ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The University of New Mexico’s swimming and diving team will be back in the water again as their Intra-Squad meet will take place this weekend in the Seidler Natatorium on Sat, Sep. 13 at 9:30 a.m.
The Intra-Squad meet is an annual event within the team in which they divide into groups of “Cherry” and “Silver.” It is not an official meet and the athletes will not be recording indivual or team records, rather it allows team bonding and a taste of competition for the swimmers and divers prior to the actual season.
The 2014-2015 season marks Kunio Kono’s third year as head coach and second for assistant coach Aimee Dunavant and diving coach Julie Weddle. Naoya Tomita, Jessica Montoya and Lyndsay Stapleton will be joining the Lobos again this year as the team’s volunteer assistant coach, fifth year assistant and student manager, respectively.
This year’s roster includes a total of 26 swimmers and divers. Eight of which are freshman, one transfer and 17 returning athletes.
New Mexico’s new faces this season are shown below as well as their corresponding events and hometown:
Madison Burns SPRINT FR/FLY Alamogordo, N.M.
Celine Bertrand IM/FLY Tibro, Vastra Gotalands, Sweden
Amelie Braul SPRINT FR Hanover, Germany
Rachel Colman DIVE Allen, Texas
Deidra Dorough BACK Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.
Morgan Ginnis SPRINT FR/FLY Arlington, Wash.
Emily McGill IM/BREASTROKE Lower Hut, New Zealand
Aundrea Scott DIVE Grapevine, Texas
Kayla Taylor DIVE Rio Rancho, N.M.
“We’re getting into the third week of the season and already have great team bonding and work effort. This year’s captains Caitlin Gardiner, Amber Amr, Carlie McGregor and Sarah Weihe have shown great leadership and are taking our new team to the next level,” says head coach Kunio Kono.
He includes, “The Intra-Squad meet this Saturday should be a fun, bonding, and building experience for our team.”
UNM’s swimming and diving team is coming back after a very successful previous season where they showed their excellence in both the pool and in the classroom.
The Lobos moved up to fifth place in their conference standing at the 2014 Mountain West Championships, received the 2013 Fall CSCAA Scholar All-America Teams award, the 2014 Spring CSCAA Scholar All-America Teams award, had 23 Spring 2014 Mountain West Academic All-Conference honorees and three Spring 2014 CSCAA Honorable Mention Scholar All-America award recipients (Kaela McKee, Jorgi Hobson, and Caitlin Gardiner).
Next up for the Lobos is Laramie, Wyo. where they will travel next month to participate in their first official meet of the season against the Cowgirls on Thu, Oct. 9 at 5:00 p.m.