Utah Swimming and Diving Notes

1/25/2005 12:00 AM | Men's Swimming & Diving

Jan. 25, 2005

THIS WEEK:

The University of Utah men's and women's swimming and diving teams host the University of Wyoming Cowboys on Friday, Jan. 28, at 4 p.m. The Utes then take on the Air Force Academy Falcons on Saturday at 1 p.m. The women's team is undefeated in MWC play at 4-0, after defeating Colorado State on Jan. 13 and New Mexico on Jan. 15. The men's team enters the meet in last place with a 0-1 MWC record after falling to UNLV in Las Vegas on Nov. 6, 2004.

NEW MEXICO/COLORADO STATE RECAP:

FORT COLLINS, Colo. - The University of Utah women defeated the Colorado State Rams by a score of 157-85 to notch their first win in Ft. Collins in the history of the Ute program. The Utes claimed first place in 12 of the 13 events to improve to 5-0 on the season and 3-0 in MWC meets.

For the Utes, Marta Stepanczuk took top honors in the 1000 free (10:30.65) and the 500 free (5:03.40), while finishing second in the 200 free (1:55.87). Rachael Curci finished second in the 1000 free and the 500 free with times of 10:33.65 and 5:12.62 respectively.

Alison McInturff finished first in the 200 free with a time of 1:53.95 and Loren Sweny finished third (1:56.13) to help Utah claim the top three spots in the event. McInturff also won the 100 free with a 53.15 mark.

In the diving competitions, Kelsey Patterson finished first in both the 1-meter and 3-meter events with scores of 248.90 and 302.55 respectively. Amy Barefield won the 50 free (24.49) and Jamie Trapp claimed top honors in the 200 IM (2:08.84). Meghan Demchuk finished first in the 200 fly (2:07.27) with freshman Michelle Blair finishing second (2:08.37). Demchuk also placed third in the 200 IM with a 2:11.25 mark.

Marissa Martin finished first in the 200 back with a time of 2:05.31 and Adrienne Coburn placed first in the 200 breast with a 2:24.98 mark.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - The University of Utah women's swimming and diving team defeated the New Mexico Lobos 167-128 on Saturday. Utah remains undefeated on the season, improving to 6-0 overall and 4-0 in MWC meets.

Senior Marta Stepanczuk finished first in the 500 and 1000 free events for the Utes, who won 12 of the 16 events. Stepanczuk finished the 500 free with a 4:59.70 mark and the 1000 free with a time of 10:26.37.

Amy Barefield finished first in the 50 and 100 free events with times of 24.62 and 54.00 respectively. Freshman Michelle Blair claimed top honors in the 200 fly (2:07.54) and 100 fly (58.81). In the 100 fly, fellow Utes Meghan Demchuk (59.59) and Alison McInturff (59.60) finished second and third respectively behind Blair.

Rachael Curci (10:45.45) and Loren Sweny (10:54.71) finished second and third respectively in the 1000 free behind Stepanczuk to help Utah jump to an early lead.

SCOUTING WYOMING/AIR FORCE:

The Cowboys hold a 1-0 mark in MWC dual meets after defeating UNLV 130-111 on Jan. 22. The Cowgirls are currently in fourth place in the MWC race with a 2-1 mark. The Cowgirls are coming off a home loss to UNLV 109-134.

The Cowboys are lead by team captain and Olympian Scott Usher, the first swimmer at Wyoming to compete in the Olympics. Usher finished seventh in the 200-meter breastroke at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. Usher holds the top time in the MWC in the 200 breast with a 1:57.28 mark, while Cody Rempfer holds the second fastest time at 2:03.62.

The Falcon's men's team is 1-0 in MWC dual meets, while the women are 0-4 on the season. Air Force takes on MWC opponent rival BYU on Friday, Jan. 28, in Provo, Utah before traveling north to take on the Utes. The Air Force teams split last weekend's dual meets, with the men defeating Denver 137-91 and the women falling to New Mexico 124-165.

QUOTING HEAD COACH MIKE LITZINGER:

"The Wyoming and Air Force weekends are always some of the most exciting competition we have. Wyoming has a great team this season lead by 2004 USA Olympian Scott Usher. The Cowboys men will definitely challenge for the MWC title this year. The Wyoming women are much improved, so our team needs to stay focused. They will have some of the best diving we will see.

"Air Force is always a well-coached team on both sides. The men's distance swimmers are among the best in the nation, and their women have a great team this season. Key for our men will be to step up and compete at the level we are capable of. Again, our women need to stay focused on the task at hand, taking our competition one event at a time."