Swimming and Diving Teams Get Season Underway Friday
10/19/2006 12:00:00 AM | Swimming & Diving
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. ?? Pre-season is over and Alabama Swimming and Diving gets things started this weekend.
The Crimson Tide opens its season at home against Delta State Friday at 5 p.m. in the Alabama Aquatic Center while a contingent from the women’s team is splitting off this weekend to compete at the 13th-annual SMU Swimming and Diving Classic in Dallas, Texas.
“Training has been going really well to this point and it’s time for us to get up on the blocks and race,” head coach Eric McIlquham, now in his fourth season as the Tide’s mentor, said. “This will give us a good idea of where we are as we enter the next phase of the season.”
At the Classic, in addition to the host school the Tide will compete against Florida State, Wisconsin, Virginia Tech and LSU at Perkins Natatorium on the SMU campus.
The Tide men will be led by the school-record holding trio of senior Vlad Polyakov, senior Apostolis Tsagkarakis and Mark Randall. A Southeastern Conference and NCAA champion, Polyakov won the World 200 Breaststroke Championship last spring.
On the women’s side of the slate Alabama will be led by senior All-American and school record holder Victoria Genova, junior Erin Sparks and sophomore Vanessa Von der Heyde.
In addition to its veteran talent, Alabama has an influx of rookies on its roster ready to step in and make an immediate impact. There are 13 men and 13 women who could make their first splash for Tide this weekend.
Admission to Friday’s Delta State meet at the Alabama Aquatic Center is free.
