After the success of Senior Day, the UCSB men’s and women’s swim teams are ready to take on UC Davis and the University of the Pacific in a dual meet this weekend that will showcase each team’s talent before the Big West Championships. Both Gaucho squads proved their worth by defeating the University of Nevada, Las Vegas last weekend in an emotional meet where the Gauchos bid goodbye to their senior class.

The Gaucho women (6-3 overall) took 10 out of 16 events against the Rebels. Strong performances were seen from sophomore Anne Marie May, freshman Sara Nicponski and junior Jessica Cruzat. However, special recognition went to junior Erin Yamamoto, who was selected Big West Swimming and Diving Athlete of Week for her performance. Yamamoto easily took the 200-yard medley race, and she dominated in the 200 butterfly.

“[This weekend] is a back to back meet, and they are always interesting meets,” Head Coach Gregg Wilson said. “[UOP] does not have diving, so it will be a head to head competition, and this weekend is their senior presentation, so they will be gunning for us. They want to ambush us, and I am expecting them to put up a great match because we are going to their pool, their senior recognition day, so I expect them to want to go out with a bang. It will basically come down to how many events our best swimmers can win.”

On the other side of the pool, the Gaucho men (7-1 overall) had a tough battle with the Rebels, but they were able to eke out the victory. Junior Jeff Sudbury led the men in the 200 breaststroke in 2:07.03 and in the 400 free relay. Junior Chris Good continued the backstroke wins by cruising his way to first in the 200 back. Contributing to the Gaucho squad, sophomore Danny McClary took first in the 100 fly.

“Davis has diving, so our team is going to have to pull together to get those 32 points fast,” Wilson said. “Davis has a good team, but our depth is much better. Our relays are more consistent, and they keep getting faster as the days go by. The Davis men have been swimming very well, so we will just have to be ready for them just like they have to be ready for us. Big West Championships are coming soon, so it brings added pressure to the meets. Everyone wants to do well.”

Despite solid performances from the Gauchos side this season, UCSB will have worthy opponents in the Aggies (6-2 overall for men, 4-2 overall for women) and the Tigers (1-3 overall for men, 3-2 overall for women). The Aggies have an upper hand against the Gauchos because they will have a chance to score points through diving events, which the Gauchos do not participate in.