Oct. 21, 2008
THIS WEEK — The Iowa men and women’s swimming and diving team will travel to East Lansing, MI, for its first road meet of the season. The Hawkeyes will face Michigan State Saturday at 11 a.m. (CST) at the McCaffree Pool.
ON MICHIGAN STATE — Saturday’s meet with Iowa will be the season opener for the Michigan State men’s team. The Spartan women are 0-2 (0-2 Big Ten), falling to Minnesota (132-164) and Illinois (66-120) earlier this season. Spartan sophomore Becca Ebner is undefeated in the individual fly events this season to lead the women’s squad.
Matt Gianiodis is in his fifth season at the helm of the Spartan swimming program and Eric Best is in his sixth season as Michigan State’s diving coach. Gianiodis is assisted by Kathleen Milloy, Manabu Noguchi and Dianne Johnson.
LAST WEEK — The Hawkeye men defeated Wisconsin (166-134), while the Iowa women lost to the Badgers (92-206) Friday night at the Field House Pool in Iowa City. The Iowa men improved to 2-0 (1-0 Big Ten) with the win, while the Hawkeye women dropped to 1-1 (0-1 Big Ten).
The Hawkeye men set the tone for the meet, opening with a narrow win by sophomore Max Dittmer, freshman Ryan Phelan, senior James Dragon, and freshman Duncan Partridge in the 200 medley relay (1:32.42). Sophomore Conor Dwyer, fresh from receiving Big Ten Swimmer of the Week honors, won the 100 (46.29) and 200 free (1:39.36).
The Iowa women fought hard against the Badgers. Junior Laura Mozdzen won the 200 fly (2:08.35), while junior Deidre Freeman swept the one-meter (299.78) and three-meter (269.93) diving events.
HEAD COACH Marc Long — Marc Long is in his fifth season as head coach for the University of Iowa swimming team. It’s his fourth year as head coach of the combined program. During his tenure as head coach of both programs, 10 school records have fallen and 39 Hawkeyes have provisionally qualified for the NCAA Championships. He is assisted by Kirk Hampleman, Frannie Malone and Nathan Mundt.
DIVING COACH Bob Rydze — Bob Rydze is in his 34th year as diving coach of the men and women’s teams at the University of Iowa. Rydze returns to Iowa this season fresh from the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China, where he served as the U.S. Diving Team Leader. He was recently elected chairman of the U.S. Diving Board of Directors, and will serve in that capacity for the next four years. During his tenure with the Hawkeyes, Rydze has coached 31 all-Americans, nine Big Ten and one NCAA Champion.
NEXT WEEK — The Hawkeye women will host Nebraska Saturday at 11 a.m. at the Field House Pool. Admission to the event is free. The Iowa men team has the week off.