ASC Swimmers Set to Compete at RMAC Championships

Scott Kretzmann
ASC Sports Information Director

SAN ANTONIO – Defending men’s and women’s league champ and Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) associate member University of the Incarnate Word hosts this year’s conference championships which will take place from Wednesday evening through Saturday in the Aquatic Center at Palo Alto College beginning Wednesday evening at 6 p.m. CST.
The Grizzly men and women were picked for sixth and eighth in the preseason league poll, respectively, after the men finished sixth and the women ninth last season at the RMAC Championship. Both squads, however, have competed better throughout the 2011-12 season.
After going 0-19 in their first two seasons, the women have gone 7-9 in dual meets this season, and have placed fourth of five teams at both the Rocky Mountain Invitational on Oct. 15 and the Colorado Mesa Invitational on Nov. 19-20. The ASC women have been the victors in head-to-head match-ups against two league squads, beating Nebraska-Kearney twice, 111-85 on Oct. 26 and 120-72 on Oct. 27, and also topped Colorado Mines, 55-39, at the Plachy Hall Pool on Jan. 8 during the Adams State Duals.
On the men’s side, the Grizzlies have been within points of notching their first win in the program’s modern era. On Oct. 26, ASC was edged, 90-105, by Morningside (Iowa) College in dual meet action, and fell just 82-115 the following day against Morningside.
The 4-day RMAC Swimming & Diving Championships will feature a short schedule when action begins Wednesday, as the only swimming events being contested will be the finals of the men’s and women’s 1,000 yard freestyle and 200 yard medley relay.
In all, ASC has 10 individual efforts that rank in the top 20 of the league. Higgs’ No. 10 rank in the 200 fly of 2:16.02 leads the Grizzlies’ efforts, while Cunningham ranks 13th in the 200 breast with a time of 2:33.75 and Palacio ranks 14th in the 100 back at 1:01.96.
Grizzly supporters can get updates on completed events by visiting the real-time results page, and all things RMAC swimming & diving related can be found at the 2012 RMAC Swimming & Diving Championships Central web page.