JEFFERSON CITY, T.N. – Carson-Newman swim assistant coach Benjamin Young took some time to assess the upcoming 2021-22 season for the Eagles. Last season, the Eagles secured a total of 20 All-American trophies via 11 different All-American performances at the NCAA DII National Championships in March, including six individual All-American performances from CJ Jensen (Copenhagen, Denmark).
This will be the seventh season for C-N swim under the direction of Jordan Taylor. Taylor sees his team comprised a total of 60 athletes as he looks to build upon the success of last year with some strong returners along with up-and-coming underclassmen and transfers.
For the first time in two years, the Eagles will begin their year on the road as they travel and compete at the National Open Water Championships in Lawrence, Kansas on September 17.
"We've got a big incoming class with some new faces coming in. Getting them in to see a little bit of normality will be nice," Young said. "We had a couple of home meets last year that we were able to get through, so starting with Blue v. Orange will be nice with the fast team will have on the squad. Then, going from that to the King Invite and then hosting some formidable opponents will be nice."
Over the course of the 2021-22 schedule, C-N will host a variety of home meets beginning with the annual Blue vs. Orange Championships on Friday, Sept. 24th at 5:30 p.m., which pits Eagle swimmers against their own teammates.
Carson-Newman will also host Milligan on Oct. 29 for a dual-meet and welcome the Lees-McRae Bobcats to close out the fall on Nov. 13. Then, to start the new year, Taylor and the team will welcome Emory and Henry on Jan. 15, 2022, before hosting the last home meet of the year against Mars Hill on Jan. 22, 2022.
The Eagles will also make return trips to familiar invites as they head to the King Invite on Oct. 1st and 2nd, ahead of a much-anticipated rematch with conference foe Wingate. Shortly after the trip to Wingate, C-N marks another outing at the Emory Invite in Atlanta, Ga, on Nov. 5th and 6th.
In a rematch between two of the top Bluegrass Mountain Conference teams, C-N will visit Wingate, North Carolina, on Oct. 22nd and 23rd for a dual-meet against the Wingate Bulldogs, a team that finished at sixth on the women's side and seventh on the men's side after all competition at the DII National Championships.
"Wingate is always a phenomenal team with some great competition. Our goal is to continue closing the gap with them and push them to be better in hopes of closing the gap completely and overtake the lead with them," Young said. "We strive to focus on our skills and get faster as we head into championship season. Hopefully, the hype that we had around the meet last year will carry over, and it will be another close meet between Wingate and us."
When the Bulldogs and Eagles last squared off in November, Wingate took the victory on both sides of action as they left Mossy Creek with the combined score win of 333-297. However, C-N lost on the men's side by a single point, 158-157, marking the first home loss for the Eagles since the program's first-ever meet back in 2013. Meanwhile, Wingate claimed its second straight victory from Mossy Creek on the women's side by a score of 175-140.
Carson-Newman will return to the confines of the Jones Aquatic Center as they face the University of Tennessee Volunteers in a dual-meet on Jan. 29, 2022, as a lead-up to Bluegrass Mountain Conference Championships.
"This is one we have circled on the schedule as we hope to bring out our best, and it will be a great opportunity to see the level of competition on the Division I level and how quick we at Carson-Newman truly are," Young said. "Really, having a 60 person roster and only a few score on the men and women, but it definitely is time to buckle down for the entire team."
The Eagles will head to Charlotte, North Carolina, for the Bluegrass Mountain Conference Championships from Feb.10th to Feb. 13th, 2022, hoping to springboard themselves to another show at the NCAA DII National Championships.
Be sure to follow along with the Eagles all season long across Carson-Newman's social media platforms and on cneagles.com.
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