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Panthers Hit Road To Take On Western Illinois

Take 6-1 record in last seven dual meets into weekend action

Jan. 25, 2006

The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee women's swimming & diving team heads to Macomb, Ill. on Saturday for their final non-conference dual meet of the season. The Panthers will be taking on Western Illinois, starting at 2 p.m.

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LOOKING AT THE WEEK AHEAD:
After hosting the four-team Bill Ritter Invitational last weekend, UWM returns to dual meet action against the Westerwinds. The all-time series is a yearly one dating back to the 1992-93 season, with UWM leading by a count of 8-5. Included in that mark is three-consecutive wins by the Panthers, including a 145-82 victory a season ago.

Western Illinois enters action enduring a tough stretch, having dropped their past five dual meets. Their most recent action has been losses to Truman State (123-70 Jan. 21) and to St. Louis (179-100 Jan. 14). First-year head coach Nathan Mundt takes over a team that finished second at the Mid-Con Championships a season ago.

LAST YEAR:
Last year, the Panthers won nine of the first 10 events, before exhibitioning the final three, to roll to a dual meet win over Western Illinois, 145-82. Cathy Honeyager swept the distance events, while Heather Sawatzki was Milwaukee's other two-time winner, leading Panthers in the top four places in the 100 butterfly and three more atop the 400 individual medley. Diver Erin Blemberg rounded out the winners, notching a first-place finish in one-meter diving.

LAST TIME OUT:
The Panthers won the Bill Ritter Invitational for the 10th time in the 15 years of the event, scoring 985.5 points to edge UW-Green Bay's total of 971.5. Illinois State placed third (878) and UIC fourth (620) to round out the field.

Junior Lindsay Caldwell helped lead the way, winning the 50 freestyle (24.16), the 100 freestyle (52.05) and the 200 free (1:54.84). Freshman Molly Finn was also a three-time winner, topping the field in the 200 butterfly, the 200 IM and the 400 IM (in a pool-record time of 4:34.63). Senior Julie Olson won the 200 backstroke and placed second in both the 100 fly and 100 back. In the diving events, senior Erin Blemberg won both events at the same meet for the fifth time this season.

THE BEAT GOES ON FOR CALDWELL:
Since taking second in the 200 breaststroke Oct. 21, junior Lindsay Caldwell has not lost an individual event - a streak that has now hit 24-straight races, including preliminaries. She has gone a perfect 9-for-9 in the 50 free and 7-for-7 in the 100 free, and has not lost in nearly 14 weeks. She also currently has the best times in the Horizon League in the 50 free, 100 free, 200 free and 100 breaststroke, and has the third-best time in the league this season in the 200 breast.

HORIZON LEAGUE HONORS:
For the fifth time this season, senior Erin Blemberg was named Horizon League Diver of the Week for the week of Jan. 18. She won both the one-meter (275.92 points) and the three-meter (297.38) diving events at the meet against Air Force Jan. 13, the fourth time this season that Blemberg won both diving events at the same meet.

ON TAP:
The women have next week off before wrapping up regular season dual meet action with a home match-up with UW-Green Bay Friday (Feb. 10). The Panthers and Phoenix hit the pool at the Pavilion Natatorium at 6 p.m.