This weekend saw the UCLA swim and dive team put in strong performances after winter break.
The swim team beat Utah by a score of 157-134. The Bruin Diving Invitational, hosted by UCLA, was also held at the Spieker Aquatics Center this weekend. Freshman Annika Lenz, senior Paulina Guzman and sophomore Montana Monahan all put in strong diving performances, according to Coach Tom Stebbins.
Consistent factors over the course of the weekend were that the teams were prepared for this meet, and that this meet served to prepare them for conference competition. Coach Cyndi Gallagher noted that it is possible that some of the girls were even overtrained for the race.
“We don’t like to train to train; we like to train to race,” Gallagher said.
The divers had a different format to their competition this weekend. The meet was run in a zone format, similar to that of a conference meet rather than a dual meet. According to senior diver Paulina Guzman, this causes breaks of 15 to 20 minutes between dives.
Coach Tom Stebbins said that this benefits the team.
“For them it is kind of a wake-up call; it is a reminder for the kids who have been through it before and a first look at it for the kids who haven’t been through it before to see what happens,” Stebbins said.
The Bruins will travel to Washington State next weekend. This will be a critical competition for the women, according to senior freestyle sprinter Kathryn Murphy.
“Next week we’re going up to Washington which will be important for us to get out of our comfort zone,” Murphy said. “It’s great practice for the Pac-12 championships because you want to get as uncomfortable as you can so it feels easy in the big meets.”