ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The University of New Mexico swimming and diving program prepare for another competition packed weekend as they will travel to Las Vegas, Nev. to participate in the UNLV Winter Invitational.
Three weeks have passed since the Lobos were last seen in an official meet. The swimmers are coming back after wrapping up the Mizzou Invite with 227 points for seventh place while the divers completed individual performances at the Wildcat Diving Invitational in Tuscon, Ariz. New Mexico’s Mountain West affiliate, UNLV Rebels, were also seen at both events where they finished for ninth place after collecting 34 points at the Mizzou Invite.
The Rebels will face the Lobos with a 1-2 season record and a full team of 27 athletes, 16 of which are letter winners.
UNM’s time off from competition is far from leisurely but has allowed some time to taper before kicking it back into gear for the UNLV Winter Invitational.
Head coach Kunio Kono says, “The group resting for this weekend are doing very well. They didn’t go to the Mizzou Invite last month so this will be their challenge meet. They are not resting completely and the other group is training hard. UNLV is just part of their training.”
The Lobo coaching staff is excited for the upcoming three day meet as they expect to see strong performances and personal season best times. The team’s ample experience with extended invitational contests this season will also contribute to their opportunity of success.
Kono says the competitive experience that they have already accumulated this year will be an advantage, “Especially for the preliminary and final meets. This is a good practice meet for the conference championships and the NCAA Championships. Our girls are well fit and ready for more speed training.”
The Rebels are expected to be a challenging competitor, which will be good practice for the Lobos to raise the bar and become faster and stronger in their events.
UNLV and New Mexico will go head to head beginning on Saturday until Monday in the all day event. Following the UNLV Winter Invitational, the Lobos will host Colorado State in the final home meet of the season which will also stand as Senior Day on Sat, Jan. 17 at 11:00 a.m. MT