Dec. 5, 2008
THIS WEEK
After four weeks since its last competitive match, San Diego State (3-4; 2-4 MWC) will travel to Bakersfield, Calif., to compete in a dual meet against Cal State Bakersfield on Saturday, Dec. 6, beginning at 1:00 p.m. (PST). The meet will be held at the Hillman Aquatics Center on the CSU Bakersfield campus.
LAST TIME OUT
SDSU dropped a pair of Mountain West Conference meets that were swum in conjunction with the Anteater Shootout in Irvine, Calif. The Aztecs lost to Brigham Young (81-22) and UNLV (60-53) at that event. Those dual meets consisted of 13 events and were scored 5-3-1 for first through third place. A total of seven schools (including Stanford, Pepperdine, UC Davis and Hawai'i) also had athletes competing in every event.
Individually, seven Aztecs recorded season-best times in 10 events including two each by Jamie Vessey, Jeanette Engzell and Lisa Tompkins. In addition, senior Caitlin Atkinson established a new season best score in the one-meter diving.
Among SDSU's top performers on the day was Bojana Duric, who finished fourth of 20 swimmers in the 1,000 free, shaving over five seconds off her previous season-best time in the process. She also took seventh (of 26 swimmers) in the 500 free.
Jeanette Engzell finished fourth and teammate Jessica Morrill seventh (of 31 swimmers) in the 200 breaststroke. In addition, Kelsey Diener took sixth (of 33) in the 200 backstroke.
TRI-CAPTAINS
SDSU has a trio of swim captains this season in sophomore Noelle Holland along with juniors Jessica Morrill and Kyla Power.
Holland (Casa Grande, Ariz.) swam personal bests in the 100 and 200 fly as a true freshman last year and was selected to the MWC all-academic team.
Morrill was a double-winner twice last season and holds the sixth-best mark in school history in the 200 breast. She also won MWC Simmer of the Week honors during the 2007-08 campaign.
Power (San Jose, Calif.) is coming off a strong sophomore campaign in which she established lifetime bests in the 50 free, 200 free, 500 free and 200 backstroke. She is also a two-time MWC scholar-athlete and all-academic selection.
ENGZELL-ENT
Freshman Jeanette Engzell has emerged as one of the top breaststroke specialists in the Mountain West Conference. She currently owns the top times in the MWC this season in both the 100 (1:05.47) and 200 (2:19.80) breast.
The first-year Aztec has already etched her name into the SDSU record book as those times in the 100 and 200 breast rank fourth and second respectively all time for an SDSU swimmer. Engzell is also a member of the 200 and 400 medley relay teams that have recorded the second and seventh fastest times in school history during the 2008-09 season.
MISS VERSATILITY
Sophomore Brooke Vessey has proven to be one of the Aztecs' most versatile swimmers this season. She has recorded the team's top times in both the 50 and 100 free as well as the 100 butterfly and the 100 backstroke. She was also on the 400 free and 200 medley relay squads that have SDSU's top times this fall.
YOUTH MOVEMENT
Youth is the key word for the 2008-09 SDSU swimming and diving squad. Of the 24 athletes on the roster, 13 are in their first season at San Diego State. Included in that number are nine true freshmen, three sophomore transfers (two from JC, one from a four-year school) and one junior transfer (from a four-year school). Among the 11 returnees, there are three sophomores, five juniors and only three seniors.
AMONG THE LEAGUE LEADERS
The Aztecs have several swimmers listed among the top 10 times in the MWC this season in various events.
Swimmer Event Place TimeJeanette Engzell...100 Breast...1st....1:05.47 200 Breast...1st....2:20.54Jessica Morrill....200 Breast...2nd....2:21.58Bojana Duric......1000 Free.....4th...10:23.47Ashley Flynn......1000 Free.....8th...10:24.71Brooke Vessey......100 back.....6th......57.85 100 fly......7th......57.50Kelsy Diener....,..200 back.....8th....2:07.31
ON DECK
After this weekend's meet at Cal State Bakersfield, the Aztecs will have just over three weeks until their next competition as they are scheduled to meet Cal State East Bay on Wednesday, Dec. 31, at 9:00 a.m. in a dual meet at the SDSU Aquaplex.