California at Stanford
Saturday, Feb. 10 | 12 noon | Avery Aquatic Center | Stanford, Calif.
MEET NOTES | LIVE STREAM | TWITTER | INSTAGRAM | FACEBOOK
Two of the top swimming & diving programs in the country face off against each other Saturday when fourth-ranked Cal visits No. 1 Stanford in the final dual meet of the year for both squads. Action at the Avery Aquatic Center gets underway at noon.
To add some perspective to the series, Cal and Stanford have combined to win eight of the past nine Pac-12 team titles (4 each), while last year, either a Golden Bear or a Cardinal finished first every swimming event at the NCAA Championships except for the two breaststroke races (6 by Cal, 10 by Stanford). For 2018, Cal and Stanford swimmers currently lead the nation in 10 different events, including the 200 IM where Cal's
Kathleen Baker and Stanford's Ella Eastin are tied for the top spot.
• LAST TIME OUT: BEARS REMAIN UNDEFEATED WITH SWEEP AT USC, UCLA
Cal improved its dual-meet record to 9-0 with a road sweep of USC and UCLA, marking the first time the Bears have pulled off the feat in Los Angeles since 2012. Against the Trojans,
Amy Bilquist,
Katie McLaughlin and
Briana Thai claimed two events apiece and Cal prevailed in both relays en route to a 169-131 decision on Jan. 26. A day later, Cal won 15 of 16 races with 12 different Bears contributing at last one individual victory in a 183-111 triumph at UCLA. Bilquist, in the 100 and 200 free, was the lone Cal swimmer to win twice.
• BEARS LEAD THE COUNTRY IN FIVE EVENTS
Cal swimmers pace the country in five different events -
Abbey Weitzeil in the 50 free (21.44),
Kathleen Baker in the 100 back (50.62) and 200 IM (1:53.24), the 200 free relay (1:27.10) and the 400 free relay (3:10.95). In fact, all five of Cal's relays have earned NCAA "A" qualifying status, while Weitzeil (100 free, 46.95), Baker (200 back, 1:50.62),
Amy Bilquist (200 back, 1:50.48) and
Noemie Thomas (100 fly, 50.77) have additional "A" swims this season.
• NCAA BEST TIMES LIST SHOWS 20 CAL SWIMS AMONG TOP 16
Entering this week, the Bears sport 20 swims that rank among the NCAA's top 16. Outside of the five best-in-the-nation mentioned above, the others are: Weitzeil (100 free, 2nd; 200 free, 12th), Bilquist (50 free, 8th; 100 free, 13th; 100 back, 9th; 200 back, 2nd), Baker (200 back, 3rd), Thomas (100 fly, 3rd; 200 fly, 6th),
Katie McLaughlin (100 fly, 8th; 200 fly, 14th) and
Sarah Darcel (400 IM, 10th). Cal's 800 free relay is fourth, with the 200 medley relay second and the 400 medley relay fourth.
• BEARS MAKING A DENT ON SCHOOL'S ALL-TIME TOP 10 LIST
Seven individuals and three relays have made an impact on Cal's all-time top 10 list this season.
Abbey Weitzeil's 46.95 rates second in the 100 free and stands as the fastest by a Bear in a 100 free race (Missy Franklin's 46.66 school record came leading off a relay). Most of the other spots belong to freshmen.
Ali Harrison is now seventh in the 100 breast (1:00.54) and fifth in the 200 breast (2:10.92), while
Sarah Darcel is ninth in the 200 IM (1:56.59) and fourth in the 400 IM (4:06.58). In diving,
Briana Thai comes in third on 1-meter (296.33), fifth on 3-meter (312.50) and third on platform (256.60), with
Jackie Im ninth on 1-meter (276.53) and
Kathleen Navas seventh on platform (239.60). In addition, junior
Alexa Cacao is 10th on 1-meter (274.95). Cal's relays in the top 10 are the 200 free relay (8th, 1:27.10), 400 free relay (5th, 3:10.95) and 200 medley relay (4th, 1:35.04).
• CSCAA SCHOLAR ALL-AMERICAN TEAM
With an impressive 3.51 GPA for the fall 2017 semester, Cal has been named a Scholar All-American team by the CSCAA. In fact, the Bears have been honored 16 semesters in a row - every time the award has been offered by the coaches' association.