Kansas Hosts William Jewell, Tabor and Morningside in Quad Dual

LAWRENCE, Kan. – With sights set on redeeming a slow start to the New Year, Kansas swimming and diving will welcome club swimmers from around the area to Robinson Natatorium Saturday, Jan. 23, for its first home contest in more than seven weeks. Saturday’s “Club Day,” the first of its kind for Kansas, will feature an NCAA Division II rematch against William Jewell, along with the NAIA duo of Morningside and Tabor.
 
As club swimmers filter into the pool, they will have the opportunity to watch swimmers from an array of collegiate levels – many former club swimmers themselves – compete, as well as hear about the student-athletes’ experiences firsthand during the meet’s intermissions. Races are scheduled to begin at 10 a.m., but Club Day festivities will be underway starting at 9 a.m.  
 
“We’re really excited for Club Day,” Kansas head coach Clark Campbell said. “It will be a good opportunity for folks who are interested in swimming to come and see three different levels of collegiate swimming. They will be able to see how they will fall into the team and the competitive structure. Most club swimmers have never seen a college meet, so this is an opportunity for them to come and see a variety of team structures and hopefully find what fits them.”
 
While the order of events and the overall structure of the meet will resemble a traditional college competition, the teams will utilize their two mid-meet breaks for a pair of student-athlete panels. Each panel will include swimmers from all four schools who will share their experiences to help give the audience an inside look of what it means to compete at their specific level.
 
The last time the Jayhawks were in Robinson Natatorium they routed the Cardinals, claiming a victory in every event while closing out the fall slate. Since then, Kansas has gone 1-3 over its last two double-duals and will be looking to regain positive momentum in the pool this weekend.
 
“The first thing that we want to do competitively this weekend is we have to race better than we did in Florida,” Campbell said. “This is a chance to get that weekend out of our memory and get up and race. We really only have four more days of racing before Big 12s, we have this weekend, next weekend and then two days at Iowa State. So we can’t afford to squander an opportunity.”
 
Morningside and Tabor will also join Kansas in the pool this weekend, the Jayhawks have not faced either team this season. Along with William Jewell, the squads will travel their men’s teams to compete in a triangular meet of their own. The men’s races will follow the women in the 14-event meet.
 
An hour before the first race, Kansas Athletics will open its fun zone in the Robinson Center and run until 11 a.m. Activities will include a photo booth, inflatable games and more. As with all KU home meets, admission is free and t-shirts from individual Kansas event winners will be tossed into the crowd.
 
Due to the men’s basketball game against Texas Saturday, many campus parking lots will be restricted. Parking for the swimming and diving meet will be available a short walk to the east of Robinson Natatorium in KU Lots 34 and 61, between Alabama and Mississippi Streets off Sunnyside Avenue.
 
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