October 13, 2011

Weekly Release in PDF Format l Coach Barrios Video Interview

What's Happening
The Pacific men's and women's swimming teams will play host to the annual Pacific Invite this Friday and Saturday, Oct. 14 and 15, at Kjeldsen Pool. The meet gets underway at 1 p.m. Friday and resumes Saturday at 11 a.m.  San Diego, BYU, and Stanford make up this year's field.

A Quick Look Ahead
The Tiger women will travel to Reno, Nev., for a dual meet with Nevada on Friday, Oct. 28, at 5 p.m.

Both Pacific squads will then meet up for a Mountain Pacific Sports Federation dual meet at Cal State Bakersfield Saturday, Oct. 29, at 12 p.m.

Scouting San Diego
The Toreros have competed in one meet prior to this weekend, losing a pentathlon against San Diego State 56-37.

Returning for San Diego is Senior Sarah Geerdes, who set school records in six events last season and was a First Team All-MPSF selection. 

Scouting BYU
Brigham Young will be using the Pacific Invite as its season opener. At last year's Invite, the Cougars took home both the men's and women's titles with scores of 846.5 and 1228, respectively.

Scouting Stanford
The Cardinal's men's team enters this weekend at 2-0 on the year and coming off of an impressive showing at UC Santa Cruz that saw them win every event title.

Stanford took third at the NCAA Championships last year, along with winning their 30th Pac-10 title.

Recapping Last Week
The Tiger women opened their season with an MPSF dual meet at UC Davis last Thursday, Oct. 7. Pacific fell to the reigning conference champions 180-106 despite claiming four event titles.

Sophomore Shelby Bolin won the 200 Back (2:08.24), senior Jayme Swalin touched first in the 500 Free (5:05.93), senior Elena Walterman took the 100 Fly (57.57), and junior Allie Vetterlein won the 200 IM (2:09.41). The Tigers' 400 Free Relay team, made up of Swalin, freshman Dekel Shahaf, sophomore Hayley Shillington, and junior Mallory McGowan, also finished in first place with a time of 3:37.86.

Competing in their first collegiate meet for the Orange and Black were Shahaf, who finished second in the 100 Back (58.33) and 100 Fly (58.40), Kelsey Crowder, who finished second in the 200 IM (2:16.67), and Shannon Mack, who claimed third in the 200 IM (2:18.66).

Men's Season Preview
The Pacific men's swim team is poised for a huge season thanks to 20 returning letterwinners and 10 returning All-Mountain Pacific Sports Federation honorees.

The Tigers welcome back six seniors for their final collegiate campaigns. Captaining the men's squad is Kevin Byers, one of Pacific's most well-rounded swimmers. All-MPSF performers Nate LeRoy and Roger Ward will look to end their careers on a high note.

Six juniors return for the Orange and Black in what is becoming an accomplished group. RJ Barton, Sean Dunnigan, Mason Kinnard, Kevin Schirmer, and Zach Zlotoff all earned All-MPSF honors last season.

Pacific will carry eight sophomores this season.  Although only in their second years as collegians, this group is shaping up as a collective force in the league. Led by reigning 200 Back champion Oliver Simkovic, the class also includes All-MPSF selections DJ Schilling and Bart Platow.

The Tigers welcome nine newcomers to this year's squad.  Although unproven in the college ranks, this group is made up of exciting swimmers that will bolster Pacific's depth in numerous events.

The depth and previous success have the Tigers ready to make the 2011-12 season one for the ages.

Women's Preview
Pacific returns 15 letterwinners to a squad that finished 7-4 last season, including 4-2 in the first season of Mountain Pacific Sports Federation membership. The Tigers placed seventh at the MPSF Championships.

The Orange and Black will look to their senior leaders as four-year swimmers Lia Santini, Jayme Swalin, and Elena Walterman, along with two-year letterwinner Ellen Barton, look to end their Pacific careers on a high note.  Swalin is coming off of a stellar junior campaign that saw her earn First Team All-MPSF honors in the 1650 Free and Second Team All-MPSF honors in the 500 Free. She finished third in the 1650 Free at the MPSF Championships with a time of 17:01.90. Walterman was a Second Team All-MPSF selection in the 100 Fly, placing seventh in the same event at the MPSF Championships, touching the wall at 55.93.

A deep junior class will be expected to contribute, as well. Jenna Chaplin, who this summer won the 800 Free National Title in the RBC Bahamas National Championships, and Mallory McGowan, who placed in the top five in the 100 Breast in all but one meet last season, highlight the group. Also expected to have a solid season is Allie Vetterlein, winner of both the 100 Fly and 200 IM against Stanford last season. All three swimmers were also All-MPSF Academic selections last season.

Pacific welcomes back a group of talented sophomores for their second seasons, including Shelby Bolin, a Second Team All-MPSF selection in the 200 Back, and MaryElla Randall, a Second Team All-MPSF selection in the 50 Free. Bolin finished seventh in the 200 Back at the MPSF Championships with a time of 2:04.97 while Randall touched fourth in the 50 Free at 22.99. Also returning is Hayley Shillington, who finished first in the 200 Free and 200 Back against conference foe Cal State Bakersfield.