CALIFORNIA Golden Bears 2006-07 MEN’S SWIMMING & DIVING CALIFORNIA QUICK FACTS TABLE OF CONTENT Location: Berkeley, CA 94720 Quick Facts ....................................... 1 Enrollment: 32,000 MEDIA Outlook .......................................... 2-3 Founded: 1868 CREDENTIALS Roster ............................................... 4 Nickname: Golden Bears Please direct all requests/ Head Coach Nort Thornton .............. 5 Colors: Blue and Gold questions for media Assistant Coaches ........................... 6 Conference: Pacific-10 credentials to Kimberley Athlete Bios ................................. 7-12 Pool: Spieker Aquatics Complex Hoidal. Requests should be 2005-06 Results ............................ 13 (Lanes: 9 feet wide, Depth: 10 feet to 13 feet, made in writing by sports 2006 NCAA Championship ........... 14 Dimensions: 50 meters by 25 yards, editors/directors on 2006 Best Times and Dives .......... 15 Bulkhead: Moveable) appropriate letterhead at least Records at a Glance ...................... 16 Chancellor: Dr. Robert J. Birgeneau one week prior to the meet. Cal’s All-Time Top 10 .................... 17 Athletic Director: Sandy Barbour Please fax (510-643-7778) or Golden Bear Records .................... 18 Head Coach: Nort Thornton (San Jose State 1956) email the requests Series Records .............................. 18 Career Record at Cal: 226-82 (.734) in 32 seasons ([email protected]). Golden Bear History ................. 19-20 Co-Head Coach: Mike Bottom Academic Honors ........................... 21 Volunteer Assistant Coach: Bart Kizierowski INTERVIEWS/ Cal Olympic Medalist ..................... 22 Diving Coach: Thomas Davidson All-Americans ................................. 22 Olympic Sports Operations: Josh Flushman PRESS Cal Letterwinners ..................... 23-24 Thornton’s Office Phone: (510) 642-5917 INFORMATION The California Swimming Experience ......25 2006 Dual-Meet Record: 4-1 A pre-meet press release Experienced Coaching Staff .......... 26 2006 Pac-10 Finish: 2nd and complete set of results will Olympic Tradition ........................... 27 2006 NCAA Finish: 6th be made available to members The University ........................... 28-29 Lettermen Returning: 23 of the media covering Cal home Academic Achievement .................. 30 Lettermen Lost: 4 swimming meets. These will Notable Cal Alumni ........................ 31 NCAA Team Members Returning: 12 also be available online at The Bay Area and Beyond ........ 32-33 NCAA Team Members Lost: 4 www.CalBears.com. All athlete California Athletics ................... 34-35 Men’s Swimming & Diving Contact: and coach interviews, either in Athletic Facilities ............................ 34 Kimberley Hoidal person or by telephone, must E-Mail: [email protected] be coordinated through CREDITS Office Phone: (510) 643-2938 Kimberley Hoidal with a The 2006-07 edition of the California Cell Phone: (510) 326-9761 minimum of one day’s notice. Men’s Swimming and Diving Media Fax: (510) 643-7778 Please call 510-643-2938 for Guide was written and edited by Address: Media Relations Office, more information. Kimberley Hoidal, Assistant Media 349 Haas Pavilion, Berkeley, CA 94720 Relations Director. Layout and graphics by John Dunbar, Publications Director and Evan Kerr, Publications Assistant. Photos by John Dunbar, Evan Kerr, Michael Pimentel, Michael J. Burns, Nick Lammers, Bill Collins, Stu Corliss, Peter H. Bick, Karen Moe Humphreys, and Harrison Stubbs, among others. BEAR BACKERS SUPPORT YOUR TEAM Bear Backers are loyal Cal alumni and friends who provide financial support to Cal Athletics with their donations. Every student-athlete benefits from their contributions which underwrite scholar-ships, operational needs and academic tutoring programs. Bear Backers also build athletic facilities, including Haas Pavilion. The best way to support a Cal team is to join Bear Backers. For more information, call (510) 642-2427. 2006-07 California Men's Swimming & Diving Team 2006 VOLLEYBALL MEDIA GUIDE2006-07 California Golden Bears Men’s Swimming & Diving Media Guide 1 1 CALIFORNIA Golden Bears 2006-07 OUTLOOK STROKES Anchoring the sprinting events are William Copeland, Jernej Godec and Joe Whittington. Last season Copeland swam a team’s best time of 42.97 in the 100-yard freestyle. He also earned All-American honors on the 200-freestyle relay, 200- medley relay and 400-freestyle relay. Godec swam a season-best 19.58 in the 50-yard free last season. He earned honorable mention honors at the NCAA Championships with his 15th finish. Godec also swam a team-best 46.32 in the 100 butterfly. He also obtained honorable mention All-American honors with his 14th Team Captain Patrick O'Neil place. Whittington swam in the prelims of the THE 2006-07 SEASON: 200 freestyle relay at the NCAA Championships earning All-American A BALANCING ACT honors. t is a balancing act this year for the Tilly) and 400-freestyle relay (4th, Jonas “Joe Whittington can step right in to University of California Golden Bears’ Tilly, Cavic, William Copeland, Garrett improve the time of the 200 freestyle team,” Imen’s swimming and diving team. Wagner). Thornton said. “Also we can expect Changes happen every year, and this year Together, Cavic, Molina and Barbosa freshman Nathan Adrian to step up to the in particular they have affected both the had been part of four top-five teams at the challenge.” swimming and diving sides of the program. NCAA Championships, garnered several Also in the butterfly is senior Patrick With the addition of a large group of All-America honors and worked their way O’Neil, who was selected to the United newcomers as well as a new diving coach, into the Cal All-Time Top 10 ranks in various State’s 2007 Pan Am Games team recently. Cal finds itself balanced in each event with events. O’Neil garnered honorable mention All- plenty of depth to propel the Bears to But head coach Nort Thornton is American honors in both the 100- and 200- another top five finish at the NCAA confident that his current squad will meet yard butterfly at the NCAA Championship. Championships. the challenge of becoming Cal’s new Last season he saw a team-best 1:45.40 The team lost significant contributors in veterans. in the 200 fly and a season-best 47.12 in 100- and 200-yard breaststroke NCAA “In most of the events we have several the 100 fly. During the summer at the USA champion Henrique Barbosa, Milorad athletes that are capable of emerging as National Championships, O’Neil finished Cavic and Miguel Molina, last year’s leaders,” Thornton said. “Even though we ninth in the 100-meter butterfly (54.27) and seniors who helped lead the Bears to a have graduated Henrique Barbosa, our 18th in the 200 butterfly (2:01.35). sixth-place finish at last spring’s NCAA NCAA breaststroke champion, we still have “Patrick O’Neil will be a great leader for Championships in Atlanta. Besides 10 NCAA swimmers returning.” our team,” Thornton added. “He will be our Barbosa’s titles, Cal had strong showings With the returning All-Americans and captain for the season. in the 200 freestyle (3rd, Dominik Meichtry), the addition of new faces, the Bears will Replacing Barbosa will be the biggest 100 butterfly (6th, Cavic), 200-medley relay attack their competition head on. challenge for the Bears this season. (3rd, Cavic, Barbosa, Jernej Godec, Jonas Senior Graham Lentz and junior Richard Hunter will aim to step in to replace him as the top swimmer in the breaststroke. Last season Lentz held the best time behind Barbosa in the 100 breaststroke, at 54.16. In the 200, Lentz posted a season-best of 1:59.50. Hunter swam the teams third- best time of 55.85 in the 100 breaststroke and was clocked at a season-best 2:03.01 in the 200 breaststroke. Individually, sophomore David Russell has the potential to score big at the NCAA Championships, as he entered last year’s NCAAs with the nation’s third best times in both the 100- (46.70) and 200-yard (1:41.88) backstrokes. At the USA Championships this summer, Russell finished sixth in the 100-meter backstroke (55.19) and finished 13th in the 200 Daniel Lysaught Mark Eckert backstroke (2:04.24). 22006-07 California Golden Bears Men’s Swimming & Diving Media Guide CALIFORNIA GOLDEN BEARS CALIFORNIA Golden Bears Rivas has improved through his years at Cal, posting career bests of 279.53 at one meter (6 dives), 329.93 at three meters (6 dives), and 342.25 on the platform (10 dives). However, Davidson wants to see Rivas back to the form he was in when he won Pac-10 Newcomer of the Year. Wes, who has posted a 296.10 on the one-meter board (6 dives), a 259.57 on the three-meter board (6 dives) and a 211.65 on the platform (10 dives) over his career at Cal, can also improve. The addition of Danny Harper will continue building depth for the Bears. Harper, whose personal best on one-meter Dominic Cathey Graham Lentz (6 dives) is 276.25, will learn from three Dominik Meichtry returns for his junior in the 50 freestyle. Also Aaron Casey will veteran teammates. season, after posting a team-best 1:33.75 be a contention in IM and bockstroke this in the 200 freestyle and a 4:15.89 in the 500 season. Casey represented the United COACHING STAFF freestyle. He earned All-American honors States in the Junior Nationals and the The Bears returned a stellar coaching for both his third-place finish in the 200 at 2006 Nationals. staff, led by Nort Thornton. In his 33rd year the NCAA Championships and his eighth at the helm of the men’s swimming place finish in the 500. DIVING program, Thornton has produced a stellar Daniel Lysaught enters his final season The diving core is very strong this cast of All-Americans, and his teams have in Berkeley as Cal’s leading distance season, returning three experienced placed in the top 10 in 27 of the 32 years swimmer. Last season he swam a team athletes and adding a new face.