CHICAGO, Ill. – The Illinois Tech men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams have released the 2017-18 schedule. This season’s slate includes three new opponents, the third annual Ted Erikson Invitational, and a new location for the Liberal Arts Championships.
"We found some nice balance in this upcoming season's schedule,” said Head Coach Kyllian Griffin. “With five home meets and five away meets, I think the team will be well-prepared each week to face some strong competition. We’re still competing against some great schools that we've seen every year over the past several seasons, but excited to add a few new challenges along the way as well."
For the second year in a row, the Scarlet Hawks will open the season in front of a home crowd at Keating Sports Center’s Ekco Pool. The Scarlet Hawks will host both St. Ambrose University and Illinois College on Friday, October 20 at 6:00 p.m. St. Ambrose is one of the three new teams on this season’s schedule.
The Scarlet Hawks will hit the road the very next day, heading to Anderson, Indiana to oppose another new opponent (Anderson University) as well as familiar foe Franklin College. The October 21 meet will get underway at 1:00 p.m. eastern time (Noon central time). A busy back half of October closes out with another home meet, as the Scarlet Hawks host both UW-Whitewater and Beloit College on Saturday, October 28 at 1:00 p.m. Whitewater is the third and final new opponent Tech will face in dual or double-dual meets this season.
All of Illinois Tech’s November meets will take place away from Ekco Pool. After opposing Loras College in a dual meet in Dubuque, Iowa on November 4 (1:00 p.m.), the Scarlet Hawks will compete at nearby University of Chicago in the annual Phoenix Fall Classic from November 17-19. Tech makes a yearly visit to the large meet, as both teams posted strong showings at last year’s competition. The men placed fifth out of 12 teams, while the women finished sixth out of 14.
Tech will host an invitational of its own on Saturday, December 2 at 1:00 p.m. The third annual Ted Erikson Invite, which honors one of Illinois Tech’s most decorated alumnus and one of the world’s greatest open-water swimmers, will include the Scarlet Hawks, Lincoln College, Beloit, Manchester University, and North Central College. The Scarlet Hawks have won both previous invitationals on both sides.
After the team’s annual trip over winter break, the Scarlet Hawks pick things back up on Saturday, January 13 with another 1:00 p.m. home meet. Tech will play host to Lawrence University in a dual, another familiar foe and the alma mater of Griffin. To close out the month, the Scarlet Hawks will head north to Carroll University in Waukesha, Wisconsin for a 1:00 p.m. dual on Saturday, January 20.
The Scarlet Hawks will wrap-up the regular season with Senior Day. This year’s festivities will take place on Saturday, February 3 at 1:00 p.m. as the Scarlet Hawks host Lake Forest College.
This season’s schedule is designed to prepare for the Liberal Arts Championships, which will take place from February 14-17 this season at a new location: Luther College in Decorah, Iowa. Both the men’s and women’s teams are coming off of very strong showings at the 2017 Championships, as both teams placed third (men out of nine, women out of 11) and earned a combined 13 student-athletes on the LAC All-Championship team.
“The Liberal Arts Championship is ultimately what it is all about,” said Griffin. “We had some great successes last year, but I think we can improve in 2018. Both teams are up for the challenge and will swim fast all season in preparation for the big meet.”
All home meets for the 2017-18 season are set to include a live video stream. Admission to all home meets are free of charge.