Weekly Release #6
1/29/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Swimming & Diving
Upcoming Schedule
Friday, Feb. 1 -- vs. Northwestern (Canham Natatorium), 4 p.m.
Saturday, Jan. 2 -- vs. Notre Dame (Canham Natatorium), 3 p.m.
Wed-Sat., Feb. 20-23 -- host Big Ten Championships (Canham Natatorium), 11 a.m./7 p.m.
This Week
The No. 17-ranked University of Michigan women's swimming and diving team will conclude its regular season this weekend when it hosts No. 16-ranked Northwestern and No. 13-ranked Notre Dame. The Wolverines will kick off the weekend with Northwestern on Friday (Feb. 1) at 4 p.m. before taking on Notre Dame on Saturday (Feb. 2) at 3 p.m. Both meets will be held at Canham Natatorium.
Scouting Northwestern
Northwestern has gotten off to a good start in the 2001-02 season as it has posted a 4-0-1 mark, including wins over Big Ten Conference opponents Minnesota (184-114) and Penn State (151.50-148.50). The only dual meet that the Wildcats have failed to win this year was their opener when they tied Indiana (150-150) on Oct. 27. Leading the way in the pool for Northwestern have been junior Susie Sample in the backstroke, junior Carmen Cosgrove in the butterfly and junior Rachel Johnson in the 200-yard freestyle. On the boards, freshman Ashley Carter has made an immediate impact as she was named the Big Ten Diver of the Week on Jan. 21 after winning the one-meter competition against Penn State on Jan. 19.
Series History with Northwestern
After dropping two of its first three meetings with Northwestern, Michigan has gone on to win 12 of the next 14 meetings. Although Northwestern claimed last year's meeting with a 157-143 victory on Jan. 27 in Evanston, Ill., Michigan still owns a 13-4 advantage in the all-time series.
Scouting Notre Dame
Notre Dame has won everything in which it has competed this season, which has led to a No. 13 national ranking. The Fighting Irish are 6-0 in dual meets and have claimed the top spot at the Notre Dame Invitational and the Minnesota Invitational. Under the guidance of head coach Bailey Weathers, the Fighting Irish have claimed the last five Big East Conference championships and are poised to make an impression at the NCAA Championships with the strength of their relay teams. Also providing impressive seasons are senior co-captains Maureen Hillenmeyer and Tara Riggs, while senior Carrie Nixon, a 14-time Big East champion, returns after missing last season with a shoulder injury.
Series History with Notre Dame
Michigan and Notre Dame started facing each other in 1992-93 and the Wolverines won the first four meetings between the two schools. Notre Dame has responded with wins in the last two meetings, including a 157-143 win last year in South Bend on Jan. 26, to cut Michigan's lead in the all-time series in half to 4-2.
Last Meet Recap
Michigan faced its first conference foes of the season and posted a 2-1 record against Penn State, Michigan State and Ohio State on Jan. 18-19. On Friday (Jan. 18), the Wolverines took the Nittany Lions down to the final relay event before falling 129-114 at Canham Natatorium. The Maize and Blue turned around on Saturday (Jan. 19) and knocked off Ohio State (148-94) and Michigan State (138-105) in East Lansing, Mich., to collect its first two wins of the season.
Relaying Them In
Sophomore Annie Wielbacher (Columbus, Ohio/St. Francis DeSales HS) is a good luck charm for any relay team on which she has competed on this season. Weilbacher, a four-time NCAA All-America Honorable Mention in 2001, was on three victorious relays in Michigan's last two meets. Against Penn State, Weilbacher competed on the victorious 400-yard medley relay team that posted a time of 3:45.57 and then followed the next day by swimming on two relay teams that placed first against Ohio State and Michigan State. Against the Buckeyes and Spartans, Weilbacher swam the third leg of the 400-yard medley relay team that won the event with a mark of 3:48.66 and then swam the leadoff on the top 400-yard freestyle relay team which posted a time of 3:30.29.
Freshman Sensation
Freshman Amy McCullough (West Bloomfield, Mich./Mercy HS), the 2001 Michigan high school state champion in the 200- and 500-yard freestyles, has made an immediate impact on the Michigan swimming and diving program. At the tri-meet versus Ohio State and Michigan State (Jan. 19), McCullough won the 1,000-yard freestyle and set a Charles McCaffree pool record with a mark of 10:00.97. The day before, against Penn State (Jan. 18), McCullough was the top performer in the 200-yard freestyle with a mark of 1:57.53. The wins were the second and third of the year for McCullough as she posted the top time in the 1,000-yard freestyle at the Minnesota Invitational (Nov. 3) with a time of 10:00.92 while also adding three runner-up finishes on the year.
Spreading the Wealth
Against Michigan State and Ohio State (Jan. 19), the Wolverines had four different individuals win events. Junior Laura Kaznecki (Wolverine Lake, Mich./Western HS) and freshman Amy McCullough paired up for wins in the freestyle events, while sophomore Kelli Stein (Columbus, Ohio/Bishop Waterson HS) and sophomore Sara Johnson (West Bloomfield, Mich./Lahser HS) won the 100-yard breaststroke and the 200-yard individual medley, respectively. In the 50-yard freestyle, Kaznecki's time of 24.22 edged freshman teammate Tracy Egnatuk (Albion, Mich./Albion Senior HS) for first place and McCullough followed with her victorious time of 10:00.97 in the 1,000-yard freestyle. In the 100-yard breaststroke, Stein's mark of 1:04.29 gave her the win while Johnson swam a time of 2:05.73 in the 200-yard individual medley.
Record-Setting Relay
The 400-yard medley relay set a McCaffree pool record against Ohio State and Michigan State on Jan. 19. The team of senior Lindsay Carlberg (Carmel, Ind./Carmel HS), sophomore Kelli Stein, sophomore Annie Weilbacher and junior Laura Kaznecki combined to finish first in the event with a time of 3:48.66. The same team also won the 400-yard medley relay the day before against Penn State (Jan. 18) with a faster time of 3:45.57 at Canham Natatorium.
What Break
Although they occurred over a month apart, sophomore Emily-Clare Fenn (Westport, Conn./Staples HS) posted wins in consecutive meets when she won the 1,000-yard freestyle against Penn State (Jan. 18) with a time of 9:59.89. On Dec. 2, in the Wolverines' previous competition at the Georgia Invitational, Fenn won the 1,650-yard freestyle with an NCAA consideration time of 16:39.43.
In the Polls
Michigan is ranked No. 17 in the most recent CSCAA national Top 25 poll (Jan. 18). Six other Big Ten schools are ranked among the nation's 25 best, led by No. 15 Wisconsin. The Badgers are followed by Northwestern (No. 16), Penn State (No. 18), Indiana (No. 20), Purdue (No. 21) and Minnesota (No. 22). The next poll is scheduled to be released on Jan. 31.
CSCAA Top 25 Poll (1/18/02)
Rank, Team Points 1. Stanford (8) 200 2. Georgia 191 3. Auburn 185 4. Arizona 174 5. Texas 169 6. California 158 7. Southern Methodist 150 8. Arizona State 142 Florida 142 10. Southern Cal 128 11. UCLA 120 12. North Carolina 112 13. Notre Dame 103 14. Virginia 95 15. Wisconsin 86 16. Northwestern 76 17. MICHIGAN 71 18. Penn State 64 19. Alabama 56 20. Indiana 50 21. Purdue 41 22. Minnesota 28 23. Princeton 20 24. Louisiana State 14 Maryland 14
U-M to Host Big Ten Championships
Michigan will host the 2002 Big Ten Women's Swimming and Diving Championships Wednesday through Saturday, Feb. 20-23, at Canham Natatorium. A pass for all events costs $30, while individual tickets may be purchased for individual sessions with prelims costing $4 and finals costing $7. Wednesday's schedule features just two relays and is free admission. There are no discounts for students, senior citizens or children and a seating rotation will be implemented on Thursday (Feb. 21) for each team's spectators. To purchase tickets, call the U-M Ticket Office at 734-764-0247 or download an application form (PDF: 1 page, 8 KB) and fax to 734-936-8942.
Contact: David Crabtree (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
