AUBURN, Ala. – The Auburn swimming and diving team returns to action on Saturday as the Tigers travel to Tuscaloosa, Ala., to take on in-state rival Alabama and conference foe LSU in a SEC tri-meet at the Alabama Aquatics Center. The meet is set to begin at 11 a.m. CT.
Auburn’s women (3-0, 1-0 SEC) enter Saturday’s meet ranked No. 8 in the initial CSCAA poll of the season. The Tigers topped Notre Dame, 192-102, and Vanderbilt, 201-75, in their first home meet of the season on Oct. 18. Sophomores Ashley Neidigh (500 free, 1000 free) and Allyx Purcell (50 free, 100 free) doubled to lead the Auburn women to the sweep.
Cinizia Calabretta (3-meter), Megan Fonteno (100 fly), Annie Lazor (200 breast), Natasha Lloyd (100 breast), Kristen Murslack (200 fly), Sarah Reynolds (200 back), Zoe Thatcher (200 free) and Jillian Vitarius (100 back) all collected individual wins against Notre Dame and Vanderbilt two weeks ago.
Saturday’s meet marks the first action for the Auburn men (0-1) since its season-opener at Indiana back on Oct. 10. Joe Patching claimed a pair of wins (200 back, 200 IM) for the Tigers on the road against the Hoosiers.
Fraser McKean earned a sweep on the springboards on Oct. 18 as Auburn’s divers competed against Notre Dame. The senior improved his NCAA Zone qualifying scores with a 372.60 on the 1-meter and 378.98 on the 3-meter board.
Auburn’s women are 24-8 all-time against Alabama and 12-4 versus LSU. On the men’s side, Auburn is 26-17 all-time against the Tide and holds a 19-6 advantage over LSU. Last season, Auburn’s men topped LSU on the road, 195-103, while Saturday’s meet marks the first time the Tigers have competed against Alabama since the 2012 season.
SCOUTING ALABAMA
Alabama’s men (1-1) enter Saturday coming off a dual meet loss at Georgia, 164-128, on Oct. 10, in Athens, Ga. The Tide’s women also fell to Georgia, 164-130. The Crimson Tide are led on the men’s side by Kristin Gkolomeev, the defending NCAA Champion in the 50 free.
SCOUTING LSU
LSU’s women (1-1) head to Tuscaloosa fresh off a first-place finish at the SMU Classic in Dallas, while the LSU men (0-1) are competing just for the second time this season after falling to Florida in its opening meet of the season, 162.5-122.5, on Oct. 10. LSU’s diver are coached by Doug Shaffer, brother of Auburn head diving coach Jeff Shaffer.
UP NEXT
Auburn will return to action on Friday, Nov. 14 when the Tigers travel to Knoxville, Tenn., to take on Louisville and the host Volunteers for their last tri-meet of the fall.
For the latest updates on Auburn Swimming and Diving, follow the Tigers on Twitter, @AuburnSwimming or like Auburn Swimming and Diving on Facebook.
The above is a press release submitted by the Auburn sports information department.
