S&D Ready for Conference Opener at NC State
RALEIGH, N.C. – The University of Miami swimming & diving teams mark their return to the pool Friday for a tri-meet with conference foes Duke and NC State. Action from the Casey Natatorium is slated to begin at 2 p.m.
Head swimming coach Andy Kershaw is confident his team can carry its success from the competitive SMU Classic into Friday’s ACC opener.
“One of the lessons we learned from the Classic is that they can attack their races very aggressively, and we’ve done the training where they can handle it,” he said. “They have the confidence to go out and race and not feel like there’s any doubt, or that they have to hold back for the end of the race.”
After opening the season with three consecutive non-conference competitions, Kershaw is looking forward to his team’s first test in one of the most competitive swimming & diving conferences in the nation.
“It’s our first ACC head-to-head competition, so that’s really exciting,” he said. “It’s a great swimming conference, and it’s fun to take on those ACC teams. We’re definitely looking forward to working on our goal of getting better each competition.”
The Hurricanes have been training well in preparation for the meet, which features a nationally-ranked NC State team (No. 23) and a Duke team riding a wave of success after recording a victory in its dual meet opener against UNC-Wilmington and a strong showing at the All-North Carolina Invitational.
“This might be the biggest challenge in that regard because they’re probably more fatigued than they’ve been in other meets,” Kershaw said. “They’re going to really have to pay attention to detail and really make sure they attack the races and start fine-tuning to keep the ball rolling.”
Miami battled but ultimately fell to both teams in last season’s tri-meet hosted by Duke at the Taishoff Aquatic Pavilion. Kershaw expects his team to be ready to start its conference slate in stronger fashion on Friday.
“It’s exciting. The ACC is a great swimming and diving conference, and a great atmosphere to have success,” he said. “I’m excited to be a part of it, just be a part of the journey, and let our women and men’s divers go out and do their thing.”
