University of Massachusets Athletics
Women's Swimming & Diving Picked Fourth In A-10
October 15, 2009 | Women's Swimming & Diving
Oct. 15, 2009
AMHERST, Mass. - The Atlantic 10 Conference released its 2009-10 Women's Swimming and Diving Preseason Poll on Thursday, with UMass coming in fourth place behind Fordham, Richmond, and Duquesne. Head coach Bob Newcomb's squad finished fourth at the 2009 A-10 Championships behind those same three teams.
The Fordham Rams finished second at last year's Championship - their highest finish in program history - with 549.5 points and are picked to finish first this season for the first time ever. Richmond seized its eighth consecutive A-10 crown in 2009 with 742.0 points. Fordham is led by senior Caitlin Napoli, who won both the 200-yard freestyle (1:49.55) and 500-yard freestyle (4:52.07) events at the 2009 Championship.
The Minutewomen finished the 2009 A-10 Championships with a fourth-place 398.5 points. It was their fifth-straight year finishing in the top four. UMass won its lone A-10 title in 2001.
Newcomb's Minutewomen are led by senior co-captains Joan Baltazar and Elizabeth Walsh. Diving Coach Mandy Hixon's squad returns sophomore Hannah Swift, bronze medal winner in the one-meter last season. UMass begins its 2009-10 season on Saturday when they host Boston University in a dual meet at the Joseph Rogers Pool in the Boyden Gym. The meet will be webcast on UMass All-Access at UMassAthletics.com.
2010 Women's Swimming & Diving Predicted Order Of Finish
(2009 Championship results in parentheses)
1. Fordham (2nd)
2. Richmond (1st)
3. Duquesne (3rd)
4. Massachusetts (4th)
5. La Salle (5th)
6. Xavier (7th)
7. St. Bonaventure (6th)
8. Saint Louis (8th)
9. George Washington (9th)
10. Rhode Island (10th)
