Razorbacks ready for Houston Cougar Invite

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The No. 23 University of Arkansas swimming and diving team (3-1, 2-1 SEC) is set to compete in the Houston Cougar Swimming and Diving Invitational.

“We’re really excited about this invite coming up,” head coach Sean Schimmel said. “It’s close to the championship meet format for the SEC and NCAA Championship and it is one of the few times all year that we get to compete in that format. It’s a real focus for our fall and we are certainly looking to be at our best.”

The Razorbacks are coming off a successful triple-dual meet, in which Arkansas swept Missouri, Kentucky and Southern Illinois on the road. Prior to the triple-dual meet the Razorbacks faced No. 2 Georgia, where Arkansas suffered its only loss of the season.

The Razorbacks have had many highlights so far this season, starting with redshirt sophomore Shana Lim’s school-record breaking swim (54.95) in the 100 backstroke against Georgia in the first dual meet of the season. Freshman Nina Drolc was named the SEC Freshman of the Week for her performance against Missouri, Kentucky and Southern Illinois.

“Some of the teams participating like Texas A&M, LSU, SMU and Wyoming are some of the top teams [in the country],” Schimmel said. “We get in-conference competition and we get some people we will face at SEC’s and NCAA’s and we can see how we stack up against them. I know that we will rise to the occasion, and I feel like the better the competition you have around you the better you will be.”

The invitational will be held at University of Houston Campus Recreation and Wellness Center from Nov. 15-17 and features, No. 4 Texas A&M, No. 19 LSU, Air Force, Houston, Florida Gulf Coast, Fresno State, Idaho, New Mexico State, New Mexico, SMU, Rice, Tulane and Wyoming. On the diving side, the Razorbacks will also face Clemson, Kansas, Nebraska, TCU and UCLA.

“We are looking to be the best that we have been so far,” Schimmel said. “The expectations are high to perform well.”

A full recap will be available on ArkansasRazorbacks.com after each day of competition. A live blog will also be available for fans to follow along during the meet.