By Dan D’Addona.
The top teams in the Pac-12 will be invaded by the Texas Longhorns this week as three of the top 10 women’s teams in the nation will clash in dual meets in California.
It begins on Friday when Texas swims at Cal. The Longhorns enter the week with the No. 7 ranking by the College Swimming Coaches Association of American poll, while Cal is just two spots behind at No. 9.
Cal is led by Olympians Kathleen Baker and Abbey Weitzeil, as well as All-Americans Amy Bilquist and Farida Osman.
The Golden Bears will be up against a Texas Longhorns team that is stacked with depth, and while they might not have any superstars, they are full of rising stars, led by Claire Adams.
This meet will show both teams what they will be up against at the NCAA Division I championships and could be a classic dual meet.
If that wasn’t enough, the next day (Nov. 12), Texas turns around and swims at No. 2 Stanford.
If Cal is star-studded, Stanford needs a new term. Led by the most dominant swimmer in the world, Katie Ledecky, the Cardinal also feature Olympic gold medalist Simone Manuel, as well as two-time Olympic sprinter Lia Neal and Olympic diver Kassidy Cook.
Texas will have its hands full this week against two of the premier programs in the country year after year.
Who will win? In reality, only one team can win each day, but in the long run, all three teams will win by having such a strong dual meet — or two dual meets in the Longhorns’ case — at this point in the season. All three teams are aiming to be trophy teams at the NCAA meet.
This week could be the springboard toward that goal for one — or all three of the teams.
USC Trojan diving invite
Southern Cal will host the Trojan Diving Invitational from Friday-Sunday. Many of the top divers in the NCAA were invited and this meet will give everyone a look at new dives and new competition.
