University of Minnesota Athletics
Saturday, January 23
Madison, WI
1:00 PM
University of Minnesota
at
Wisconsin
Players Mentioned
Diving
/ Women's Swimming & Diving
Breaststroke/Sprint Freestyle
/ Women's Swimming & Diving
Sprint Freestyle
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Diving
/ Men's Swimming & Diving
Backstroke
/ Women's Swimming & Diving
Backstroke/Butterfly
/ Men's Swimming & Diving
Distance Freestyle
/ Women's Swimming & Diving
Diving
/ Women's Swimming & Diving
Diving
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Freestyle
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Freestyle/Backstroke/IM
/ Men's Swimming & Diving
Freestyle
/ Women's Swimming & Diving
Breaststroke/IM
/ Women's Swimming & Diving
Diving
/ Men's Swimming & Diving
Breaststroke/Butterfly
/ Women's Swimming & Diving
/ Women's Swimming & Diving
Freestyle/Backstroke/IM
/ Women's Swimming & Diving
Breaststroke/Freestyle
/ Men's Swimming & Diving
Diving
/ Women's Swimming & Diving
Diving
/ Women's Swimming & Diving
Freestyle
/ Women's Swimming & Diving
Freestyle
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Backstroke/Butterfly/Freestyle
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Breaststroke
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Diving
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Preview: Gophers Take on Wisconsin/Purdue in Tri-Dual
1/20/2021 12:58:00 PM | Men's Swimming & Diving, Women's Swimming & Diving
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
The Minnesota Swimming & Diving programs are ready to get the 2020-21 season underway, taking on the Wisconsin Badgers and Purdue Boilermakers in Madison, Wis. this Saturday, Jan. 23.
"The Golden Gophers are ready to compete in the prestigious Big Ten Conference," said senior associate head coach Terry Ganley. "We know a lot of administrators, along with the Big Ten Conference, have done a lot of work to allow us the opportunity to compete, and we all really appreciate and value that.
"We're going into this Big Ten triple-dual meet with the confidence that we're going to represent our institution and the Big Ten to the best of our ability. We've got elite level athletes that haven't competed in 11 months, and they're hungry. We're excited, we're prepared and we're ready to go."
LAST TIME OUT
The last time a Minnesota student-athlete touched competitive waters was at the 2020 NCAA Zone D Diving Championships, where nine Gophers competed for a shot at the 2020 NCAA Championships. After the dust settled on the final day of the event, five divers officially punched their tickets to the NCAAs in either the one-meter or three-meter events.
For the men, now-senior Duncan Lester and now-sophomore Jake Butler both earned a spot in the one-meter event, while three women were set to advance as well. Joy Zhu and Jaclynn Fowler qualified in both the one and three-meter events, while Jae Sarkis earned her bid in the three-meter only.
As for the swimmers, their last taste of action came at their respective Big Ten Conference Championships, where the women's and men's sides placed sixth and eighth, respectively. Top performances were aplenty for the Gophers throughout each meet, with now-junior Max McHugh's electric 100-yard breaststroke victory the pinnacle of the meet for the men.
The women's championship saw numerous top finishes for the Maroon and Gold as well, with then-junior Emily Cook and seniors Lindsey Kozelsky and Tevyn Waddell combining to post five top-seven finishes. Zhu earned silver in both springboard events at the meet as well, helping boost the squad to their sixth place finish.
FINALLY BACK
As the final day of the 2020 Zone D Championships fell on March 11, 2020, Saturday's meet will mark the end of a 313-day, competition-less span for any member of the Maroon and Gold.
That span stretches even longer for the swimmers, as the Big Ten Championships came weeks before the Zone Diving Championships. For the men's squad, Saturday's meet will bring the count to 324 days without collegiate competition, while the women's side will reach another week farther, totaling 331 days.
A BIT ON THE BADGERS
Saturday will mark the first day of competition for the Badgers as well, who are coming off of a strong 2019-20 season in which their men's and women's programs finished NR/No. 24 in the CSCAA Top-25 rankings and fourth and fifth at the 2020 Big Ten Championships, respectively.
Wisconsin found success in their dual-meet schedule as well, with both their men's (4-1) and women's (3-2) sides finishing over .500 on the year.
A PEEK AT PURDUE
The Purdue women have one meet under their belt so far this year, as they took down Illinois back on Saturday, Jan. 16 by a final score of 173-122. Due to cancelations caused by COVID-19 concerns, the Purdue men's team has yet to compete in the 2020-21 season.
Last season, both sides of the Boilermaker's programs placed seventh overall at the 2020 Big Ten Championships, while finishing No. 24/NR in the CSCAA Top-25 rankings.
SERIES HISTORY
Since 2010, both the men's and women's programs hold impressively strong records over both Wisconsin and Purdue in dual meets. The women have gone a perfect 10-0 over the Boilermakers and a cool 10-4 over the Badgers, while the men hold decisive 8-2 and 10-4 records over each, respectively.
In their most recent face-off in 2019, Wisconsin got the better of the Gophers, as the men fell 123-177 and the women were just edged out with a final score of 145-155.
Minnesota split their 2019-20 matchup with the Boilermakers, which came in a tri-dual with Northwestern late in the season. The women dismantled their opponents 233-129, while the men fell 169-184.
A LOOK AT THE GOPHER WOMEN
As outlined in the Season Preview released last week, the Gophers are looking very strong coming into the 2020-21 season, especially in the backstroke, freestyle and diving events. Seasoned veteran and All-American Emily Cook should lead a strong group of backstrokers in 2021, while the trio of Olivia Bloomer, Maggie Summit and Jordan McGinty will likely lead in the shorter freestyle events.
The return of redshirt senior captain Sarah Bacon should boost the Gophers greatly in the diving well, as she will be leading newcomers Megan Phillip and Susanna Fish in their first time out for the Gophers. Bacon has been named Minnesota's diving captain for the 2020-21 season, alongside fellow senior captains Abbey Erwin and Brittany Horn.
Although the loss of All-Americans Waddell and Kozelsky will surely be felt by the Gophers this season, the list of potential breakout candidates is vast, with many jockeying to take over their substantial roles. Some big names on the list for fans to watch include sophomore breaststrokers Grace Bennin and Emma Lezer and junior butterflyers Kate Sullivan and Emma Linscott.
For a full view of last week's women's Season Preview, follow the link at the top of this page.
A LOOK AT THE GOPHER MEN
On the men's side of the roster, Minnesota is looking very strong as well, returning All-Americans Tom Donker and Max McHugh to the 2020-21 roster. McHugh especially impressed at the 2020 Big Ten Championships, where the Sturgeon Bay, Wis. native took gold in the 100-yard breaststroke with a nation's fastest time of 50.67, just 0.37 seconds off of Minnesota's team record. He will be heading an explosive group of breaststrokers this season.
Donker, who missed the 2019-20 season due to injury, will be back in a big way, taking over a role as a team captain alongside senior breaststroker Eitan Yudashkin. Donker's prowess in both the backstroke and butterfly should help propel his fellow Gophers in each stroke throughout the event.
Many newcomers figure to make an immediate impact in their first meet donning the Maroon and Gold, with the likes of distance freestylers Sawyer Grimes and James Freeman amongst them. A number of returning athletes could be on the verge of a major breakthrough as well, giving the Gophers an excellent squad for the coming year.
To see a full look at last week's men's Season Preview, follow the link at the top of this page.
HEARING FROM SENIOR CAPTAIN ABBEY ERWIN
On the upcoming tri-dual...
"I'm just looking forward to the opportunity to compete again after a long break," said Erwin. "Everyone has been training hard, and I'm excited to see everyone get a chance to get out and compete again."
HEARING FROM SENIOR CAPTAIN EITAN YUDASHKIN
On the upcoming tri-dual…
"We're really looking forward to having a strong meet as a team," said Yudashkin. "We finally get the chance to compete, and I know this great energy will transform into some seriously fast performances."
LOOKING AHEAD
The Gophers next meet lies two weeks ahead, and will be their only home meet of the dual-meet season. The women's side will host the Iowa Hawkeyes and Nebraska Cornhuskers, while the men will host only the Hawkeyes in dual-meet format.
The meet will take place Saturday, Feb. 6, with action kicking off at 10 a.m. CT. Although no fans will be allowed in the venue for health and safety concerns, the meet will be streamed on BTN+.
- RV/NR Minnesota aims to kick off their 2020-21 dual meet season with a pair of wins over No. 23/NR Wisconsin and NR/NR Purdue
- Action will kick off on Saturday, Jan. 23 at 1 p.m. CT
- Social Media: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
The Minnesota Swimming & Diving programs are ready to get the 2020-21 season underway, taking on the Wisconsin Badgers and Purdue Boilermakers in Madison, Wis. this Saturday, Jan. 23.
"The Golden Gophers are ready to compete in the prestigious Big Ten Conference," said senior associate head coach Terry Ganley. "We know a lot of administrators, along with the Big Ten Conference, have done a lot of work to allow us the opportunity to compete, and we all really appreciate and value that.
"We're going into this Big Ten triple-dual meet with the confidence that we're going to represent our institution and the Big Ten to the best of our ability. We've got elite level athletes that haven't competed in 11 months, and they're hungry. We're excited, we're prepared and we're ready to go."
LAST TIME OUT
The last time a Minnesota student-athlete touched competitive waters was at the 2020 NCAA Zone D Diving Championships, where nine Gophers competed for a shot at the 2020 NCAA Championships. After the dust settled on the final day of the event, five divers officially punched their tickets to the NCAAs in either the one-meter or three-meter events.
For the men, now-senior Duncan Lester and now-sophomore Jake Butler both earned a spot in the one-meter event, while three women were set to advance as well. Joy Zhu and Jaclynn Fowler qualified in both the one and three-meter events, while Jae Sarkis earned her bid in the three-meter only.
As for the swimmers, their last taste of action came at their respective Big Ten Conference Championships, where the women's and men's sides placed sixth and eighth, respectively. Top performances were aplenty for the Gophers throughout each meet, with now-junior Max McHugh's electric 100-yard breaststroke victory the pinnacle of the meet for the men.
The women's championship saw numerous top finishes for the Maroon and Gold as well, with then-junior Emily Cook and seniors Lindsey Kozelsky and Tevyn Waddell combining to post five top-seven finishes. Zhu earned silver in both springboard events at the meet as well, helping boost the squad to their sixth place finish.
FINALLY BACK
As the final day of the 2020 Zone D Championships fell on March 11, 2020, Saturday's meet will mark the end of a 313-day, competition-less span for any member of the Maroon and Gold.
That span stretches even longer for the swimmers, as the Big Ten Championships came weeks before the Zone Diving Championships. For the men's squad, Saturday's meet will bring the count to 324 days without collegiate competition, while the women's side will reach another week farther, totaling 331 days.
A BIT ON THE BADGERS
Saturday will mark the first day of competition for the Badgers as well, who are coming off of a strong 2019-20 season in which their men's and women's programs finished NR/No. 24 in the CSCAA Top-25 rankings and fourth and fifth at the 2020 Big Ten Championships, respectively.
Wisconsin found success in their dual-meet schedule as well, with both their men's (4-1) and women's (3-2) sides finishing over .500 on the year.
A PEEK AT PURDUE
The Purdue women have one meet under their belt so far this year, as they took down Illinois back on Saturday, Jan. 16 by a final score of 173-122. Due to cancelations caused by COVID-19 concerns, the Purdue men's team has yet to compete in the 2020-21 season.
Last season, both sides of the Boilermaker's programs placed seventh overall at the 2020 Big Ten Championships, while finishing No. 24/NR in the CSCAA Top-25 rankings.
SERIES HISTORY
Since 2010, both the men's and women's programs hold impressively strong records over both Wisconsin and Purdue in dual meets. The women have gone a perfect 10-0 over the Boilermakers and a cool 10-4 over the Badgers, while the men hold decisive 8-2 and 10-4 records over each, respectively.
In their most recent face-off in 2019, Wisconsin got the better of the Gophers, as the men fell 123-177 and the women were just edged out with a final score of 145-155.
Minnesota split their 2019-20 matchup with the Boilermakers, which came in a tri-dual with Northwestern late in the season. The women dismantled their opponents 233-129, while the men fell 169-184.
A LOOK AT THE GOPHER WOMEN
As outlined in the Season Preview released last week, the Gophers are looking very strong coming into the 2020-21 season, especially in the backstroke, freestyle and diving events. Seasoned veteran and All-American Emily Cook should lead a strong group of backstrokers in 2021, while the trio of Olivia Bloomer, Maggie Summit and Jordan McGinty will likely lead in the shorter freestyle events.
The return of redshirt senior captain Sarah Bacon should boost the Gophers greatly in the diving well, as she will be leading newcomers Megan Phillip and Susanna Fish in their first time out for the Gophers. Bacon has been named Minnesota's diving captain for the 2020-21 season, alongside fellow senior captains Abbey Erwin and Brittany Horn.
Although the loss of All-Americans Waddell and Kozelsky will surely be felt by the Gophers this season, the list of potential breakout candidates is vast, with many jockeying to take over their substantial roles. Some big names on the list for fans to watch include sophomore breaststrokers Grace Bennin and Emma Lezer and junior butterflyers Kate Sullivan and Emma Linscott.
For a full view of last week's women's Season Preview, follow the link at the top of this page.
A LOOK AT THE GOPHER MEN
On the men's side of the roster, Minnesota is looking very strong as well, returning All-Americans Tom Donker and Max McHugh to the 2020-21 roster. McHugh especially impressed at the 2020 Big Ten Championships, where the Sturgeon Bay, Wis. native took gold in the 100-yard breaststroke with a nation's fastest time of 50.67, just 0.37 seconds off of Minnesota's team record. He will be heading an explosive group of breaststrokers this season.
Donker, who missed the 2019-20 season due to injury, will be back in a big way, taking over a role as a team captain alongside senior breaststroker Eitan Yudashkin. Donker's prowess in both the backstroke and butterfly should help propel his fellow Gophers in each stroke throughout the event.
Many newcomers figure to make an immediate impact in their first meet donning the Maroon and Gold, with the likes of distance freestylers Sawyer Grimes and James Freeman amongst them. A number of returning athletes could be on the verge of a major breakthrough as well, giving the Gophers an excellent squad for the coming year.
To see a full look at last week's men's Season Preview, follow the link at the top of this page.
HEARING FROM SENIOR CAPTAIN ABBEY ERWIN
On the upcoming tri-dual...
"I'm just looking forward to the opportunity to compete again after a long break," said Erwin. "Everyone has been training hard, and I'm excited to see everyone get a chance to get out and compete again."
HEARING FROM SENIOR CAPTAIN EITAN YUDASHKIN
On the upcoming tri-dual…
"We're really looking forward to having a strong meet as a team," said Yudashkin. "We finally get the chance to compete, and I know this great energy will transform into some seriously fast performances."
LOOKING AHEAD
The Gophers next meet lies two weeks ahead, and will be their only home meet of the dual-meet season. The women's side will host the Iowa Hawkeyes and Nebraska Cornhuskers, while the men will host only the Hawkeyes in dual-meet format.
The meet will take place Saturday, Feb. 6, with action kicking off at 10 a.m. CT. Although no fans will be allowed in the venue for health and safety concerns, the meet will be streamed on BTN+.
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