Hansen’s squad looks for progress
The men and women’s swim teams will compete for the first time together this season against UNLV today at 2 p.m. at the Hillenbrand Aquatic Center. It’s the first meet for the men, and the second for the women, who dominated the last meet against Kansas.
“I’m excited for racing. This team is a racing team, so whenever there’s a meet, it’s a different vibe on the deck,” said senior captain Alyssa Anderson.
In its last meet against Kansas, the women’s team only lost one race, while the men were performing an intrasquad scrimmage. Since then, assistant coach Geoff Hanson says the team has been working harder, and he expects more from his team now that they have had more time together.
“Since the last time we raced (against Kansas), we’ve put in about 10 days of good work,” he said. “We’re tired, but this is the time of the season where we race tired. I have high expectations for Friday.”
Senior Austen Thompson said the men have been working harder than usual in anticipation of the meet this week, because it is their first opportunity to race since last summer.
“I know a lot of the guys are really tired, so I’d like to see my team really step up to the occasion, really get some good racing in and make sure we get our hands on the wall first.”
— Cameron Moon
Soccer heads to Los Angeles for final road trip
The last time the Arizona soccer team traveled to California, the trip didn’t turn out so great, ending with a 7-0 loss to No. 1 Stanford. On its last road trip of the season, Arizona (1-11-2) will go to Los Angeles to take on the No. 7 UCLA Bruins today, and the USC Trojans on Sunday.
Last weekend, the Wildcats fell to California in overtime by a score of 1-0 after outplaying the Golden Bears for most of the game. Arizona’s goals for the weekend are pretty clear-cut, according to sophomore forward Jazmin Ponce.
“Try to get the first goal in, and you know, win the game,” Ponce said.
— Zack Rosenblatt
Hockey team travels to Iowa this weekend
The early season schedule for the No. 22 UA hockey team has not been easy — in fact,it’s been brutal. All five of its games have been on the road against ranked opponents, and this weekend is no different.
The Wildcats travel to Ames, Iowa, to take on No. 9 Iowa State in a two-game series beginning tonight at 5:30 and finishing with a 5:30 game Saturday.
“We want to show the rest of the ACHA that we’re making progress, that we’re competing high on a national level,” said head coach Sean Hogan.
During this difficult stretch, the UA has a 1-3-1 record, with the lone win coming against No. 21 Michigan-Dearborn in the ACHA Showcase.
“I think the players know that we can be successful at this level against a team of Iowa State’s caliber,” Hogan said. “I feel real positive about the weekend.”
The team has been relatively healthy so far this season, but it will be without defenseman Michael Basist, who tore ligaments in his shoulder. The team is uncertain if he will return this season, Hogan said.
— Kyle Johnson
