Swim & dive paddle to Fargo
The no. 17 Minnesota State Mavericks women’s swim and dive team are headed to Fargo, North Dakota to compete in the NSIC Championship following a 6-1 season.
The four-day event is held in the New Hulbert Aquatic Center and featuring St. Cloud State, MSU Moorhead, Northern State, Augustana, Sioux Falls and the University of St. Mary’s. The aquatic center itself is a site of note outside of the week’s events, as it was the place that held the 2016 Olympic trials.
To start out the season, the Mavericks suffered a duel loss at home against South Dakota 154-146. While it was a tough loss to swallow and not the desired way to start the season, the Mavericks bounced back in a big way over the following five months.
Against UW-Eau Claire, MSU came out firing with a stunning 234-65 victory on the road. It was a sign of what was to come this season after suffering the only loss of the season in the opening outing. Back home for the first time since going down to South Dakota, Augustana was the next Mavericks victim with a 140-115 win.
For a Mankato/St. Peter duel weekend, the swimming team performed in back-to-back outing admirably. They slapped Gustavus Adolphus by a stunning 214-85 score. While that was a monster win, they doubled down on it by besting UW-Stevens Point 241-58. Two embarrassing performances for the competition proved where the Mavericks belong in the national rankings.
Following the big weekend, the Mavericks attended two invitationals. The first was in St. Paul, which they took second in with 834 points. In Rochester, they placed second in as well despite posting 1,644 points.
The toughest part of MSU’s schedule was on the horizon, with the squad taking the road for the entire month of January. They with a trip to Sioux Falls, which they promptly won 153-141. Following the fourth victory, they attended an invitational at Stevens Point, Wisconsin. At the invitational, they took first with 1,352.50 points. They concluded the road trip, and the season, with a 186-114 win against MSU Moorhead.
For the swim and dive team, everything they’ve been through so far has brought them to the tournament. This team not only went on a run of six duel wins after starting the year losing their first meet, but they also took second as the worst performance in their three invitationals.
Three times this season, the Mavericks took wins over opponents by a 100 point margin. This is also a team that spent a month on the road, without the constant travel taking an edge off their production.
The Mavericks will be looking to make a run in the conference championship because this is what they have done all season long. Whether it is on the road or close to home and no matter the competition, the Mavericks have consistently shown up with their best performance for five months. They will head to Fargo with similar plans.