LITTLE ROCK - The Little Rock swimming and diving team completes its three-week stretch of competition and also faces its first of four Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) opponents on the slate this Saturday, Feb. 13 with a trip to Missouri State. The meet is set to start at 10:00 a.m. CT and will be broadcast on ESPN3.
"With COVID challenges also comes new opportunities, and we are looking forward to going against Missouri State for the first time in a dual meet format," said head coach Amy Burgess. "As we continue to raise the bar, competing against the best in the MVC helps us prepare for the championship and makes us a better team. We are looking forward to continuing to see the hard work that these athletes put in day in and out shine through in competition."
In a much different schedule than in years previous, the shortened season began just two weeks ago, when the Trojans welcomed Ouachita Baptist to the Donaghey Aquatic Center for their home opener and senior day ceremony. Little Rock then traveled to North Texas for their final nonconference meet, where several members of the team showed impressive consistency from week to week.
So far, the racing in the pool has been fairly strong across the board, while the divers have yet to show off their skills. The Trojans already have six swimmers that have posted a time within the top eight of an event in the MVC, in addition to the top time in the 400 freestyle relay and the second-best 200 medley relay time. Out of the eight total Missouri Valley conference members, six teams have now recorded official times this season, with Illinois State and Southern Illinois still having yet to compete.
Annya Grom's 50 free (23.82), 100 free (51.00), and 100 breast (1:03.95) times still give her the second spot in each event's respective standings, while Fer Moussier has two top times: fourth in the 200 butterfly (2:08.42) and fifth in the 100 fly (57.52). Regan Lawrence has the fifth-fastest time in the 100 freestyle (52.75) while Lily Kerr represents the distance swimmers in the rankings, sitting eighth in the 1000 (10:50.85). Palmer Ristroph joins Grom in the 100 breaststroke standings with the number seven time so far (1:07.06), while Karina Harr is the top Trojan in the 200 breast with a seventh place rank (2:27.32).
There are also three swimmers right outside what could potentially make up the MVC Championships seedings: Gabriella O'Neil, Lea Zengerling, and Ristroph. In the 200 freestyle, O'Neil's mark from last weekend at North Texas (1:56.95) has her just outside the top eight by half a second. Meanwhile, Zengerling's 200 back time (2:10.11) is ninth by a slender two tenths. Ristroph is currently ninth in the 200 breast (2:27.90), outside the top eight by just three one-hundredths.
Little Rock will end their three-week stretch of meets against defending Missouri Valley Conference champions Missouri State on Saturday before having approximately a month off to train. The next competition for the Trojans is currently scheduled as a tri-meet at Southern Illinois with Valparaiso on March 12.
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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