MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — Two LSU swimmers and one LSU diver will compete in the NCAA Men’s Swimming and Diving Championships this weekend in Minneapolis, Minn.
The Tigers who have qualified for the NCAA Championships are senior Neal Satterly, junior Corey Fox, and sophomore Rodrigo Castro.
“I’m really happy for the guys that qualified for the NCAA Championships,” said LSU head coach Rick Meador. “This season we didn’t qualify as many people as we have in the past, but Rodrigo, Neal, and Corey are all great athletes and deserve the honor. They each have a legitimate shot at scoring a lot of points in their events.”
Castro, a returning All-American, holds two of LSU’s all-time swimming records. He broke his own school-record in the 400-yard freestyle event earlier this season at the Southeastern Conference Championships. Castro shattered his previous record-time of 4:24.08 by swimming an NCAA qualifying time of 4:22.92.
The second school-record held by Castro is in the 200-yard freestyle event. He set the record during the 1999 SEC Championships by finishing the event in 1:36.23. The previous LSU record of 1:37.38 was set by Randy Everatt in 1988.
“Both Rodrigo and Neal are among the best LSU swimmers to ever compete in their events,” Meador said. “They both qualified for the NCAA Championships last season as well so they will bring some of that experience into this meet. I am really looking forward to seeing how many records we can break this year.”
Satterly, who is a senior leader and Co-Captain of the Tigers, holds the school-record in the 100-yard backstroke event. His time of 48.31 during the SEC Championships broke Tommy Starkweather’s previous record of 48.95. Starkweather’s record was set earlier in the 1999-00 season.
LSU diver Corey Fox will compete in all three diving events this weekend. He qualified for the NCAA Championships by scoring 576.50 points in the 3-meter springboard competition at the NCAA Diving Regionals. With his performance Fox moved into third-place all-time in LSU’s high scoring category of the 3-meter diving event.
“Corey is a talented, smart diver,” said LSU diving coach Scott Reich. “He’s a consistent scorer. He doesn’t make many costly mistakes and that’s what will help him perform among the best
Last season, the Tigers amassed 53 points and finished 18th at the NCAA Championships. It was the fifth-consecutive season in which LSU has ended the year ranked among the nation’s top-25 teams.
The NCAA Men’s Swimming and Diving Championships begin on Thursday and run through Saturday in Minneapolis, Minn. Preliminary heats begin at 11 a.m. each day, with the championship finals set for 7 p.m.