The NC State swimming & diving team is set to kick off its home slate with a pair of meets scheduled for Friday and Saturday at the Willis R. Casey Aquatic Center. The Wolfpack will host Duke and Miami (women only) on Friday, Nov. 8 at 2 p.m., before hosting nonconference foe UNC Wilmington on Saturday at 2 p.m.
In its most recent meet, the 10th-ranked men’s squad defeated Georgia Tech, 193-95, while falling to Florida State by a count of 162-136. Senior Jonathan Boffa collected first-place honors in the 100 (44.03) and 200 (1:37.47) freestyle events. His time in each event meets the required time standard for an NCAA ‘B’ cut. Classmate Ian Bishop captured the individual title in the men’s 100 breaststroke with a time of 54.86 also good for an NCAA ‘B’ cut.
On the women’s side, freshman Alexia Zevnik captured the top honors for the second consecutive meet in the 100 backstroke, as she posted a time of 54.81 to record her second NCAA ‘B’ cut in the event in as many meets. She also met an NCAA ‘B’ cut in the 200 backstroke with a first-place finish and a time of 1:58.77.
The Blue Devils enter Friday’s meet with a 1-0 ledger on the men’s and women’s squad, respectively, while the Hurricane women come to Raleigh with a 1-0 mark as well. Last season in Durham, the Pack men defeated Duke and the women downed the Blue Devils and Miami.
“We welcome two ACC programs to our home that should provide great competition in the lanes and some of the best diving in the country,” said head coach Braden Holloway. “Duke and Miami have made some great strides in the ranks of the ACC and NCAA and we hope to give them a good meet. Both programs are very well coached with talent. I’m looking for our program to raise their race awareness and toughness on finishing races. We have struggled at times in finishing races, so hopefully we can take another step forward in this area.”
The Seahawk men’s team comes to Raleigh with a 2-2 record, while the women enter Saturday’s competition with a 2-3 mark. Last season, the Wolfpack men’s and women’s team each picked up a victory in Wilmington.
“UNCW brings a great tradition of winning to Raleigh,” Holloway said. “The Seahawks, with the men having won 12 straight CAA Championships and the women having won three in the CAA, are a powerhouse in their conference and we’re excited to compete with them. We want to continue our progression towards the championships segment of our season and this time of year is important. I also look to see us step up in diving.”
Fans are urged to park on the 2nd-4th level of the Reynolds Coliseum parking garage for Friday’s meet. Live stats for both meets will be available via the Meet Mobile app for IPhone and Android.
This release was provided to SwimSwam courtesy of NC State Swimming and Diving.