The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Synchronized Swimming Opens Season at Florida on Saturday
1/25/2007 12:00:00 AM | Syncs
Jan. 25, 2007
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The UAB Synchronized Swimming team will begin its 2007 season on Saturday when it travels to take on the Gators of Florida in Gainesville, Fla. at 12 p.m. The Blazers, who return two All-Americans this season, will be looking for a repeat performance at Florida after winning the event in 2006. Also competing at the meet will be Michigan and Georgia.
Seniors Hallie Todd and Sara Petrov are coming off seasons in which they earned All-America recognition. Todd is out due to injury so Petrov will be looked upon to lead the Green and Gold this season. Also returning are seniors Andrea and Vanessa Dash who were both key contributors to the Blazers' success in 2006.
UAB head coach Lisa Riddell is in her fifth year at the helm of the UAB program and will be looking to see a focused team in the pool this weekend and hopes to see some hard work pay off.
"The girls have been working very hard," Riddell said. "I'm sure if they stay focused they'll do a great job. This meet sort of sets the tone for the rest of the season. If they have a good showing in Florida, it will just build their confidence for the rest of the year. They've been training hard to prepare for this meet so I'm sure they'll do well and continue to improve and peak at Collegiate Nationals."
Other key returnees include sophomore Meryl Grandia, junior Maria Cecilia Garcia, junior Frances Halloran and sophomore Casey Lord.
As the Blazers kick off their season on Saturday, Riddell understands the difficulty of putting together perfect routines so early in the season but says she expects her team to have an impressive showing this weekend.
"I'm expecting a strong start to the season," Riddell said. "Most of the routines are just now being completed so they may not be at the height of perfection yet, but I know we'll have a good showing at the first meet of the season."
