The LSU swimming and diving team will compete in the final dual meet of the season against SEC foe Texas A&M at 11 a.m. CT Saturdayat the Rec Center Natatorium in College Station, Texas.
Both the men and women squads for LSU enter the meet ranked in the top-25 with the men (1-2) coming in at No. 24 and the women (4-1) tied for 25th with Florida State. The LSU women will square off against an Aggies squad ranked No. 7 in the polls in a matchup between two top-25 teams.
“It’s the last dual meet of the season for the men and women. The women are going in against the reigning SEC champions and a top-10 program in the country, so we know competition is going to be elite there,” said head swimming coach Dave Geyer.
“On the men’s side, since I’ve been here, this has been one of the most competitive and exciting dual meets in our lineup that we have every year. There’s something about the LSU-A&M dual meet on the men’s side that brings the best out of both teams. It comes down to a few swims and touches, and you can usually determine the meet in less than a second between a couple of finishes.”
The men’s team (1-2) is searching for their first conference victory on the season in their final event before SEC Championships in February.
Senior Logan Rysemus enters the meet holding two top-10 NCAA times in the 100 fly and the 100 back that are both good for top three in the Southeastern Conference. Freshman Sven Saemundsson is coming off of the Alabama dual meet where he garnered two individual wins in both the mile and 500 free.
Senior Colleen O’Neil leads the way for the women with 10 victories on the season, picking up two more wins against Alabama in the 100 and 200 breaststroke. Senior Leah Troskot also holds three top-10 times in the SEC in the 50, 100, and 200 free.
For the diving squad, freshman diver Juan Celaya-Hernandez has logged nine wins this season in just 13 events, receiving SEC Male Diver of the Week twice, as well as SEC Male Freshman of the Week accolades for his stellar performance. A native of Mexico, Celaya-Hernandez has garnered four wins on three-meter in five events and has also finished no lower than second on one-meter.
Sophomore diver Lizzie Cui, a one-time SEC Female Diver of the Week, is coming off a sweep of both one and three meters against Alabama.
“We’ve always had a real good rivalry with Texas A&M,” said head diving coach Doug Shaffer. “They are a strong program with great athletes, and we’re looking forward to a good competitive opportunity to round out our dual meet season.”
Live results can be accessed on 12thMan.com or Meet Mobile. The competition will be available digitally on mobile devices, tablets, PCs and connect-TVs for SEC Network subscribers whose cable/satellite packages allow access to SEC Network+ through the WatchESPN app and SECSports.com.
News courtesy of LSU Athletics.