After the women put forth a dominant performance against Tulane last week, they will rejoin the men as the LSU swimming and diving teams opens Southeastern Conference play against Florida at 3 p.m. Friday at the O’Connell Center Natatorium.
The women defeated the Green Wave, 220-80, at the Reily Natatorium in New Orleans on Oct. 3 to begin their season with a win. The Florida meet will be the men’s season debut.
Diving coach Doug Shaffer said the entire team has improved each week in terms of development, confidence and strength. He stressed the importance of the swimmers and divers going into a competitive, SEC environment and having a successful showing.
“Going into Gator country and the swamp, [we] have to show what it means to be a Tiger and represent [our] university, [our] team and [ourselves] well in a competitive environment,” Shaffer said.
Swimming coach Dave Geyer said he was pleased with the women’s outing against Tulane. He said the men should come out and be at their best as they compete against one of the nation’s elite programs.
Geyer added that the production from the Tulane meet will give confidence not only to the women, but to the entire team going into tougher competition throughout the season.
Florida’s women’s and men’s teams enter the weekend undefeated at 2-0 and 1-0, respectively. The Gators are arguably the most premier program in the nation, having claimed 35 SEC titles and 5 NCAA titles all-time between the two sides. Geyer said competing against a program of Florida’s caliber is a great measuring tool for him and his team.
“If we want to compete at a high standard in the SEC [and] at the NCAA level, [we] have to compete against programs like Florida,” Geyer said. “To win or lose, first place, second place, whatever comes out of the weekend on Friday, getting that experience racing against elite talent prepares us for SEC’s because they’re going to be there.”