Wolverines Head to Louisville for Top-10 Showdown

» This weekend's dual meet features a matchup of preseason top-10 teams. Michigan is at No. 6, while Louisville is at No. 9.
» The 200-yard Freestyle on Saturday will be the meet's most anticipated race, with three of the top-six finishers at last year's NCAA Championships: Michigan's Siobhán Haughey and Gabby DeLoof against Louisville's Mallory Comerford, the defending NCAA champion.
» Michigan and Louisville will meet for the second consecutive season (Michigan won a unique "tripleheader" last year in Ann Arbor). The two teams also sent nine representatives each to last week's SMU Classic in Lewisville, Texas, at which Louisville finished second and Michigan finished third.

THIS WEEK
Fri-Sat., Oct. 20-21 -- at No. 9 Louisville (Louisville, Ky.), 5 p.m./11 a.m.
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The No. 6-ranked University of Michigan women's swimming and diving team (1-0) is back in action this weekend, facing No. 9 Louisville (0-1) at Ralph Wright Natatorium in Louisville, Kentucky. The combined men's and women's meet will begin at 5 p.m. on Friday (Oct. 20) and conclude at 11 a.m. on Saturday (Oct. 21).

Nine members of both teams met at last week's SMU Classic in Lewisville, Texas. Louisville finished second, while Michigan was third. This week, each team will have a full complement of swimmers and divers, and will compete in a traditional dual-meet format.

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

Friday, Oct. 20
200-yard Freestyle Relay
200-yard IM
100-yard Backstroke
500-yard Freestyle
One-Meter Diving
100-yard Freestyle
200-yard Breaststroke
200-yard Butterfly
400-yard Medley Relay

Saturday, Oct. 21
200-yard Medley Relay
1,000-yard Freestyle
50-yard Freestyle
200-yard Backstroke
Three-Meter Diving
200-yard Freestyle
100-yard Breaststroke
100-yard Butterfly
400-yard IM
400-yard Freestyle Relay

WOLVERINE BITES
• Michigan is 1-0 all-time against Louisville, winning the first and only meeting between the two schools last October in Ann Arbor. It was a unique "tripleheader" format with Michigan winning each segment by scores of 257-179, 274-196 and 266-205.

• The Wolverines are ranked sixth in the first College Swimming Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) poll, released on Oct. 4. The next poll will be out on Oct. 24. [ Poll ]

• After two competitions, the school's top times list is already being updated. Among the new additions:
-- Siobhán Haughey is No. 1 in the 100-yard freestyle (47.22), No. 2 in the 200-yard breaststroke (2:08.92) and No. 4 in the 50-yard freestyle (22.36)
-- Miranda Tucker is No. 3 in the 200-yard breaststroke (2:09.87) and No. 4 in the 100-yard breaststroke (1:00.35)
-- Yirong Bi is No. 6 in the 100-yard breaststroke (1:01.05)
-- Taylor Garcia is No. 9 in the 100-yard backstroke (53.83)

• Through two competitions, Michigan has achieved 25 NCAA time standards in swimming (3 "A," 22 "B"). Freshman diver Nikki Canale is the only diver to qualify for the NCAA Zone C Diving Championships thus far, getting her score on one-meter. [ Season-Best Times | Top Diving Scores ]

• Even in the middle of a heavy training period, Siobhán Haughey is already putting up fast times. She lowered her previously-held school record in the 100-yard freestyle from 47.39 to 47.22 and left the SMU Classic having met four NCAA time standards: "A" times in the 100-yard freestyle and 200-yard freestyle, and "B" times in the 50-yard freestyle and 200-yard breaststroke.

• The 800-yard freestyle relay -- the team's best relay last year with a third-place finish at the NCAA Championships -- is looking sharp again. The foursome of Gabby DeLoof, Catie DeLoof, Yirong Bi and Siobhán Haughey won the event at the SMU Classic in 7:00.71, an NCAA "A" time. That's almost three seconds faster than last year at this time, when Gabby DeLoof, Haughey, Bi and Becca Postoll went 7:03.07, also at the SMU Classic.

• Siobhán Haughey (Swimmer) and Nikki Canale (Diver, Freshman) earned the first set of Big Ten weekly awards on Oct. 4. [ 2017-18 Awards & Honors ]

SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
The Cardinals, ranked No. 9 in the first CSCAA poll, are 0-1 on the season after suffering a dual-meet loss to Notre Dame on Oct. 7. Last year, they finished third in the ACC and were sixth at the NCAA Championships. Louisville led the nation with 11 All-Americans, eight of whom are back this season: Avery Braunecker, Sophie Cattermole, Mallory Comerford, Casey Fanz, Nastja Govejsek, Alian Kendzior, Grace Oglesby and Lainey Visscher. Comerford is one of the top American swimmers; she is the defending NCAA champion in the 200-yard freestyle and won four medals on relays for Team USA at this past summer's FINA World Championships.

LAST TIME OUT
The Wolverines sent nine student-athletes to the SMU Classic, where they finished third (322 points) to USC (331) and Louisville (330.5). [ Recaps: Day One | Day Two ]

UP NEXT
Fri-Sat., Nov. 3-4 -- at Minnesota, vs. Wisconsin, vs. Penn State (Minneapolis, Minn.)