THE SCHEDULE
at PCSC Championships
Friday-Monday, Feb. 12-15 • All Day
ELAC Swim Stadium • Monterey Park (East Los Angeles College)
Live Results • Meet Mobile
The UC San Diego men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams head back to Monterey Park this Thursday, Feb. 11, for the second time this season, for the 2016 Pacific Collegiate Swimming and Diving Conference (PCSC) Championships. Like the UCSD-hosted A3 Performance Invitational back in November, this year’s edition will take place at East Los Angeles College. Due to facility conflicts, instead of the traditional Wednesday through Saturday schedule, the four-day meet will runFriday through Monday this time around, Feb. 12-15. ELAC Swim Stadium, which has served as the venue for several top-level meets, including past Pac-12 Championships, is hosting its first PCSC Championships. The last four had been at the Splash! La Mirada Regional Aquatics Center.
Both the Triton men’s and women’s squads are seven-time defending PCSC champions. In addition to extending those respective streaks, they will look to qualify as many swimmers and divers as they can, to the NCAA Championships next month in Indianapolis, Ind. The Triton women, ranked second nationally in the NCAA Division II, finished 8-6 in dual meets this season. The fourth-ranked UCSD men completed the dual schedule at 5-4.
TICKET PRICES
General admission is $10 for prelims (including diving sessions) and $15 for finals. Students with valid identification are $5, all sessions. Children five years of age and under are free. An all-session pass is available for $50. Payment is accepted in cash or check only (payable to PCSC). Parking is available in the ELAC parking garage (Parking Structure 3) adjacent to the pool, at a cost of $5 per day.
MEET COVERAGE
Live results for this year’s meet are available on two platforms, either on the Internet here, or on smartphones and tablets via the Meet Mobile application. Meet Mobile is available for download through iTunes and compatible with iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. Heat sheets and meet results through the app come at an annual subscription cost of $5.99, or monthly fee of $1.99, both of which renew automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the selected subscription period. Click here to access it.
PCSC CHAMPIONSHIPS PREVIEW
UCSD head coaches Corrie Falcon and Daniel Perdew bring back 10 individuals who were event winners last year in Michael Cohn (200 free and 200 back), Chandler Pourvahidi (500 and 1000), Stephanie Sin (1000 and 1650), Colleen Daley (100 free), Maddy Huttner (400 IM), Paul Li (400 IM), CJ Pais (100 back), Julia Toronczak (200 back), Dari Watkins (200 free) and Kevin Wylder (100 fly). Pourvahidi was the Male Swimmer of the Meet, with Sin the Female Co-Swimmer of the Meet.
There are six current Tritons who were individual event winners at the 2014 PCSC meet, led by Li, who was the Male Swimmer of the Meet as the top point-getter with a maximum 96 from taking the 200 and 500 freestyles, as well as the 400 individual medley. Alex Moshensky was another multi-event winner, sweeping the backstroke distances, while Kyle Nadler touched first in the initial PCSC showing of the 1000. For the women, Daley (50 free), Allyson Cohen (one-meter diving), Sierra Gage (1650) and Naomi Thomas (200 fly) were 2014 champions. Thomas was also first in the 200 fly in her PCSC debut in 2013. Zachary Yong has broken the 400 IM school record in prelims in each of his first two PCSC appearances before losing both finals to teammate Li.
The UCSD women won three of the five relays (800 free, 200 free, 400 medley) in 2015, with the men first in the two longer free relays. The Triton men had swept the relays in 2014, with the women taking the three freestyle ones. UCSD previously swept all 10 relay races in 2012, and combined to take five of 10 in 2013. The men and women have each won the 800 free on the meet’s first night, for five consecutive years.
As a team, the UCSD women compiled 1453 points to outdistance LMU (1222) and 10 other schools a year ago, while the men accumulated 1490 points to get past UC Santa Cruz (1270) and five others. A top challenger on the women’s side, No. 11 Alaska, will be absent this week due to a postseason ban.
CHAMPIONSHIPS PROGRAM
The PCSC Championships consist of 42 events in all, 21 men’s and 21 women’s. The total includes the five relays for each division, as well as the one- and three-meter springboard diving competitions. The women’s races take place before the men’s.
The shorter day-one swim program on Friday, Feb. 12, features the 200 medley relay and 800 free relay after 5 p.m. Timed finals of the 1000 freestyle start at approximately 2:30 p.m., with the fastest women’s and men’s heat kicking off the meet’s first evening session at 4:30 p.m. The men’s three-meter and women’s one-meter diving prelims are from 10:30-11:50 a.m., with finals from 1-1:45 p.m. The 500 free, 200 IM, 50 free, 200 free relay and women’s three-meter diving take place on Saturday.
Sunday has the 400 IM, 100 fly, 200 free, 100 breast, 100 back and 400 medley relay. Diving concludes with men’s one-meter prelims at 12:30 p.m. and finals at 2:30 p.m. The championships end on Monday, Feb. 15, with the 1650 free (slower heats at11:30 a.m.), 200 back, 100 free, 200 breast, 200 fly and always-exciting meet-concluding 400 free relay. Preliminaries for the swimming events on Saturday, Sunday and Monday begin at 9:30 a.m., with evening finals at 4:30 p.m. on all four days.Monday’s final session will start with a senior recognition ceremony at 3:30 p.m.
SCORING AND FORMAT
The standard NCAA 24-place scoring will be used. Individual: 32-28-27-26-25-24-23-22; 20-17-16-15-14-13-12-11; 9-7-6-5-4-3-2-1. Relays: 64-56-54-52-50-48-46-44; 40-34-32-30-28-26-24, etc. Swimmers may officially score in seven events, of which no more than three can be individual events. They can compete in as many unofficial (prelims only) events as they desire.
PCSC HISTORY
The UCSD men and women are each seven-time defending PCSC champions. The Triton women have won 11 conference titles in all, with the lone exception the 2008 crown, which went to LMU. The men are eight-time champs, with 2007 marking their other success.
LAST TIME IN THE WATER
The UCSD women cruised past crosstown Division I rival University of San Diego for the fourth straight year, 210-88, on the road on Saturday, Jan. 30. Tritons won 14 of 16 events to improve to 13-1-1 against the Toreros over the past 15 meetings. Brooke Abrantes, Stephanie Sin and Julia Toronczak were double winners in individual events, with sweeps in diving, distance freestyle and backstroke, respectively. In their last meet, the UCSD men lost at 12th-ranked Division II rival California Baptist, 161-137, in Riverside on Jan. 16. Junior Zachary Yong was the Tritons’ highlight with a sweep of the breaststroke events.
BOYT TO BE HONORED AT SALUTE TO THE CHAMPIONS
Triton sophomore Reilly Boyt will be recognized at the 70th Annual Salute to the Champions at the Town and Country Resort & Convention Center on Tuesday, Feb. 16. Boyt, out of Fort Collins, Colo., was named by the San Diego Hall of Champions as its Challenged Athlete of the Year for 2015.
SENIOR DAY AT CANYONVIEW
Fifteen Tritons were recognized prior to the start of the Jan. 9 meet on Senior Day at the Canyonview Aquatic Center. Those 15 are Howie Chang, Allyson Cohen, Colleen Daley, Cole Heale, Max Halson, Maddy Huttner, Michael Leung, Paul Li, Caitlyn Lozano, Alex Moshensky, Kyle Nadler, Naomi Thomas, Dari Watkins, Garet Websterand AJ Zavala.
ROAD TO INDY
The NCAA Division II Swimming & Diving Championships will take place in Indianapolis, Ind., for the second year in a row. Brooke Abrantes, Allyson Cohen and Patty Sullivan, all women’s divers, are the first three Tritons to book their trips. For swimmers, UCSD has 15 women and 15 men with an NCAA consideration qualifier in at least one event. Nine of 10 Triton relays (all but men’s 400 medley) have B marks. The qualifying standards for the NCAA Division II for both the men and women are available.
NATIONAL RANKINGS
The fourth College Swimming Coaches Association of America (CSCAA)/TYR Top 25 Poll for the NCAA Division II, voted on by eight CSCAA member coaches, was unveiled on Feb. 3. In it, the UCSD women remained in the No. 2 spot, while the men moved up from fifth to fourth.
ALL-AMERICANS ON ROSTER
UCSD returns 16 All-Americans in 2015-16, led by co-captain Colleen Daley as a 10-timer, and fellow senior Naomi Thomas at five. Also back are Jaimie Bryan (4), Natalie Tang (4), Chandler Pourvahidi (3), Dari Watkins (3), Catherine Woo (3), Cole Heale (2), Maddy Huttner (2), Michael Cohn (1), Julian Jacobs (1), Paul Li (1), Angie Phetbenjakul (1), Stephanie Sin (1), Julia Toronczak (1) and Zachary Yong (1). Howie Chang, Sierra Gage, Michael Leung, Sasha Mitrushina, Kyle Nadler and Kevin Wylder have garnered All-America honorable mention.
A SEASON AGO
On the women’s side, UCSD placed sixth at the 2015 NCAA Division II Swimming & Diving Championships last March in Indianapolis, Ind. The Triton men tied for 18th. Both wrapped up a seventh consecutive PCSC crown.
TRITON LEADERSHIP
Team captains for the new campaign were voted on at the conclusion of the 2014-15 season, with seniors Colleen Daley and Paul Li reprising their roles for a second year, and Max Halson, Cole Heale and Natalie Tang all earning the distinction as first-time captains.
TRITON COACHING STAFF
Corrie Falcon, who swam collegiately at USC, is in her fifth season in charge of the UCSD women in 2015-16. Daniel Perdew, a five-time national champion as arguably the greatest sprinter in the history of the UCSD program, is the second-year head coach of the Triton men. He was an assistant for three seasons before serving as interim head coach in 2014-15. Marko Djordjevic is in his second year as the top assistant. The native of Serbia has coached at the international level in his career. Diving coach Michelle Casillas was a multiple-time all-conference performer first at Nevada and then at Florida State. Third-year assistant Emmett Walling was a top swimmer at USC, while former Triton great, two-time national champion and 18-time All-American Nick Korth is the first-year volunteer.
GEAR HERE
For the latest in Triton athletic gear, make sure to visit ucsdtritonsgear.com. Run by UCSD Athletics’ online partner, Advanced-Online, the site provides an on-demand option for Triton athletic apparel and merchandise. Fans have access to over 600 products that can be processed and shipped within 24 hours.
FOR THE YOUNGER CROWD
Got some young Triton fans in your family? If they are in eighth grade or under, check out the Junior Triton Club. Membership includes a free t-shirt, admission to over 100 UCSD home athletic events, and much more!
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UP NEXT
The 2016 NCAA Division II Swimming & Diving Championships take place in Indianapolis, Ind., March 9-12. The official announcement of qualifiers should come on Wednesday, Feb. 24. Divers Brooke Abrantes, Allyson Cohenand Patty Sullivan will lead things off on Tuesday, March 8, in pre-qualification.
Swimming news courtesy of UC San Diego Swimming & Diving.
