Jan. 23, 2002

MILWAUKEE - The UWM swimming and diving teams will host the Bill Ritter Invitational this weekend at the Klotsche Center Pool. The Panthers will be joined by UW-Green Bay, UIC, Butler and Illinois State's women, along with Marquette's club team. The invitational begins with the diving competition at Schroeder YMCA in Brown Deer at 11 a.m. on Friday.

The Panthers enter the invitational coming off a defeat of Butler on Saturday. The men were victorious, 128-73, while the women picked up a 142-75 win. Fourteen different Panthers claimed wins as UWM took 18 of the 26 total events. Michael Belting was the only double winner for the men, as he picked up victories in the 500 and 1000 free.

Scouting the Flames: The Flames enter the weekend after dropping decisions to Northwestern on the men's side and to Illinois State on the women's. Paul Torres continues to pace the men with the 37th-ranked 200 breast time in the country. For the women, Jamie Redway, who won both the 500 and 1000 against Illinois State, and Christine Hare, who finished second to Redway in both events, are the key swimmers.

Scouting the Phoenix: The Phoenix men defeated Western Illinois, 124-95, on Wednesday, taking first place in 11 of the 13 events. RJ Szelc and Kelly Brandon were double-winners on the men's side. The women also were victorious over Western Illinois, 128-109, winning eight of the 13 events. Laura Brager was the only multiple event winner, winning in both the 200 free and the 200 back.

Scouting the Bulldogs: Butler fell to UWM on Saturday by a 128-73 margin on the men's side and 142-75 on the women's side. Butler won five events, including both 400 free relays. Carlton Racette, Brendan Van Cleve and Kaylee Quilling each captured a victory for the Bulldogs.

Scouting the Redbirds: Illinois State has already made an appearance at the Klotsche Center Pool, defeating the Panthers 157-143 on Nov. 18. The enter the invitational coming off the victory over UIC on Saturday. Lindsay Crowder, Diana Cirstea and Terra Whisman each captured a pair of victories. The Redbirds took first in 11 of the 13 events.

Welcome Debut: Jason Procto, a transfer student from England, has been cleared to compete for the Panthers and will compete in the Bill Ritter Invitational this weekend. Procto was not able to compete in the fall because of issues relating to his transfer hours. Procto competed for England in the 100m and 200m backstroke, qualifying for the finals of the Olympic trials.

Sounding Like a Broken Record: The Panthers have started breaking records on a regular basis since the first part of December. The latest record to fall was the six-year-old school mark in the women's 1m diving, as Krystina Herzog scored 289.65 to break the old mark of 280.25. Josh Baseheart and Julie Olson have each contributed to the rewriting of the record books, as Olson broke the freshman record in the 100 back at the Wheaton Invitational. Baseheart broke his own school record in the 100 free and set meet records in the 50 and 100 free at the Wheaton Invitational. He also set a Chrouser Pool record with his time in the 100 free. David Faust also set a meet record in the men's 1650.

Senior Day: Saturday was Senior Day at the Klotsche Center Pool, as the nine seniors on the roster competed in their final home dual meet. Three of the seniors ended their home dual meet career with wins, as Nic Seider, Erin Pollyea and Todd Murray each captured a victory. Kelly Goetsch also claimed victory in two events in her final home dual meet.

Athlete of the Week: The Panthers have had their share of honorees by the Horizon League as Athlete of the Week in 2001-02. Josh Baseheart earned the honor twice, first for his performances against Northwestern in late October and again in January for his record-breaking times at the Wheaton Invitational. Kelly Goetsch and Nic Seider each were honored by the league in early November, Goetsch on Nov. 6 and Seider on Nov. 13, giving the Panthers three honorees in the first three weeks the award was handed out.

Under the Weather: The Panthers have also had their share of injuries this season, though they are starting to get relatively healthy. Adam Hanson (hand), Brady Arnold (back) and Jenn Moore (back) are all out for the Bill Ritter Invitational.

Nationally Ranked: Josh Baseheart is currently ranked 59th in the country in the 50 free and 46th in the nation in the 100 free. Baseheart is the only Panther to be ranked in the nation.

Academic Excellence: The women's team was named Academic All-American for the 26th consecutive semester during the spring of 2001. The women had a cumulative grade point average of 3.201, ranking them 24th in the country among Division I schools. In addition, seniors Kelly Goetsch, Leslie Brock and Adam Hanson, along with junior Peter Clark, were named to the Academic All-Conference team last spring. Thirteen Panthers were named to the league's Honor Roll for having a grade point average of above 3.25. Ten of those Panthers return in 2001-02. The ten are seniors Adam Hanson, Kelly Goetsch, Jessica Hoffmann and Erin McCauley, and juniors Peter Clark, Jenny Behr, Erin Hallen, Rachel Smith and Beth Watt.

Up Next: The Panthers travel to DeKalb, Ill., to face the Huskies of Northern Illinois on Feb. 1.