Jan. 2, 2015
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The Kentucky diving team opens the new year at the Tennessee Diving Invitational, Jan. 3-5 in Knoxville, Tenn.
Competition begins on Jan. 3 with the prelims and finals of the women’s 3-meter and men’s 1-meter events. The women will be on 1-meter and the men on 3-meter on Jan. 4, while the meet concludes with platform on Jan. 6.
“We are looking forward to our first meet of the new year,” head diving coach Ted Hautau said. “We will be competing in a championship format with prelims and finals and there are a lot of divers competing, so this will be similar in length and feel to the NCAA qualifying meet.”
Fans can follow along with live results from the Tennessee Diving Invite on DiveMeets.com. Additional updates and behind-the-scenes news and notes can be found on Twitter at @UKSwimDive.
CABOT NAMED SEC DIVER OF THE WEEK
Kentucky senior diver Christa Cabot was named the Southeastern Conference Women’s Diver of the Week on Oct. 21 after winning both diving events with season-best scores vs. Florida.
The SEC Diver of the Week award is the first of Cabot’s career. A native of The Woodlands, Texas, Cabot claimed her first victory of the season with a 327.83 in the 3-meter event. The senior bested Florida’s Kahlia Warner by just over four points. In the 1-meter event, Cabot tallied a 327.45, also a season-best to win by over 20 points over Warner.
LAST TIME OUT: RECORDS FALL AT OHIO STATE INVITATIONAL
At the Ohio State Invitational, Nov. 21-23, Kentucky broke six school records to finish second of seven in the women’s standings and third in the men’s. Sophomore Danielle Galyer won three individual events and broke three UK records, while senior Christina Bechtel won two events and set four school-record times. Sophomores Kendal Casey and Brandon Flynn and freshman Bridgette Alexander each posted one win while Bechtel, Casey, Galyer and senior Abby Myers recorded a win in the 800 freestyle relay, also with a school-record time.
UK’s strongest event Friday was the women’s 200 individual medley, where the Wildcats placed four in the top nine, all with times that rank in the top seven in program history. Along with Galyer’s school-record 1:58.49 to win the event, freshman Morgan Belli finished second with a 2:01.51, a personal-record and the third-fastest time in school history. Junior Frida Jakobsson was fifth in 2:01.88, also a personal-best and the fourth-fastest time in UK history. Freshman Bridgette Alexander placed ninth in 2:02.93 to record the ninth-best time in team history. Galyer and Belli each posted NCAA B qualifying times.
Kentucky’s biggest win Saturday came in the women’s 800 freestyle relay. Bechtel, Galyer, Myers and Casey finished in 7:06.84 to break the UK record by nearly four seconds. The NCAA ‘A’ qualifying time beat the second-place finishers from Purdue by nearly eight seconds. Also Saturday, Bechtel recorded a win in the women’s 100 butterfly. Her 51.11 broke the meet record in the event and gave the senior an NCAA ‘A’ qualifying time. Myers finished second in the event for UK with a 52.87. A new personal-best and the fourth-fastest time in school history, Myers earned an NCAA ‘B’ qualifying time.
Sunday, Bechtel remained perfect this season in butterfly events with a 1:52.36 in the 200 fly, shattering her own school record, breaking the Ohio State Invitational meet record and earning an NCAA `A’ qualifying time. Myers placed third with a 1:58.24, an NCAA `B’ qualifying time. Galyer notched her third school record in as many days with a 1:53.28 to win the 200 backstroke. The win, with an NCAA `B’ qualifying time, came by 2.46 seconds, ahead of teammate Bridgette Alexander, who placed second in 1:55.74. The freshman also earned an NCAA `B’ qualifying time.
UP NEXT: AT VANDERBILT, VIRGINIA TECH
The UK swimmers open the 2015 season with a pair of road meets, with the women at Vanderbilt on Jan. 9 and the men at Virginia Tech on Jan. 10. The Wildcat divers will join the men in Blacksburg, Va.
BECHTEL, GALYER EARN SPOT ON TEAM USA IN 2014-15
Senior Christina Bechtel was named to the 2014-15 USA Swimming National Team, while sophomore Danielle Galyer earned a spot on the 2014-15 Junior National Team. Bechtel and Galyer were named to Team USA after competing alongside 12 other UK swimmers at the USA Swimming National Championships, Aug. 6-10.
Bechtel was selected to Team USA as one of six swimmers in the 100 and 200 butterfly after a 59.05 in the 100 fly and a 2:09.67 in the 200 at the national championships. Galyer’s first competition with USA Swimming was at the 2014 Junior Pan Pacific Championships, August 27-30. One of 23 female competitors to represent the United State at the international event, Galyer notched a fourth-place finish, the highest of any U.S. athlete in the women’s 200 LC Meter Backstroke in 2:13.77.
NATIONAL ACADEMIC HONORS
Highlighted by earning the nation’s best grade-point average among Division I men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams, the 2013-14 season was capped by several national academic honors for the UK women’s swimming and diving team. The team earned a 3.728 GPA, best among all University of Kentucky teams and tops in the country, as recognized by the College Swimming Coaches Association of America.
The CSCAA also named seven UK swimmers and divers Scholar All-Americans. Christina Bechtel, Christa Cabot, Danielle Galyer and Abby Myers earned First Team Scholar All-America honors, while Kelly Berger, Kendal Casey and Kendra Crew each were named to the Honorable Mention team.
Additionally, Abby Myers was named to the 2014 Capital One Academic All-District At-Large team, one of 10 honorees on the Division I team in District 2 and one of six women’s swimmers from the Southeastern Conference.
For complete news and updates on the Kentucky Swimming and Diving program, go to UKathletics.com/SwimmingDiving. Breaking news, behind-the-scenes updates, photos and more can be found on Twitter at @UKSwimDive and Facebook at Facebook.com/UKSwimDive.
