LITTLE ROCK - The Little Rock swimming and diving team will hit the road this Saturday and head to Indiana for their first Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) battle of the year. In a tri-meet format, the Trojans will face hosts Evansville Aces as well as fellow guests Indiana State Sycamores, with diving beginning at 9:30 a.m. and swimming events starting later at 1:00 p.m.
"We are looking forward to getting back on the road this weekend and seeing some conference competition for the first time this year," said head coach Amy Burgess. "Indiana State is a team on the rise in the MVC and Evansville has become a little bit of a rival over the past several years."
Last year, Little Rock invited Evansville to the Donaghey Aquatic Center, falling by only a margin of thirty points. The year previous, the Aces hosted a quad meet against Indiana State, Little Rock, and Butler, where the Sycamores dominated all three teams. In the MVC swimming and diving preseason poll, Indiana State is picked to finish third in the conference, while Evansville is slated for seventh, one spot below the Trojans.
As predicted, if Little Rock swims as well as it has been over the past month - improving bit by bit across the board - the Trojans may best the Aces at the tri-meet, as Evansville only boasts a few studs in various events. The Sycamores, despite only being in their fourth season ever, will be harder to touch, with strong depth this early in the season that could possibly threaten the projected championship meet standings at the end of the year.
Regardless, the Trojan swimming and diving team is in a good spot for some conference competition, as the squad hit a nearly 50% season-best percentage last weekend in its dual against Incarnate Word. The meet also resulted in the first MVC Swimmer of the Week honor for Little Rock since 2016, as Asmalia Redzuan was tabbed for her standout relay legs and individual swims.
"Coming off two successfully weekends we are looking forward to keeping the momentum moving full speed ahead," concluded Burgess. "With the Kansas Classic next on our schedule we are really looking forward to showing everyone how hard this team has worked, and get ready to compete in a championship format meet."
For the latest information on Little Rock Swimming and Diving, make sure to check out LRTrojans.com. You can also find the team on social media at @LittleRockSwim on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
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