The Kentucky swimming and diving team will wrap up its home schedule on Saturday afternoon as in-state foe Louisville visits Lancaster Aquatic Center for the Battle of the Bluegrass.
The meet will serve as Kentucky’s senior day, honoring the program’s 14 graduating student-athletes: Tanner Anderson, Drew Aviotti, Kelly Berger, Kendal Casey, Kendra Crew, Allyson Dupay, Brandon Flynn, Danielle Galyer, Sean Gunn, Rebecca Hamperian, Kyle Higgins, Kate Kelly, Noah Richter and James Stevenson.
“This is a great group of seniors,” said head coach Lars Jorgensen. “It’s our rivalry meet along with senior day, so there are going to be a lot of emotions. I think the key is going to be keeping our emotions intact. We’re racing against a really good Louisville team. It’s going to be a challenge, but I think it’s going to be a great meet for our seniors. We really want to thank them and honor them for all the hard work they’ve put in these past four years.”
Louisville enters the meet ranked No. 8 on the men’s side while the women come in ranked 10th. The Cardinals will be coming off a home meet against No. 22/10 ranked Notre Dame on Friday before making the trip east on Saturday.
Diving will begin at 11:30 a.m., following by the senior day presentations. Swimming events are slated for a 1 p.m. start.
KENTUCKY ATHLETES IN NATIONAL RANKINGS
Between both the men’s and women’s squads, Kentucky holds 15 times that currently rank in the top 25 nationally among Division I swimmers, including six times that rank in the top 10.
Senior Kyle Higgins holds one of the highest-ranked times for Kentucky, as he owns the No. 6 spot in the 200-yard butterfly with a school-record time of 1:42.66.
Senior Drew Aviotti is the only other Wildcat on the men’s side holding times in the top 25. His school-record time of 14:58.50 in the 1650-yard freestyle ranks the No. 14 swim in the event while his 9:05.17 in the 1000 free is the No. 21 time among Division I swimmers.
On the women’s side, freshman Asia Seidt has completely dominated for the Blue and White. Seidt currently holds four individual times that sit inside the top 25. Her 1:51.18 A-cut finish in the 200-yard backstroke at the Ohio State Invite earned her the fourth-fastest time in the country. The freshman’s 1:55.33 time in the 200-yard individual medley also gained automatic entry to NCAAs and sits as the seventh-best time in the country. Seidt also holds the No. 8 time in the 100-yard backstroke and 16th-fastest time in the 400 IM.
The Wildcat women have emerged as a powerhouse in the 200 backstroke. In addition to Seidt, three Kentucky swimmers rank within the top 15 nationally in the event. Defending NCAA champion in the event, senior Danielle Galyer currently holds down the No. 7 spot in the event. Junior Bridgette Alexander follows close behind with the 8th-fastest time after posting a first-place 1:52.38 at the AT&T Winter Nationals. Freshman Ali Galyer rounds out the event with the No. 14 spot.
Sophomore Geena Freriks is the only other Wildcat to grab an individual top-25 time for the women, as her school-record time of 4:39.34 in the 500 freestyle race at the Ohio State Invite is good for 14th in the standings.
Additionally, the women own top-25 times in the 400 freestyle relay (No. 25), 800 freestyle relay (No. 9) and 400 medley relay (No. 13).
LAST TIME OUT
The Wildcats are coming off a successful trip to Blacksburg, Virginia where the competed against Virginia Tech and Georgia Tech. Although the meet was cut short due to snow and poor road conditions, the Wildcats finished the lone day with six first-place finishes and hefty leads over both opponents.
For the latest on the Kentucky swimming and diving program, follow @UKSwimDive on Twitter, on Facebook at Facebook.com/UKSwimDive, and on the web at UKathletics.com.
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For more information contact:
Karlie Kinneer
