At the beginning of the season, fans had high expectations for the reigning A-10 champions. After a three-peat in swimming and diving and his conference championship performance, they now have their eyes set on higher goals.
Junior men's Djurgje Matic and sophomore women's Ewa Toporewski move closer to invitations to the NCAA Championships. compete in their respective fields March event. Matic is currently ranked Topolewski ranks 18th in the nation in the 100-yard butterfly. ranked 24th in the 1,650-yard freestyle.
“These two men couldn't be more different, having both made it to the NCAA qualifiers because of their past successes,” head swimming coach Brian Thomas said. “We have Jurje, a fall sprinter, and Eva, a long-distance swimmer.”
The distances they swim may be different, but what they have in common is a desire for the Olympics.topolewski earned Invitation to the U.S. Olympic Time Trial in Indianapolis in June swimming She ran a personal best time of 16:44.01 in Navy's 1,500-meter freestyle on Thursday.
Matic represented Serbia in the 50m butterfly, 100m butterfly and 400m medley relay at the World Aquatics Championships in Doha, Qatar, earlier this month. After the NCAA Championships, Matic and his coaches will continue training to compete in the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. He will aim to do so at the European Swimming Championships. held In my home country at the end of June.
“After NCAAs, that's our goal and that's our goal for the rest of the season,” Matic said.
Matic's season runs into June, but for most Golden Week swimmers and divers, it's over. The program began the season with a series of dual meets against some of the top teams in the country. Their first matchup was against Virginia Tech, the same team for both the men's and women's teams. ranked Ranked in the top 25 nationally.
“Our two-game schedule is designed to challenge us,” Thomas said.
to revolutionaries demolished The team's only win against Georgetown on January 20th was by the women's team. be defeated Pitt was 171-128 in the Nov. 4 dual matchup.Women's team so far got on the podium Several athletes competed in the women's 400-yard individual medley at the Rutgers Invitational on Oct. 6, and the diving team placed third at the West Virginia Invitational on Nov. 16.
“The girls dual meet win over Pitt is probably the biggest dual meet win at GW,” Thomas said.
Pittsburgh Tree Pool The pool at the Smith Center is a long-course pool, meaning it is 50 meters long for the Olympic Games. destroyed By next season, only 25 meters. For swimmers, this means half the amount of rotation they normally do at their home pool.
“By the time I get to the meeting, it's getting easier,” sophomore diver Olivia Paquette said. She said, “Competing against people who push you makes you better, makes you a better athlete, a better competitor. I think that's what led to my success in the A-10s.”
The team finished this season well, but setting At the A-10 Championships, they set five conference records and eight program records in events such as the boys' 100-yard butterfly and 400-yard individual medley, and the girls' 100-yard breaststroke and 400-yard medley. Both coaches earned Coach of the Year honors, and junior Connor Rogers was named Player of the Year by the A-10.
“The record is almost completely white on both sides,” Rogers said. “We're sending men and women to the NCAAs for the first time. So it's really great to be part of a program that continues to peak and improve every year.”
In addition to Matic and Topolewski likely competing at the NCAA Championships, six GW divers qualified In preparation for the Zone A Championship, which is a qualifying event for the National Championship. Several divers with the top scores in each Zone A event will compete in his NCAA competition.
The Zone A Championship will be held March 11-13 at DeNunzio Pool in Princeton, New Jersey. Paquette and junior Dara Leiblatt qualified on all three boards: 1-meter, 3-meter and platform.
“Olivia is always in the mix,” head dive coach Christopher Lane said. “It's hard for her to predict how the day will go because she's beaten a lot of athletes who have made it to the NCAAs in the past, but we definitely want her to be as ready as possible.” Make sure.”
Puckett hopes to build on his success this season, when he won both the 1-meter and 3-meter dives at the A-10 Championships. She broke the 1-meter record last weekend and currently holds the program record in both dives.
“I set some records this year that surprised even me,” Paquette said. “I think I've really learned that I'm taking my performance to the next level. The 1-meter record this week was really exciting. I've been keeping an eye on it since I've been here.”
Men and women sent swimmers and a variety of events to this weekend's Bulldog Invitational Last Chance Meet in Athens, Ga., to try the following: get a qualification Heading into the NCAA Championship.
Junior Moria Freitas swam in the women's 100-yard butterfly and 200-yard butterfly. Sophomore Phoebe Wright placed third in the girls' 200-yard backstroke and competed in the 100-yard backstroke. Junior Eva DeAngelis won silver medals in the 100-yard breaststroke and 200-yard breaststroke.
Jurje earned 1st place in the men's 100 yard butterfly. Rogers swam the 200-yard individual medley, 200-yard backstroke and 400-yard individual medley. Sophomore Toni Dragoja placed third in the 200-yard freestyle and sixth in the 100-yard freestyle.Dragoja would do the same. compete He qualified for the European Championships by scoring 49.42 points in the 100m freestyle held at Navy on February 29th. He placed second in the men's 200-yard medley relay with a time of 1:25.70, and the men's 400-yard medley relay finished in just over three minutes.
Ben Spitalny and Sandra Koretz contributed reporting
