint, the impressive field at the Iowa Invitational will be a fantastic barometer for where our training is and what we will need to focus on down the stretch. We haven’t lost a dual in the past two seasons, and we won’t be able to ease into anything with Border War rival Wyoming right out of the gate.”
The team will be in Moby Pool one final time – Northern Colorado on Jan. 27 for Senior Day. The week prior, the team travels to Colorado School of Mines on Jan. 20.
The diving crew heads to Colorado Springs for the Air Force Diving Invitational on Feb. 1-3, then the entire squad reunites for the Mountain West Championships on Feb. 21-24 in Houston, Texas at the University of Houston.
The Rams have not dropped a dual in the past two seasons, with their undefeated run ending at 21 consecutive when they posted the only tie in program history at Northern Arizona. The squad returns five All-Mountain West performers in Erin Dawson, Anika Johnson, Lucy Matheson, Lexie Trietley and Maya White, with Matheson, Trietley and White earning recognition in multiple events. Additionally, 11 swimmers or divers return who are ranked in the program’s all-time top 10 in an event.