Following a big weekend against Michigan, the IU swim and dive team will venture north to West Lafayette, Indiana and take on in-state rival Purdue on Saturday in a battle for state supremacy.
For the men’s team, the Purdue meet comes on the heels of arguably the biggest dual-meet win in decades. However, the Hoosiers have moved beyond the victory against the Wolverines and are keen to take on their neighbors from up north.
“We expect a packed house at Purdue,” IU swimming head coach Ray Looze said. “They’re going to deliver their best meet of the season. It’s Indiana, so everybody gets up for us. We seem to always have a target on our back, and sometimes you’ve got to remind the team that’s the case.”
Junior Blake Pieroni and sophomore Vini Lanza will be swimmers to watch this week on the men's side, as both look to back up impressive outings last week against Michigan.
Pieroni has been spectacular for the Hoosiers this season. Most recently he hit NCAA B-cut times in the 100- and 200-yard freestyle against the Wolverines. The Valparaiso, Indiana, native also won two silver medals and a bronze at the FINA Short Course World Championships in December against some of the world’s best competition.
“Blake’s a really good leader at competitions,” Looze said. “He’s such a savvy racer. He promotes a really positive relay culture, and what that means is that getting all four guys of the relay that he’s on to really lay their hearts out on the line. He has a good way of tapping into people’s souls that way.”
Lanza has also been a bright spot for the Hoosiers lately. He also hit NCAA B-cut times against Michigan in the 100- and 200-yard butterfly. Lanza set school records in those events at the 2016 USA AT&T Winter Nationals.
“He’s just getting his feet on the ground,” Looze said of Lanza. “Vini’s got a wonderful feeling of potential so I’m excited about what he might be able to do, but definitely he’s swimming with a lot of confidence. I don’t really think he had his A-game against Michigan, but boy did he swim tough, and he got his hands on the wall in some really challenging races and key points of the meet.”
This weekend will be an intriguing matchup for the men’s divers as well, as a 10-meter platform dive component has been added for the meet.
“It’s just a hammer that comes crashing down and shatters the hearts and minds of your opponents,” Looze said of having the diving team complement the swimmers’ side.
The Hoosiers have been dominant on the diving side this year. However, Purdue’s sophomore Steele Johnson, a silver-medalist in the synchronized 10-meter dive at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics, will present a good challenge.
“We grew up together, diving against each other at international events for as long as I can remember,” sophomore diver James Connor said of Johnson. “Him and I are really good friends, and beyond that he’s just an incredible athlete.”
For the women, the Hoosiers will look to shake off a lackluster performance against Michigan and try to refocus themselves for the final stretch of the regular season.
Sophomore Lilly King, as usual, will be one to watch for the IU swimmers. King swept the 100- and 200-yard breaststroke against Michigan last week and is looking for more of the same against Purdue.
“Obviously expecting to come out on top,” King said. “It’s always great to have a meet with our in-state rival, but traditionally we’ve been much faster than Purdue so I think it’s going to be a good meet. They’re definitely going to be ready for us at their home pool, but regardless, both teams get very excited for this meet and we’re looking forward to a good win.
The action will start at 11 a.m. Saturday in the Boilermaker Aquatic Center in West Lafayette.
“It’s a rivalry meet so definitely expecting some good competition,” senior swimmer Bob Glover said. “It’s going to be a lot of fun, really just trying to get ready and gear up for Big Tens and NCAAs and championship season.”
