Air Force Academy

Feb. 5, 2009

The Air Force men's and women's swimming and diving teams close out the regular season this weekend, Feb. 7, as they host Wyoming in a conference dual meet. The meet is slated to begin at 1:00 p.m. at the Cadet Natatorium. The meet will also mark the final home appearance for the Air Force senior class.

Last Time Out...
Last weekend, the Falcons hosted the Air Force Diving Invitational, where juniors Kyle Van Valkenburg and Chelsea Tompkins finished second in the men's and women's platform events, respectively. Meanwhile, in the team's last dual action, the men's and women's swimming teams fell to BYU and Utah on the road. Among the top performers against the Cougars and Utes were senior Kai Yamashiro, who won three backstroke events for the men, and senior Jane Hwang, who won both the 200 free and 200 IM against Utah.

Scouting the Falcon Men...
The Air Force men's swimming and diving team enters this weekend with a 7-11 dual record and 1-3 mark in the MWC. The Falcons have six swimmers who rank in the top five in the Mountain West Conference in their respective events, led by senior captain Bryan Avery, who holds the conference's fastest time in the 200 IM, while also ranking second in the 200 freestyle.

Sophomore Benjamin Gunn ranks second in both the 200 IM and 100 butterfly and third in the 200 fly. Senior Kai Yamashiro holds the second-fastest time in the MWC in the 200 backstroke, while junior Sean O'Keefe ranks fifth in both the 500 and 1650 freestyle events. In the 200 breaststroke, senior Spencer Butt holds the fourth-fastest time in the league, while senior Justin Day has the fifth-best time in the 100 breast.

Scouting the Falcon Women...
The Air Force women's swimming and diving team enters this weekend's meets with a 6-13 dual record and 0-7 mark in the Mountain West Conference. The Falcons are led by senior captain Jane Hwang, who ranks eighth in the MWC in the 200 IM and 13th in the 100 freestyle. Three other swimmers rank among the top 15 in the MWC in their respective events, as well. In addition, sophomores Betsy Scarberry and Kaeli Kluesner are rated 15th in the 1650 free and 400 IM, respectively. In addition, junior Chelsea Tompkins holds the second-best score in the MWC in the women's platform dive.

Scouting the Cowboys...
The Wyoming men's swimming and diving team currently holds a 11-1 dual record and 3-1 mark in the MWC.

The Cowboys' top swimmers include Matthew Urich, who ranks third in the league in the 100 butterfly and ninth in the 200 fly; Brandon Fischer, who ranks fourth in the 100 breast and seventh in the 200 breast; and Alex Larkin, who owns the fifth-fastest time in the 200 breast and sixth-best mark in the 100 breast.

In addition, the Cowboys feature some of the top divers in the Mountain West. Tyler Miller, owns the top mark in the conference on the men's 1-meter board, followed by Kyle Bogner with the second-best mark. Meanwhile, Mark Murdock owns the league's best mark on the platform and ranks second at 3-meters.

Scouting the Cowgirls...
The Wyoming women's swimming and diving team currently holds a 11-3 dual record and 3-3 mark in the MWC.

Among the top swimmers for the Cowgirls are Lesley Young, who ranks second in the MWC in the 100 breaststroke and fifth in the 200 breast; Aimee Stinson, who holds the third-fastest time in the 1000 free and is 12th in both the 500 and 1650 freestyle events; and Shelby Bull, who ranks 10th in the 50 free and 14th in the 100 free.

Meanwhile, Stephanie Ortiz is one of the top divers in the conference, with the top score in the MWC on the 3-meter springboard and the second-best score at 1-meter.

Up Next...
The Falcons will spend the next few weeks preparing for the Mountain West Conference Championships, to be held Feb. 25-28 in Oklahoma City, Okla.

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