FAIRBANKS, Alaska – The Alaska Nanooks swim team is back in action after a two-week break, as they host another Pacific Collegiate Swimming Conference meet against No. 24 Cal State East Bay at the Patty Center Pool. The two-meet weekend will begin Friday at 6 p.m., while Saturday's meet will start at 9:30 a.m. The Nanooks return after sweeping fellow PCSC member Biola University the weekend of Oct. 30th.
Date & Time | Friday, Nov. 13th 6:00pm | Saturday, Nov. 14th 9:30pm |
Opponent | California State University East Bay Pioneers |
Location | Patty Center Pool | Fairbanks, Alaska |
Streaming | Saturday Only: Click Here |
Social Media | Twitter | Facebook |
Last Time Out
Halloween weekend proved to work in favor of the Nanooks, as they swept Biola State at home, going 126-97 on Friday (Oct. 30th) and 119.5-83.5 on Saturday (Oct. 31st). The weekend victory over the Eagles moved Alaska to 3-1 on the season. In day one of the meet, the Nanooks took titles in eight of the 12 events, while capturing seven titles on day two. Junior Katie Stark and sophomore Kate Mathews led the way for the Nanooks on day two, each picking up a pair of event titles.
Mathews Named PCSDC Division II Swimmer of the Week (Nov. 3rd)
Mathews continues her success with the Alaska Nanooks swim team, as the sophomore transfer was named Pacific Collegiate Swimming and Diving Conference Division II Swimmer of the Week for Nov. 3rd. Although this is the first conference honor for the Salem, Ore. native, it is her second weekly honor of the season, as she was previously named the CollegeSwimming.com NCAA Division II Swimmer of the Week on Oct. 21st. Mathews posted first-place finishes in all four events she competed in on Saturday, to help the Nanooks sweep Biola University at the Patty Center Pool.
Mathews picked up victories in the 200-yard individual medley (2:10.72), 100-yard breaststroke (1:06.36), 200-yard butterfly (2:14.00) and the 200-yard breaststroke (2:25.18) against the Eagles. Her 200 IM is the 17th fastest in NCAA Division II, while her 100-yard breaststroke is the 16th fastest time in NCAA Division II.
Familiar Waters
This weekend's swim meets against Cal State East Bay will be the third and final meet of the Nanooks' regular season, as Alaska was lucky enough to host all their meets at the Patty Center Pool for the 2015-16 year. The Nanooks have used their home-pool advantage to the fullest extent, only dropping one meet throughout the entire season (Azusa Pacific Oct. 17th). Saturday's meet will also be Senior Night, honoring two Alaska Nanook seniors.
Returning All-Americans
Alaska returns nine swimmers from last season, including five of their four All-Americans and welcomes six newcomers. The Nanooks are proud to bring back eight-time All-American junior Victoria Adams, six-time All-American junior Nga Nguyen and two-time All-American sophomores Katie Stark and Martha Hood.
Medley Dominance
It'll be a true test of relay teams this weekend against Cal State East Bay, thankfully Alaska's 200-yard and 400-yard medley relay teams have dominated each meet so far this season, both going 4-4 on the season. The Nanooks will look to keep the streak alive this weekend as Alaska's 400-yard medley relay team consisting of Adams, Nguyen, Stark and Hood have yet to show any signs of slowing down, while the 200-yard medley relay team has been a mix of Adams, Nguyen, Stark, Hood and sophomore Noelle Graham.
Scouting the Opposition – California State University East Bay Pioneers
Cal State East Bay was recently ranked No. 24 in the College Swimming Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) Division II national polls on Wednesday (Nov. 11th). The Pioneers (2-0) recently defeated Mills College (Oct. 9th) and took first place at the annual Bay Area Invitational (Oct. 24th).
The Nanooks will have to look out for junior Madison Hauanio, who holds the Pioneers' season-best times in 50-yard freestyle (10th fastest in NCAA Division II), 100-yard freestyle, 100-yard backstroke, 200-yard backstroke (seventh fastest in NCAA Division II), 100-yard butterfly and 200-yard butterfly. The other notable Pioneer is senior Rachel Shimizu, who also holds Cal State East Bay's season-best times in the 200-yard, 500-yard, 1,000-yard and 1,650-yard freestyle. The Pioneers also have the fifth fastest 800 freestyle relay team in NCAA Division II.
Coaches Corner
"We've never beat Cal State East Bay, but I think there are some really good matchups for this weekend. Last year, the two meets we had with them, it came down to the last relay. We've got better medley teams, while they have better freestyle teams. But there's no question that our returners and newcomers have developed more strength and are fit, now our focus is on building speed. The team and myself are all looking forward to this meet, it'll be a good test." – Head Coach Scott Lemley on the upcoming meets this weekend versus Cal State East Bay.
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