(Photo: Casey McNulty/Sun Devil Athletics)
TEMPE – Following the new year, Arizona State swim and dive will race in its home pool for its first two dual meets of 2025. Starting Friday, the No. 14 Sun Devil women will battle the women’s team from Rice University. The next day, the Sun Devil men and women will compete against local competitor Grand Canyon University.
The Owls will be heading to Sun Devil country for the first time in 18 years and will look to emerge victorious. The Owls are 1-2 in dual meets this season, with their sole victory coming from a meet in November against Tulane. For Rice, senior Arielle Hayon is a three-time NCAA qualifier specializing in butterfly and sprint freestyle events and will be a strong asset to the Owl relays in those strokes.
On Saturday, ASU will face GCU for the second time this season. Although the Devils secured the win over the Lopes during the Arizona quad-meet, GCU is looking for an upset. Senior Maria Brunlehner will be the standout for the GCU women in the sprint freestyle events, as she holds multiple GCU top-ten school records. On the men’s side, sophomore Guillermo Carrey will be the one to watch with his prowess in the freestyle and backstroke events.
Ahead of these dual meets, the new CSCAA rankings were released. In the rankings, the Arizona State men dropped to No. 3 from their previous No. 2 slot, while the women fell from No. 13 to No. 14. Although the Devils have not dropped far in the rankings, this decrease comes as a result of the team not racing in a meet since November.
With a lengthy break from competition, these upcoming duals are especially important. These meets will allow the Devils to find their groove again and settle into the new year before the championship season in February and March.
