Courtesy: Ohio State Athletics
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State swimming & diving team begins the long-awaited postseason this weekend, hosting the Winter Invitational on Saturday-Sunday, Feb. 16-17 at McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion. Each day is split up into two sessions, with a preliminary set for 11 a.m. on both mornings, and a final session at 5 p.m. on Saturday and 4 p.m. on Sunday.
Over 100 athletes from 12 different Division I collegiate swimming & diving programs will attend the meet, including fellow Big Ten teams No. 24/NR Purdue and RV/No. 24 Wisconsin, and ranked squads RV/No. 14 Kentucky No. 23/No. 16 Notre Dame and No. 23 Akron.
Live results will be available at OhioStateBuckeyes.com. Admission is free to the meet. Fans who are unable to attend are encouraged to follow the action live on Twitter @OhioStSwimDive. The final session on each day will be streamed live on Big Ten Network Plus (btn2go.com).
MEET SCHEDULE
Saturday
*200 Medley Relay
500 Freestyle
100 Butterfly
100 Breaststroke
100 Backstroke
400 Individual Medley
100 Freestyle
*200 Freestyle Relay
Sunday
**1650 Freestyle
*400 Medley Relay
200 Freestyle
200 Backstroke
200 Breaststroke
50 Freestyle
200 Butterfly
200 Individual Medley
*400 Freestyle Relay
*Timed finals event swum at Finals
**1650 will be mid-day session on day two. Swum slowest to fastest, alternate men/women heats. Fastest heat swum at finals.
LAST TIME OUT
The No. 13 men and No. 15 women’s Ohio State swimming & diving team finished the home dual slate on a high note, downing Pitt with a sweep on Friday, Feb. 1 at McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion. The men’s team took the win by a score of 193-107, while the women’s team topped the Panthers, 199.5-96.5.
Overall, the Buckeyes won 23 events, including a sweep of the diving events on both the men and women’s sides. Joseph Canova won the platform with a score of 524.60, which currently leads the nation, and Lara Tarvit won for the women’s team with the fifth-best score in the nation of 287.93.
STEPPING UP TO THE CHALLENGE
The Buckeyes feature a difficult schedule this season, meeting with many ranked teams throughout the year. In the latest College Swimming Coaches Association of America TYR Top 25 Dual Meet Swimming and Diving poll, the men’s team is the No. 13 team in the nation, moving up one spot from the December rankings. The Buckeyes are the third-highest ranked team in the Big Ten Conference, and compete with at least nine of the Top 25 teams this season. On the women’s side, OSU will finish the season having competed with at least 11 of the Top 25 teams this season.
WEEKLY HONORS
Freshman Jacob Fielding was named Big Ten Diver of the Week on Jan. 8, marking his fourth weekly honor this season. Against Florida and Kentucky, Fielding won the 1-Meter and Platform titles. His platform score of 374.85 is the sixth-best mark in the nation and third-best in the conference. Fielding has won six titles overall this season and has placed in the Top Two in at least one event every time out.
Freshman Ruslan Gaziev was named Freshman of the Week on Oct. 3 after winning his first two individual races as a Buckeye, posting a 50 Free time of 20.19 and a 100 Free time of 43.79.
BUCKEYE LEADERS
Kathrin Demler leads the women’s team in four events, including the No. 10 400 IM time in all of college swimming at 4:07.06. Kowal leads the distance events, posting team-best times in the 500 Free, 100 Free and 1650 Free. Senior Lara Tarvit is the top diver on platform, ranking third in the conference and fifth in the nation with a score of 287.93.
Gaziev is the top sprinter on the men’s side, posting team-best times in the 50 Free, 100 Free and 200 Free. Nick Hogsed is consistently the top finisher in the distance events, currently fourth in the 1000 Free out of conference swimmers. Ohio State has three divers in the Top 10 on Platform, including the nation’s best platform dive score of 524.60 for Canova.
UP NEXT
Following the Winter Invite, the women’s team gears up for the Big Ten Championships from Wednesday-Saturday, Feb. 20-23 in Bloomington, Ind.
