Jan. 11, 2006

Kenyon, Cincinnati and Louisville Weekly Notes in PDF Format
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In its first meet after a six-week break from competition, the Miami University men's swimming and diving team (3-1, 2-0 MAC) faces Kenyon College, the University of Cincinnati and the University of Louisville in a quadrangular meet on Jan. 13. The four teams hit the pool at 4 p.m. in the Nixon Aquatic Center as both the men's and women's teams from each school will be participating.

NATIONAL RECOGNITION: After posting three wins in the first half of the season, the RedHawks were rewarded with the No. 9 ranking in the Division I Mid-Major Poll released by collegeswimming.com in late December. The U.S. Naval Academy earned the No. 1 ranking in the poll, and the RedHawks were one of two Mid-American Conference schools ranked in the top 25. The defending MAC Champion Eastern Michigan Eagles are ranked No. 6 in the poll, and a meeting with EMU awaits Miami on Jan. 27 at the Nixon Aquatic Center. Institutions from the following conferences are eligible to participate in the Mid-Major Poll: America East, Atlantic 10, Big West, Colonial Athletic Association, Eastern Intercollegiate Swimming League, Horizon League, Independents, Ivy, Metro Atlantic, Mid-America, Mid-Continent, Missouri Valley, North Eastern, Patriot, and Sun Belt conferences. The rankings are based on each team's best dual-meet lineup as judged and submitted by participating teams.

LAST TIME OUT - THE MIAMI INVITE: As the host of the 12th Annual Miami Invitational Dec. 1-3, the RedHawks were among the top three teams for the duration of the three-day meet and finished in third place, 28 points behind the second-place Emory Eagles. At the meet, Miami qualified eight swimmers for the "A" finals and had one swimmer, junior Paul Ricard, post an individual win as he took home the top spot in the 1650 free on the first night. Ricard also broke an 18-year-old school record with his performance in the 1650 free.

BESTING A LEGEND: On Dec. 1, junior Paul Ricard broke an 18-year-old school record in the 1650 free owned by Miami Hall of Famer Dick Clarke, clocking in with a first-place time of 15:20.03. Ricard's time bested Clarke's old record of 15:29.75 which was set in 1987. As Miami's top distance freestyle swimmer and a two-time MAC Swimmer of the Week honoree, Ricard's win was his team-leading seventh individual victory of the season. In addition, Ricard's time was Miami's first "B" cut of the season. According to collegeswimming.com, Ricard is one of only 28 swimmers this season to record a 1650 free time under the "B" cut standard of 15:33.04.

MAKING THE CUT: For Ricard, his "B" cut time of 15:20.03 in the 1650 free marks the first NCAA "A" or "B" cut time this season posted by a Miami swimmer (men's or women's), and it allows Ricard to be considered for a spot in the NCAA Championships. Swimmers with an "A" cut in an event automatically qualify for the national meet, and after the allotted spots are filled by the automatic qualifiers, swimmers with "B" cuts are then invited to round out the field, which traditionally ranges from 24-26 athletes. Additionally, any swimmer who is invited to the national meet for one event and has a "B" cut in another event can participate in multiple events. However, a "B" cut time is only a starting point for consideration and does not guarantee a spot in the NCAA Championships, as the number of athletes invited depends on how many swimmers in the country have posted "A" or "B" cuts in a particular event.

FOR ALL YOUR HARDWARE NEEDS: In the first half of the season, a Miami men's athlete has been named the Mid-American Conference Swimming and Diving Athlete of the Week on three occasions as senior diver Zach Niehaus and junior swimmer Paul Ricard combined to win the first three weekly conference awards. Niehaus was the latest RedHawk to win the award on Nov. 15 after he swept the boards in Miami's 145-96 win against Ball State (Nov. 12), and Ricard was named the conference's swimmer of the week for the first two weeks of the season (Nov. 1 and Nov. 8).

TWICE THE FUN: Junior Paul Ricard and senior Zach Niehaus are the only two Miami athletes this season to post multiple wins at a meet. Ricard has accomplished the feat twice, and with seven victories this season, Ricard has the most individual wins of any athlete on the team. Niehaus, who swept the boards against Ball State (Nov. 12), has a total of three wins on the season.

SPREADING THE WEALTH: Ten different Miami athletes have tallied top finishes this season, led by two-time MAC Swimmer of the Week Paul Ricard. Ricard has won seven events this season to pace Miami's 3-1 start, and he is one of six RedHawks to win more than one event. Theo Kuczek, Zach Niehaus and Scott Robson have each posted three individual wins this season, while Griffin Marshall, and Blake Norman have posted two wins. Four other athletes -- Zachary Siegel, Chris Heaton, Andrew O'Neill and Scott DuCharme -- have each won one event.

REDHAWK ROOKIES: Competing in their first season in the Red and White, a trio of freshmen, Scott DuCharme, Chris Heaton and Zachary Siegel have all notched wins this season for Miami. DuCharme is the most recent RedHawk to earn his first college win as his first victory came against Ball State (Nov. 12) when he was the top finisher in the 500 free. Heaton earned his first collegiate win on the three-meter dive (291.15) against Buffalo (Oct. 29), while Siegel's first win also came against Buffalo in the 50 free (22.29).

2005 PREVIEW: After finishing second at last season's Mid-American Conference Championships and placing nine athletes on the all-conference squad, Miami head coach Pete Lindsay returns 17 letterwinners and seven all-MAC swimmers from last season's squad. The 2005-06 team will be seeeking Miami's seventh overall MAC title, and in the preseason coaches poll, the RedHawks were picked second. Miami has finished as the conference runner-up in each of the last two seasons.

ARE YOU EXPERIENCED?: Miami welcomes back an experienced squad this season as it boasts a 14-member junior/senior class led by All-MAC First Team honoree Scott Robson. In addition to Robson, All-MAC Second Team performers Pat Carroll, Michael Donohoe, Justin Marcy, Griffin Marshall and Brian O'Rourke all return to help Miami challenge the reigning MAC Champion Eastern Michigan Eagles.

SOLID STAFF: The reigning Mid-American Conference Coaches of the Year both reside in Oxford for the 2005-06 season as head swimming coach Pete Lindsay and head diving coach Todd Spohn won both the MAC Swimming and MAC Diving Coach of the Year awards, respectively, after Miami's second-place finish at last year's conference meet. The award was the fifth for Lindsay and 11th for Spohn.

AND THE WINNER IS: The following is a complete list of the Miami athletes who have posted individual wins in the 2005-06 season:

Scott DuCharme - (1) Ball State (500 free)

Chris Heaton - (1) Buffalo (3-meter dive)

Theo Kuczek - (3) Cleveland State (50 free), Buffalo (200 breast), Ball State (50 free)

Griffin Marshall - (2) Cleveland State (200 breast), Ohio State (100 breast)

Zach Niehaus - (3) Buffalo (1-meter dive), Ball State (1-, 3-meter dive)

Blake Norman - (2) Cleveland State (200 IM), Ball State (200 breast)

Andrew O'Neill - (1) Buffalo (200 back)

Paul Ricard -(7) Cleveland State (500 free, 1000 free), Buffalo (500 free), Ohio State (500 free), Ball State (200 free, 200 fly), Miami Invite (1650 free)

Scott Robson - (3) Cleveland State (200 fly), Buffalo (200 fly), Ball State (1000 free)

Zachary Siegel - (1) Buffalo (50 free)