By Jason Marsteller
PHOENIX, Arizona, November 12. AFTER witnessing a quick Pac 10 meet between Southern California and Arizona on the west coast, SwimmingWorldMagazine.com goes to the other side of the country with the Meet of the Week program as the Tennessee Volunteers battle the Virginia Cavaliers in a men's meet on Nov. 15.
Here is a quick preview of the match-up:
Date and Time: Thursday, November 15, 2007 at 1 p.m.
Location: Charlottesville, Virginia
Facility: Aquatics & Fitness Center
Tennessee's Last Time Out:
Then-No. 11 Tennessee shocked five-time defending national champion No. 2 Auburn on Nov. 2 as the Vols upset the Tigers, 170-127, in the last home meet at the UT Student Aquatic Center in the Ray Bussard Pool. Bussard, the namesake of the pool, attended the final meet and witnessed one of the top upsets in recent history. The Vols thoroughly dominated the affair as they claimed 15 first-place swims, although one wound up being exhibitioned.
Octavio Alesi paced the Volunteers with four titles. On top of winning the 50 free (20.34) and 100 fly (48.17), he also helped the 200 medley relay team of Michael Wolfe, Barry Murphy, Alesi and Nolan Morrell win in 1:27.56 as well as the 400 free relay of Alesi, Murphy, Morrell and Jonas Persson hit the wall first in 2:56.23.
Morrell, Murphy, Persson and Wolfe each wound up with three titles. Morrell added the 100 back (49.33) to his relay wins, while Murphy touched first in the 100 breast (55.67) as well as in the relays. Persson snagged the 100 free (43.63) and 200 free (1:36.40), while Wolfe claimed the 200 fly (1:46.12) and 200 back (1:45.54).
Looking forward with Tennessee head coach John Trembley:
It will be an interesting match-up against a great ACC team. Virginia is the reigning conference champion. They are well-coached and they defend their home waters with great pride. There are some great match-ups in the 1000 and 500 freestyles, 400 IM and all the 100 yard races. On paper, we have an edge in the relays, 50 freestyle and diving events. However, given the tight competition in most events, this will be another tough test for our team. This is the final tune-up prior to the Texas Invitational, where we will face No. 1 Texas, No. 3 Stanford and No. 4 Arizona. This is a challenging Fall, to say the least. We are healthy and have been training great. Of course, as coaches, we've been guarding against a tough letdown after the win against No. 2 Auburn. So, we will see what happens on Thursday.
Virginia's Last Time Out:
The Virginia men edged Penn State (183.5-169.5) and Michigan State (233.5-117.5) on Nov. 10 in University Park, Pa. The win improved the men's record to 4-1 overall.
Five swimmers each captured a title at the two-day meet. On the first day of competition, Matt McLean captured the 500 free in 4:26.23. The second day proved more fruitful for Virginia as it picked up wins in the 1000 free (Taylor Smith – 9:17.80), 200 breast (John Azar – 2:03.70), 100 fly (Scot Robinson – 49.70) and 400 IM (Darren Ankosko – 4:00.09).
Looking forward with Virginia head coach Mark Bernardino:
Tennessee is loaded. They are absolutely one of the top five or six teams in the country, based on their stunning victory over Auburn. We knew they were good when we scheduled them, and we anticipate them to be one of our stiffest tests. It falls in line with what we are trying to do here. If you want to be the best, you have to test yourself against the best and see how you measure up. They don't have a single weakness in their lineup. It will be a tough match-up. Our best opportunities are probably in the distance and mid-distance events. Taylor Smith has been steady and consistent. He has been outstanding in the 1000 free and good in the 500 free. Matt McLean has been solid in the 200 free although he will be up against one of the best swimmers in the country (Persson). Matt has also raced well in the 500 free. Our breaststrokers have been getting better and better each well as well. We have to just go out and race; we have everything to gain and nothing to lose. We look forward to swimming against these guys.
Top 2007-08 Times Comparison:
Men:
50 Free
UT: 20.34, Octavio Alesi
UVA: 20.92, Scot Robison
100 Free
UT: 43.62, Jonas Persson
UVA: 45.66, Matt McLean
200 Free
UT: 1:36.40, Jonas Persson
UVA: 1:38.33, Matt McLean
500 Free
UT: 4:29.12, Geoff Sanders
UVA: 4:26.23, Matt McLean
1000 Free
UT: 9:16.06, Geoff Sanders
UVA: 9:12.39, Taylor Smith
1650 Free
UT: N/A
UVA: N/A
100 Back
UT: 49.33, Nolan Morrell
UVA: 50.44, Eric Olesen
200 Back
UT: 1:45.54, Michael Wolfe
UVA: 1:49.98, Kenton Harris
100 Breast
UT: 55.67, Barry Murphy
UVA: 57.24, John Azar
200 Breast
UT: 2:00.36, Brad Craig
UVA: 2:02.55, John Azar
100 Fly
UT: 48.17, Octavio Alesi
UVA: 49.31, Scot Robison
200 Fly
UT: 1:46.12, Michael Wolfe
UVA: 1:49.54, Lee Robertson
200 IM
UT: 1:49.82, Andrew Thirlwell
UVA: 1:52.50, John Azar
400 IM
UT: N/A
UVA: 4:00.08, Tim Hayes
200 Free Relay
UT: 1:24.02
UVA: 1:22.81
400 Free Relay
UT: 2:56.23
UVA: 3:03.48
800 Free Relay
UT: N/A
UVA: N/A
200 Medley Relay
UT: 1:27.56
UVA: 1:31.85
400 Medley Relay
UT: N/A
UVA: 3:20.54
1M Diving
UT: 318.60, Michael Muscari
UVA: 323.33, Alex D'Ambrosio
3M Diving
UT: 345.15, Ryan Rincon
UVA: 290.25, Alex D'Ambrosio
* – denotes meter conversion
