Lexington, Ky. – The Toledo swimming & diving team hit the pool for the first time in 2018 this weekend, competing in a tri-meet against two of the top-20 programs in the country in Kentucky and Ohio State in a tri-meet at the University of Kentucky. The Rockets were beaten in both matchups, but head coach Jonas Persson was encouraged with his team's progress and where his team stands nearing the upcoming MAC Championships next month.

"We swam hard and aggressively all the way through both sessions today," remarked Persson after the second day of the meet on Saturday. "We came here to gain experience from two of the best teams in the country, and the team met our expectations really well. This will go a long way in our preparation for the MAC Championships in a few weeks. I'm really proud of the team."

The Rockets were once again led by a strong core of young swimmers. Freshmen Macarena Garcia and Lisa Eriksson both posted strong swims on Saturday. Erikkson led all Rockets in the 100-yard freestyle, posting a time of 53.04. Garcia paced Toledo in the 200-yard butterfly, posting a 2:10.08 finals time.

In the diving pool, the Rockets were led by freshman Megan Peepers, who posted a 200.9 total score in the one-meter diving competition, and a 208.2 in the three-meter event. Freshman Elayna Yoskovich also had strong showings in both events, posting a 194.65 and 150.05 respectively.

"It was a tough competition, Ohio State and Kentucky are great programs, but it was great experience for my freshmen divers," said diving coach Gabriella Agostino. "I wanted them to focus on what we have been working on in practice, and I think they did a good job of that." 

The Rockets' diving team will return to action Friday, when it heads to Buffalo, N.Y. to compete in the Buffalo Diving Invitational. The swimming team will be back at the Student Recreation Center for the final time of the 2017-18 season on Saturday, Jan. 13 when it hosts senior night, honoring the program's nine senior student-athletes. The meet is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. against Akron, with senior day festivities set to begin at 2:30 p.m.