Air Force Academy

Oct. 15, 2008

The Air Force men's swimming team opens its season this weekend, Oct. 17-18 at the Early Bird Invitational, hosted by Colorado State. The events begin Friday at 5:00 p.m., and continue Saturday morning at 9:00.

Scouting the Falcons...
The Air Force men's swimming and diving team, picked to finish fifth in the Mountain West Conference this season, returns 20 letterwinners from the 2007-08 season.

Leading the way for the Falcons this season is senior captain Bryan Avery, the school record-holder in the 100 butterfly. A two-time conference runner-up in the 200 freestyle, Avery qualified for the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials, which were held in June.

Other returning Trial qualifiers include senior Justin Day, an all-conference performer in the 100 breast, and sophomore Benjamin Gunn, who earned All-MWC honors in both the 100 and 200 fly events at the 2008 MWC Championships.

Three other all-conference performers from the 2007-08 season return, led by junior diver Kyle Van Valkenburg, the conference champion in the platform dive and All-MWC honoree at 1-meter. Also returning are senior Kai Yamashiro, who earned all-conference honors in the 100 and 200 back, and sophomore Sean O'Keefe, an All-MWC performer in the 200, 500 and 1650 free.

Last Week...
The Air Force women's swimming and diving team opened its season last week at the WAC Shootout, going 1-5 on the weekend. The Falcons defeated in-state rival Northern Colorado, while falling to Boise State, Nevada, New Mexico State, Northern Arizona and San Jose State.

The top performer for Air Force at the season-opening WAC Shootout was senior captain Jane Hwang, who picked up four top-10 finishes, including first- and second-place showings in the 200 free. Meanwhile, freshman Lauren Shetley led the Falcons' diving squad, registering three top-10 performances, including a second-place finish in the 3-meter dive on Saturday.

Complete Release in PDF Format