KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Carson-Newman men's and women's swim teams get the chance to face off against Division I talent from Nov. 30 to Dec. 2 in the University of Tennessee Mid-Season Invitational at the Allan Jones Aquatic Center.
C-N is the only D2 school competing in the invitational. The Eagles will face the likes of Denver, Duke, Marshall, North Carolina, Penn and Tennessee.
Duke and North Carolina both have women's teams ranked inside the top-25 with the Blue Devils at No. 20 and the Tarheels at No. 22.
Both men's and women's teams for the Volunteers are ranked. The women sit at No. 14 while the men claim the No. 18 spot.
"Tennessee themselves have been a strong program, but all programs will be strong and they all have a lot of depth within their rosters," Coach Jordan Taylor said. "It's the kind of meet we are looking forward too and racing fast teams will make us better and when we go to conference and nationals, we'll have to race the fastest."
Senior Margaret Stansberry, who is a native of Knoxville, is excited for the opportunity to swim against D1 schools in her hometown.
"It'll be a really exciting atmosphere and being able to swim in front of my whole family should be really fun," Stansberry mentioned.
The women's swim team was recently put inside the top-10 by the TYR / College Swimming Coaches Association of America Division II polls. Holding the No. 9 spot is the highest the team has ever been ranked in the poll.
On the men's side, C-N climbed up five spots to No. 19 in the national polls.
"It's based on individual rankings at the end of the year so it will help them qualify for nationals," Taylor explained. "On the relay level, we are trying to get all our relays to quality. We have to hit a certain standard time to do that."
Each day, the 11:00 a.m. preliminary swims will gauge where the swimmers will be in the event. Teams can only receive points for the invitational if they qualify for the A and B heats which will take place later on in the day at 6:00 p.m.
"You don't get this chance every week," Taylor added. "It'll be a fun atmosphere and I just want the team to enjoy it and make the most of it. It'll be great to see where our progression has been and they've put all the hard work in. They just need to believe in themselves."
You can track live results from each event here.
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