Kentucky Swimming & Diving Scrimmages in Blue-White Meet
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Less than two months after the conclusion of summer meets, the University of Kentucky swimming and diving program inaugurates its short-course season with the annual Blue-White intrasquad meet on Friday at 3 p.m. at the Lancaster Aquatic Center.
“We’re excited to get our season started,” said head coach Lars Jorgensen. “This is a good opportunity to see where we are as a team after only a few weeks of training. There’s always a lot of fun and excitement around the athletes competing against each other. It’s a fun meet, and it gives the coaching staff an indication of where we are ahead of the season.”
The scrimmage, which marks the start of Jorgensen’s seventh season as head coach at Kentucky, gives each athlete an opportunity to compete. Popularly pegged as one of the most enjoyable events on the schedule, the Blue-White meet offers a competitive setting combined with a fun, internal rivalry among the squads. The scrimmage will prepare the team ahead of a four-month stretch of regular season meets.
“We’re excited for the first meet of the year and to have some friendly competition,” said head diving coach Ted Hautau. “We have been training, getting in shape, and working on our mechanics and technique. We will probably do a contest where the divers do three harder dives and three basic dives, which will give them a chance to focus on technique. It’s a long season, and we’re excited to get it started.”
The program of 62 athletes features 43 returners (18 men and 25 women) and 19 newcomers (nine men and 10 women). The men’s team returns five of its six scorers from the 2019 NCAA Championships, while the women’s team returns five of its seven scorers from the national meet.
Two newcomers have already made an impression on the program, recently being named to the 2019-20 National Junior Team. Caitlin Brooks of Gainesville, Florida, and Gillian Davey of Urbandale, Iowa, represented Kentucky at the Phillips 66 National Championships last summer, each putting ink to the record book before even beginning freshman classes.
Brooks, the No. 2 prospect out of Florida in her class, adds depth to UK’s backstroke-heavy team. She earned a silver medal at the National Championships in the 100m backstroke, breaking a school record in 1:00.46. Davey, the No. 1 prospect out of Iowa, also stamped her name in the record book, breaking the 200m breaststroke record in 2:26.80.
The program had an active summer, with 21 athletes producing a combined 38 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trial cut times and scores – 20 swimmers and one diver. Senior Asia Seidt leads the bunch, earning qualifying marks in five individual events – 100m and 200m backstroke, 100m and 200m butterfly and 200m IM.
Seidt, a native of Louisville, Kentucky, earned UK’s first-ever gold medal at the Phillips 66 National Championships, winning the 200m backstroke in 2:08.90. Before that, she represented Team USA at the World University Games in Naples, Italy, where she set a WUG record in the semifinals on a first-place mark of 2:08.81. In the championship event, she collected a silver medal for Team USA, finishing second on a personal-best time of 2:08.56.
Last season, the men’s and women’s teams improved from the year before at both the SEC Championships and the NCAA Championships. In 2019, the women finished third at the conference meet, tying its best finish in the league meet in program history, and its second third-place finish in three seasons. At the NCAA Championships, the women earned the second-most points in program history – both have come in the past three seasons – recording 100.5 points to finish in 15th place.
The UK men have improved in points and team finish in each of its past three appearances at the SEC Championships. In 2019, the men finished in seventh place at the league meet, two spots improved from the season before in 2017-18, and three spots improved from 2016-17. At the NCAA Championships, the men’s team finished in 25th place on 26 points, its best finish since placing 22nd in 2012-13.
Last season, the swimming and diving program earned 16 medals at the league meet – 11 bronze, four silver, one gold. In addition, Kentucky collected 26 All-America honors on the backs of 13 swimmers and divers at the 2019 NCAA Championships.
Tickets and Parking
There is no entry fee and fans are encouraged to attend. Parking for spectators will be available in parking structure No. 7 located on Sports Center Drive, across from the E.J. Nutter Training Facility.
Next on the Schedule
The men’s and women’s teams will host perennial-program Indiana and Notre Dame on Oct. 9 at 10 a.m., at the Lancaster Aquatic Center. Last season, the Wildcats opened its season on the road in Bloomington, Indiana, to compete in a quad meet featuring Indiana, Notre Dame and Missouri. Kentucky earned just one win in the meet, with the UK men defeating Notre Dame, 154.5-143.5.
Individuals’ times and events will not be reported after the meet.
For the latest on the Kentucky swimming and diving program, follow @UKSwimDive on Twitter and on Instagram, on Facebook and on the web at UKathletics.com.
