Iowa Ready for Hawkeye Invitational

Nov. 28, 2011

Complete Release in PDF Format

THIS WEEK
The 10th ranked University Iowa men’s swimming and diving team will host Hawkeye Invitational on Friday through Sunday at the Campus Recreation and Wellness Center Pool. The meet will run as a championship meet format with prelims and finals. Prelims will begin at 10 a.m. and finals at 6 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. Sunday’s finals will begin at 4 p.m.

LIVE STATS
For live results from your computer or smart phone, visit: http://live.iowaswimming.com/swimming/ . Free WiFi is available at the CRWC for all students and faculty.

EVENT PROMOTIONS
Friday Dec. 2 is kid’s night at the Hawkeye Invitational. The first 100 fans will recieve Hawkeye watches. Additionally fans can enter to win four tickets to the Children’s Museum and a $50 Scheels gift card.

Saturday Dec. 3 is Junior Hawk Club pizza party night. Gold pom poms will be handed out to fans and fans can win a $50 Scheels gift card.

Hawkeye fans can also pick up 2011-12 swimming and diving posters, calendar cards, stickers and bumper stickers from the marketing table located in the pool gallery at the main entrance.

ADMISSION
Admission to the 2011 Hawkeye Invitational is free of charge. The spectator entrance to the University Aquatic Center will open 90 minutes before the start of each session.

FOOD AND BEVERAGES
Concessions will be available at the Tropical Smoothie Café, which is located near the main entrance of the Campus Recreation and Wellness Center. Additional concessions will be provided by Iowa Memorial Union on the spectator level. As a reminder, all glass containers are prohibited in the University Aquatic Center.

PARTCIPATING TEAMS
The Hawkeyes will host Denver, Michigan, Notre Dame, University of Wisconsin-Green Bay and University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. South Dakota State will also be competing in the diving events.

Michigan is ranked No. 1 in the College Swimming Coaches Association of American poll as of Nov. 10. Notre Dame recieved votes.

FOLLOW THE HAWKEYES
Become fans of the official Iowa swimming and diving page by going to http://www.facebook.com/IowaSwimmingandDiving to follow the Hawkeyes on Facebook. Fans can also follow the black and gold on Twitter at http://twitter.com/#!/IowaHawkeyeSwim.

WEEKLY HONORS
Ryan Phelan was named Big Ten Conference Swimmer of the Week on Nov. 1. The honor marked Phelan’s first career honor.

The Cedar Rapids, Iowa, native earned the accolade after recording four first place finishes in Iowa’s dual meet victory over Michigan State on Nov. 29. He tallied individual wins in the 50-yard (20.20) and 100-yard free (45.74). He was also a member of the winning 200-yard medley (1:30.60) and 400-yard freestyle relays (3:03.86).

Phelan is the first Iowa men’s swimming student-athlete to claim Big Ten Swimmer of the Week honor since Conor Dwyer on Jan. 27, 2009.

Paul Gordon was selected as the Division I National Swimmer of the Week by collegeswimming.com on Nov. 8.

Gordon, a senior from Sioux Falls, S.D., earned the male swimmer of the week recognition with his performance in the dual meet victory over Minnesota. He posted NCAA “B” qualifying times in the 100-fly (48.30), 100-free (44.07) and 200-free (1:37.44) before anchoring the winning 400-free relay, which set a pool record.

HAWKEYES CRACK TOP-10
The University of Iowa men’s swimming and diving team is ranked 10th in the initial 2011-12 College Swimming Coaches Association of America top 25 poll. The Hawkeyes debuted at No. 10 in the dual meet rankings after downing Minnesota on Nov. 4 at the Campus Recreation and Wellness Center Pool.

Iowa is one of five Big Ten Conference schools ranked among the top 25, along with Michigan (1), Ohio State (11), Minnesota (15) and Purdue (17). Penn State is receiving votes.

The Hawkeyes rank among the top 10 nationally in four events early in the 2011-12 season:

– 50 Free, Ryan Phelan (19.88) 7th
– 200 Free, Paul Gordon (1:36.85) 6th
– 400 Free Relay (2:57.31) 7th
– 200 Medley Relay (1:28.98) 9th

Iowa finished the 2010-11 season ranked 24th in the final TYP/CSCAA Men’s Division I poll.

DOWNING RECORDS
Last season’s Big Ten runner-up in the 50 free, Ryan Phelan, beat his pool record in the event with a time of 19.88. Phelan previously held the record (19.90), which he set Nov. 4 at Iowa’s win over Minnesota.

Phelan also set the pool record in the event with a time of 20.27 at Wisconsin’s Natatorium. The previous record was held by former Hawkeye and Big Ten champion, Tom Williams, which was set in 1988.

Duncan Partridge, Ryan Phelan, Jordan Huff and Paul Gordon set at the pool record in the 400 free relay with a time of 2:57.31 The quartet set the record Nov. 18 when the Hawkeyes beat Purdue 155-145, but fell to Ohio State, 163-137.

RETURNING ALL-AMERICANS
The men’s squad returns all four members of the 400 free relay that earned All-America honors at the 2011 NCAA Championships. Paul Gordon, Jordan Huff, Duncan Partridge and Ryan Phelan placed 15th (2:54.82) in the relay to earn All-America accolades.

DUAL MEET DOMINATION
Since 2008-09, the men’s swimming and diving team has complied 31-5 dual meet record. That mark includes a 10-1 record in 2009-10, which is the program’s best record since finishing 13-1 and placing second at the Big Ten

NEXT EVENT
Iowa will take on Arizona on Jan. 6 when the team is in Tucson, Ariz., for its winter training trip. The event is set to start at 2 p.m.

BIG TEN CHAMPIONSHIPS
The Hawkeyes will serve as the hosts of the 2012 Big Ten Championships. The championship will take place Feb. 22-25 at the Campus Recreation and Wellness Center.

HEAD COACH Marc Long
Marc Long is in his eighth season as head coach for the University of Iowa swimming team. It’s his seventh as head coach of the combined program. During his tenure as head coach of both programs, 36 school records have fallen and 74 Hawkeyes have provisionally qualified for the NCAA Championships.

DIVING COACH Bob Rydze
Bob Rydze is in his 37th year as diving coach of the men and women’s teams at the University of Iowa. Rydze served as Team Leader for USA Diving at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. During his tenure with the Hawkeyes, Rydze has coached 33 All-Americans, nine Big Ten and one NCAA Champion.

CAMPUS RECREATION AND WELLNESS CENTER
Ground was broken for the Campus Recreation and Wellness Center in October 2007. The facility opened in August 2010 and is home for the Hawkeyes. It is located at the corner of Burlington and Madison streets and cost approximately $69 million. The facility includes a 50-meter competition pool, a separate diving well, a leisure pool with lap lanes and 24,000 square feet of fitness space.

IOWA SWIMMING HISTORY & TRADITION
Iowa was one of the first schools in the nation to compete on a collegiate level and competed at the first NCAA Championship.

From 1937 to 1960, Iowa placed in the NCAA top 10 18 times, crowning nine NCAA and 22 Big Ten champions.

CAPTAINS COUNCIL
Six student-athletes have been named to the 2011-12 Captains’ Council. Ryan Phelan, Jordan Huff and Kyle Noser will captain the men’s squad, while Daniela Cubelic, Danielle Carty and Haley Gordon will captain the women’s squad. The Captains’ Council was voted on by their peers and coaches.