FORT MYERS, Fla. – The FGCU swimming & diving team (4-0, 4-0 CCSA) is preparing for its home opener, as the team is set to host Vanderbilt in a 4 p.m. meet on Friday, Oct. 25 at the FGCU Aquatics Complex. During the meet, the Eagles will be honoring Cancer Awareness Night and fans are invited to participate in a pink out. "Together, we are stronger than cancer" shirts will be on sale for $15.
After the meet, attendees are encouraged to head over to Alico Arena for Dunk City After Dark, the annual FGCU Hoops kickoff event. Doors open at 6 p.m. and fans can clickÂ
here for more information.Â
The Green and Blue
The Eagles had a few weeks off after opening the season with a pair of meets on the road in Jacksonville, Fla. and Statesboro, Ga. against CCSA opponents. The Eagles swept both UNF (185-76) and Campbell (133-128) on Friday, Oct. 4 and then carried the momentum through the following day as the team cruised past Georgia Southern (172-70) and Campbell (146-94).
The team's 4-0 mark is the best record at the start of a season since 2015.Â
After capturing both the 1M and 3M titles in her collegiate debut, freshman
Reese Wakefield (Guelph, Ontario, Canada/Bishop Macdonelle CHS) took home the Green and Blue's first weekly honor of the season, earning
CCSA Diver of the Week (Oct. 7). FGCU received Diver of the Week honors five times throughout last season.
Junior
Petra Halmai (Dombovar, Hungary/Lanczos Komel Secondari Grammar School) led the swimmers over the course of the Eagles' opening weekend, picking up four first-place finishes in individual events, as well as contributing to a relay win. She currently leads the CCSA with times in both the 200 fly (2:04.79) and the 200 breast (2:20.06).
In addition to the excitement of earning back-to-back sweeps, multiple FGCU rookies picked up first-place individual finishes in their collegiate debuts.
Hannah VanDress (Cape Coral, Fla./Bishop Verot HS) took home the 1000-yard freestyle in both meets, while
Kaja Reinhardt (Herdecke, Germany/Helene-Lange-Gymnasium Dortmund) won the 500 Free in the meet against Campbell and UNF.
Vanderbilt
Friday's tilt will mark the first time the Eagles and the Commodores have faced off in a dual meet.
Vanderbilt (1-2, 0-1 SEC) dropped its season-opener against conference foe Alabama (Oct. 5) by a score of 146-105. The Commodores won four of the meet's 16 events, three of which were individual events. The team also took home the 400-yard freestyle relay.
Vanderbilt was able to pick up its first win of the season during a tri-meet on the road in Michigan (Oct. 11). The Commodores downed Milwaukee by a decisive score of 207-81 before falling to host Oakland 176-118.
Sophomore Lizzy Colwell has picked up three first-place finishes so far this season, the most of any Commodore. Classmate Tonner Debeer has also contributed significant points to the team, tallying a pair of first-place finishes.
Last season, Vanderbilt finished the 2018-19 season at the SEC Championships, where the team finished in 12th place (153 points). The Commodores do not have a diving team and their roster is fairly evenly split between classes.
FOLLOW ALONG
For up-to-date coverage of FGCU women's swimming and diving, follow us on Twitter @FGCU_WSWIM and visit www.FGCUAthletics.com where full recaps and results will be available.
HEAD COACH DAVE ROLLINS
Head coach Dave Rollins is only the second coach in program history. He was hired Sept. 1, 2016 and owns a 29-13 (.690) dual meet record, which includes an 11-1 (.916) mark against CCSA opponents, in his fourth season. Rollins guided FGCU to back-to-back CCSA titles (2017, 2018), as well as the program's fourth-straight title in 2018, marking the ninth championship in 10 years. In addition, he has been awarded CCSA Coach of the Year in two of his seasons at the helm. Previously, Rollins was the associate head men's swimming coach at The Ohio State University. Rollins brings over a decade of coaching experience to The Nest, which includes helping to develop Olympians, NCAA Champions and All-Americans, along with multiple conference champions. A native of Brockton, Mass., he was a standout collegiate swimmer in his own right and was inducted into the University of Arizona's Hall of Fame in 2017, as a nine-time NCAA All-American, national champion, school record holder and team captain.
#FEEDFGCU
FGCU Athletics sponsors events throughout the year to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics' charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.
ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 78 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 12 seasons at the Division-I level. Additionally, in just eight seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 36 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. Seven FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport – including both men's and women's soccer again in 2018. In 2016-17, the Green and Blue posted a department-best 6th-place finish in the DI-AAA Learfield Directors' Cup and top-100 showing nationally, ahead of several Power-5 and FBS institutions. In 2018-19, the Eagles had an ASUN and state of Florida best seven teams earn the NCAA's Public Recognition Award for their Academic Progress Rate in their sport. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.35 GPA in the classroom in the spring 2018 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for twenty consecutive semesters. The Eagles also served an all-time high 7,200 volunteer hours in 2017 – being recognized as one of two runners-up for the inaugural NACDA Community Service Award presented by the Fiesta Bowl.
--FGCUATHLETICS.COM--
Â
