MALIBU, Calif. – Pepperdine’s swimming and diving team completes the first half of its 2008-09 season this weekend at the 20-team Nike Cup, which runs Thursday through Saturday at the Belmont Plaza Olympic Pool in Long Beach, Calif.

 

The meet’s format follows the standard three-day NCAA Championship order of events. Prelims will begin at 11:30 a.m. for women in flight ‘A’ and 1:30 p.m. for those in flight ‘B.’ Finals start at 6 p.m. regardless of flight.

 

Standard NCAA 24-place scoring will be used; however, there also will be a non-scoring bonus heat for the 25th to 32nd places for all finals. All relays and the 1650 freestyle will be timed finals and only the ‘A’ relay can score although schools may enter as many relays as desired.

 

Pepperdine swimmers to watch include freshman Rachel Cote (Honolulu, Hawai’i/Punahou School), sophomores Francesca Cyphers (Lake Oswego, Ore./St. Mary's Academy) and Kayleen Hicks (Chico, Calif./Chico HS) and junior Dani Kimmel (Chula Vista, Calif./Eastlake HS), all of whom are seeded among the top 10 of their respective events.

 

Cote is the No. 3 seed in the 100 backstroke at 57.09 and eighth in the 50 freestyle at 24.22. The freshman has regularly placed among the top three through four meets this season, including her bronze-medal showing of 58.03 in the 100 back at the UCI Shootout.

 

Cote’s time of 57.09, recorded at the Malibu Invitational on Oct. 25, stands as the fifth-fastest time in school history as does her season best of 2:07.57 in the 200 back.

 

Cyphers is seeded ninth in the 100 butterfly at 57.69 and has served as the Waves’ top option in this event and on medley relays for much of the season. She has led Pepperdine to the wall in the 100 fly over the last three meets, finishing with times of 59.27, 58.92 and 59.94.

 

Hicks started the season on a high note by setting the school record in the 100 breaststroke with a time of 1:05.17, which has her seeded third this weekend. Since her record-breaking performance, Hicks won both breaststroke competitions at the Malibu Invitational and placed second in a few more while remaining a staple on the Waves’ fastest medley relays of 2008.

 

It’s quite possible no Pepperdine swimmer has dominated as much or as often as Kimmel, who has compiled over 15 top-three finishes as an individual and on relays this season. She enters the Nike Cup as its No. 7 seed in the 50 free at 24.20, and is fourth to start the 100 breast at 1:05.43.

 

Not only is Kimmel the Waves’ fastest swimmer this year in the 50 free, but she also leads the Waves in the 50 (29.87) and 200 breast (2:22.79) and the 100 individual medley (1:01.08).

 

At her most recent competition two weeks ago at Irvine, Kimmel placed third in the 100 breast at 1:06.16 and swam the second leg on a 400 medley relay that posted the third fastest mark in school history at 3:53.84. Kimmel was joined on this relay by Cote, Cyphers and anchor Haley Wilson (Carpinteria, Calif./Santa Barbara HS).

 

The divers can expect another tough go of it as they’ll face another crowded and competitive field. Despite posting some uncharacteristic finishes at Irvine, three competitors: sophomore Tiffany Martz (Folsom, Calif./Folsom HS) and freshmen Leslie Wade (Atlanta, Ga./The Lovett School) and Kristin Scribner (Bonney Lake, Wash./Bonney Lake HS) all managed to post season bests off the 3-meter springboard.

 

Pepperdine will have close to a month off from competition following the conclusion of the Nike Cup on Saturday. The Waves return to action after the New Year with two days at the UC Irvine Invitational on Jan. 3 and 4.

 

Pepperdine’s homecoming to the Raleigh Runnels Memorial Pool is slated for Jan. 17 vs. Cal State Northridge. The Waves’ also will play host to the PCSC Time Trials on Jan. 31.

 

- Copy by Chris Macaluso (Pepperdine sports information)