(Photo via Hailey Sasnett/WCSN)
This weekend, the Sun Devils will travel to the other side of the country to compete in the NC State Wolfpack Invite in Greensboro, North Carolina. The meet is a three-day event beginning on Thursday and ending on Saturday. Additional teams competing in this meet include NC State, Stanford, Duke, Penn State, Army, and UNC Ashville.
The NC State Swim team has competed in two meets thus far this season. They started their season by competing against Tennessee. A few weeks later, the Wolfpack competed against Kentucky at home. The NC State men’s team is ranked No. 3 in the country, and the women’s team is No. 4.
When the Wolfpack competed against Tennessee, both the men’s and women’s teams took home wins. Overall a variety of swimmers on the women’s team performed well during this meet, but graduate student Kylee Alons stood out amongst the rest. The two-time NCAA Champion swept her opponents in the 100-yard butterfly with a first-place time of 52.53 seconds. In addition to her spectacular finish in the 100 butterfly, Alons and her teammates – junior Abbey Webb, junior Abby Arens and senior Katharine Berkoff – had the fastest time in the 4×100 freestyle relay, coming in with a time of 3:20.37.
On the men’s side, reigning national champion and first-place finisher and senior Kacper Stokowski finished with a time of 46.16 seconds in the 100 backstroke, making him a standout performer in the meet. In addition to his first-place finish, Stokowski and his 4×100 freestyle relay team finished second with a time of 3:20.37. Other notable finishes include senior Nyls Korstanje, who took first place in the 100 butterfly (46.39), and freshman Michael Cotter, who led the way in the 200 freestyle with a time of 1:36.47.
Both NC State’s men’s and women’s teams carried over their stellar performances to their next meet against Kentucky.
On the women’s side, many of the same athletes found their way back atop the podium. Arens was able to pick up three wins, establishing herself as another star for the Wolfpack. She won the 200 butterfly with a speedy time of 1:55.65. Additionally, Arens dominated in the 100 freestyle with a winning time of 49.33 seconds. Additional swimmers that performed well in this meet include freshman Katherine Helms, who came in right behind Arens in the 100 freestyle at 51.08 seconds. Graduate student Emma Muzzy and freshman Kennady Noble claimed the top two spots in the 100 backstroke with times of 53.45 and 53.75, respectively.
Freshman Quintin McCarty was named ACC Men’s swimmer of the week for his top-notch showing against Kentucky. He took home a first-place finish in the 100 backstroke (47.02) and 100 freestyle (43.43). Another swimmer who played a significant role in the win was sophomore Aiden Hayes. Hayes outpaced his opponents in the 100 butterfly (47.70) and earned a win with his teammates in the 4×50 medley relay (1:25.38).
There will be a lot of talent when these teams hit the pool on Thursday. The Sun Devils will have to give it their all to have a chance at knocking off the Wolfpack.
