CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Cleveland State University men's and women's swimming and diving teams return to competitive action after nearly a three-week absence this Saturday, Dec. 10, as both programs host Canisius in a dual meet.
The meet will begin at 1:00 p.m. and will serve as the final action for CSU during the calendar year. An order of events for the meet is listed at the bottom of this article. Live results will be available on the Meet Mobile app ($). Fans wishing to follow from afar can also keep tabs on the meet on the teams' Twitter account (@VikingSwimming or Twitter.com/VikingSwimming).
This will be the first action for either CSU squad since both programs hosted the Magnus Cup on the weekend before Thanksgiving. It will be the first dual meet for both programs in over four weeks as the Vikings last competed in a dual at Ohio State Nov. 11.
Canisius is a familiar foe for both programs and one that the Vikings have enjoyed much success against in recent years. Both the men's and women's teams have defeated Canisius in a dual meet format in each of the past nine seasons. CSU knocked off the Golden Griffins on the men's side, 146.5-96.5, a year ago, while the women won, 153-90, in a meet that was the final one of the 2015 calendar year for the Vikings.
The Cleveland State men are fresh off winning the Magnus Cup, as the Vikings posted 1,608.5 points to win the title for the third consecutive season. Buoyed by their strong performance at the Magnus Cup, the Viking men enter the weekend with 18 entries among the top five times in the Horizon League this season.
Senior Philipp Sikatzki had a dominating weekend last time out as he contributed NCAA 'B' cut times in all four individual events he swam. He set three pool records and broke the school record in the 200 IM. Sophomore Tommi Wolst broke the school record in the 200 backstroke and surpassed 'B' standards in the aforementioned event and the 100 breaststroke. The CSU men also won all five relays at the meet.
The Cleveland State women posted their best finish (4th) and highest point total (800.5) at the Magnus Cup since the 2013 event. That feat is even more notable since the meet grew considerably this year and featured a record number of women's teams (14). The Viking women enter the weekend with 12 entries among the top 10 times in the League this season.
Sophomore Molly McNamara highlighted the Magnus Cup for the CSU women by breaking the school record in the 100 butterfly and posting a NCAA 'B' cut time in the process. McNamara owns the top time in the League this season in both butterfly disciplines. She was also a part of CSU's 400 medley relay team that posted the second-fastest time in school history and was less than a second off the record. Sophomore Cassandra Oltman led off, junior Tobie Zeller swam the second leg and freshman Gabriella Marinelli anchored the relay.
The Canisius men have a 5-2 mark in dual action while the women currently are 3-4. Like CSU, the Golden Griffins have also not competed since the weekend before Thanksgiving when both programs knocked off Binghamton at home.
Cleveland State will begin the second semester with a string of dual meets against League foes, beginning Jan. 14 at UIC.
Order of Events
200 Medley Relay
1000 Freestyle
200 Freestyle
50 Freestyle
200 IM
1-meter diving
100 Butterfly
100 Freestyle
100 Backstroke
500 Freestyle
3-meter diving
100 Breaststroke
400 Freestyle Relay
