Swimming and diving hosts Stanford and Cal
The Arizona State swimming and diving meets will host Stanford and Cal in their final home meets of the season. The men (0-5) will compete against Stanford at 1 p.m on Friday with the women (1-4) following at 3 p.m. The diving competition, which will be both men and women combined, will take place at 3 p.m. Both the men and women's teams will swim at noon against Cal on Saturday.
Senior Salute:
Saturday's meet will be the last for 10 members of the ASU swimming and diving teams. These seniors have broken records, served as captains, competed in championships and succeeded in the classroom.
Men
Micky Benedetti - Micky Benedetti has made a name for himself as one of the finest divers in ASU's illustrious history. Last season he became the first Sun Devil to complete a sweep of the diving events at the Pac-10 Championships. Benedetti, a six-time All-American, holds the ASU record in both the 3-meter and the platform. He has been twice named Pac-10 Diver of the Year and was also honored with Pac-10 Newcomer of the Year in 2006.
Magnus Kjellberg - Kjellberg concludes his time on the Sun Devils as one of the team's strongest sprinters and fliers. Kjellberg is currently ranked seventh all-time in the 100 free and is 11th in the 50 free. He has been a vital member of the relay teams.
Mohammed Madwa - Known as Muddy by his teammates, Madwa has been one of ASU's top sprinters since the moment he stepped on campus. Constantly improving, he broke into the top 10 of the 50 free in ASU's record-books. He is currently ninth all-time. A 2008 Olympian, he has been crucial to the Sun Devil freestyle relay teams.
Women
Jen Beckberger - Jen Beckberger will end her Sun Devil career as one of the best freestyle swimmers in ASU history. Beckberger is a six-time All-American and served as one of the team's captains this past season. In the ASU record-books, she is currently tied for second in the 50 free and holds the second spot in the 200 free. She is also third in the 100 free.
Rikka Brunner -In her time at ASU, Brunner has provided some of the team's fastest backstroke times. In the 200 back, she currently ranks sixth all-time in ASU's record books. Brunner has also been a fine student here at ASU and was named to the Pac-10 All-Academic honorable mention team the past two seasons.
Erin Hobbs - Hobbs has been both a strong student and athlete for the Sun Devils. She turned in one of the best performances of her career in the 3-meter at last year's Pac-10 Championships and finished runner-up. Hobbs, who is the ASU record-holder in the 3-meter, has competed at the NCAA Zone meet every season and qualified for the NCAA Championships her freshman year. She was named to the Pac-10 All-Academic honorable mention team the past two seasons.
Frankie Judy - Judy has proven to be one of the finest scholars, not only on the ASU team but also in the Pac-10. Last season, Judy's GPA of 4.04 was the conference's highest and was honored with first-team All-Academic. In the pool, Judy has provided depth in the backstroke events.
Ilene Lesch - Lesch has served primarily as a breaststroke specialist for the Sun Devils. Over her four years here, she has been a member of medley relay teams and gave the Sun Devils depth in both breaststroke events. Lesch, who is a housing and urban development major, has been on the Pac-10 All-Academic honorable mention team the past two seasons.
Spring-boarding to the Top
Micky Benedetti added another accomplishment to his impressive resume. The senior from Rome broke ASU great Joona Puhakka's ASU record in the 3-meter at the Dallas Morning News. The new standard is now set at 455.40. On top of that, Benedetti's score also stands as the Joe Perkins Natatorium. His score crushed the previous 19-year mark, which was set by none other than ASU head diving coach Mark Bradshaw.
Top 10
This season's Texas Invitational produced multiple top ASU times. Sean Boyle had a breakthrough weekend and is now second all-time in the 200 fly (1:44.98) and sixth (1:35.91) in the 200 free. Mohammed Madwa entered his name at No. 9 after clocking in a time of 20.05 in the 50 free. Max Laney earned his place at sixth in the 200 back on ASU's all-time list with a time 1:46.22.
On the women's side, Jen Beckberger improved to third all-time in the 100 free with a time of 49.11. Sasha Stephens carved her name at third in the 100 back with a time of 54.70. The freshman also tied for third in the 200 back at 1:58.22. Jamie Martinez is now second all-time in the 200 back with a time of 1:57.63. The San Jose, Calif., native is now ninth in the 400 IM too with a time of 4:19.98 and put herself at fourth all-time in the 100 back after clocking in a leadoff time of 54.78 in the 400 medley relay. Freshman Jordyn Green burst into the Sun Devil top 10 list in both the 100 and 200 breast. The Reno, Nev., native clocked in times of 1:01.83 and 2:12.48 to put herself at third and fourth in the 100 and 200 breast respectively. Ashton Aubry improved to second all-time in both the 100 and 200 fly. The junior from Leawood, Kan., earned times of 52.51 and 1:57.14 respectively. Penelope Yamauchi entered her name at ninth in the 200 IM with a time of 2:02.93.
Not Now Chief, They're In the Zone!
Benedetti, Cameron Bradshaw, Erin Hobbs and Brittany Jumer have all qualified for the NCAA Zone "E" Meet. All four earned their spot in the meet against Washington. Last week in Dallas, Cameron Bradshaw set a new personal best in the three-meter. His new career-best is 342.53. Bradshaw placed third in the event.
Senioritis
Senior Boyle has already began to make a statement his senior year. The Lake Elsinore, Calif., native has already earned three NCAA consideration times. At the Texas Invitational, Boyle moved himself to second on ASU's all-time list with an NCAA consideration time of 1:44.98. He placed fourth in the event. Boyle also shattered his personal record in the 200 free to put him at sixth on ASU's all-time list at 1:35.91. Boyle also earned an NCAA consideration time in the 500 free with a time of 4:23.03.
Flying Aubry
Aubry picked up right where she left off last season. The 2008 NCAA qualifier is inching closer and closer to the 100 and 200 fly records. Aubry, who is currently second all-time in both events, is less than a second off Caitlin Andrew's 100 fly record and is about 30 tenths away from the 200 fly record.
Trio of Youngsters
Green, Sasha Stephens and Yamauchi have given the Sun Devils a burst of new energy. Green, who had qualified for the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials, is now in the top five on ASU's all-time lists in both breaststroke events. Stephens is already second all-time in the 100 back and is third in the 200 back. Yamauchi, who is one of the team's most versatile swimmers, is now ninth in the 200 IM.
Ms. Versatile
Martinez, a junior from San Jose, Calif., is the women's team top all-around swimmer. Martinez has her name in five all-time lists: 100 and 200 back, 100 and 200 fly and 400 IM. The utility swimmer is about one second off the 200 back record.
Up Next:
The Sun Devils will head south for their final dual meet of the season, as they will take on rival Arizona.
Sean Boyle - Sean Boyle has become one of the Sun Devils top swimmers of the 2009 season and one of the finest middle-distance and fliers in ASU history. Boyle now ranks second in the 200 fly, sixth in the 200 free and ninth in the 100 fly.