GCU Heads to Texas for CSCAA National Invitational

Monday, March 23

Rockwall, TX

All Day

Grand Canyon

CSCAA National Invitational

Iegor Lytvenok

Photo by: Deb Schaffer

3/22/2015 1:30:00 PM | Men's Swimming and Diving, Women's Swimming and Diving

Lopes set for three-day competition in Rockwall

The Grand Canyon University men's and women's swimming teams are in Rockwall, Texas, for the three-day College Swimming Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) National Invitational. The meet, which is in its second year of existence, will get underway Monday at the Rockwall ISD Aquatic Center.

Teams competing at this year's CSCAA Championships include BYU, Western Kentucky, Incarnate Word, Rice, Columbia, and Campbell University in addition to the Antelopes.

"This is an important meet for us because it gives us the opportunity to give our swimmers the same kind to training and competition experience they need to get used to turn around after the WAC Championships and be prepared to compete at the NCAA Championships a few weeks later," said head coach Steve Schaffer. "We want to have the process well-rehearsed when we finally get the opportunity to compete at NCAAs in 2018."

"The CSCAA National Division I Invitational is in its second year and can be thought of as Division I swimming's answer to the NIT Basketball tournament," said Schaffer. "To qualify for the meet swimmers must have earned a Division I NCAA B time standard in an individual event, or have been on a qualifying relay. The whole idea of the meet is to give swimmers and teams the opportunity to prepare for the next level. The meet is still a new idea for Division I coaches, but we expect it to grow over the next several years."

GCU will have 28 swimmers competing in the meet this season. The women will be led by Hannah Kastigar and Iryna Glavnyk. Kastigar was named the WAC Women's Swimmer of the Year after her stellar performance at the championships in San Antonio. Kastigar was just three places shy of qualifying for this year's NCAA Championships in the 400-IM, while Glavnyk was just four places off in the 200-back.

"Both (Kastigar & Glavnyk) are on a trajectory to where we know they can make the Division I meet in 2018, so we will be red-shirting Hannah next year and Iryna the following year so that they both will be able to compete in the 2018 NCAA Championships in their last year of eligibility," stated Schaffer.

The men's team is led by Iegor Lytvenok, who would have been invited to the NCAA Championships this year in both the 200-IM and 400-IM events had GCU been eligible to compete.

"Iegor is the third GCU swimmer to have times that would have made the Division I Championships," added Schaffer. "In our Division II years, both Michael Branning and Eetu Karvonen swam fast enough to not only make the Division I meet, but also score at the meet and earn Division I All-America honors."

Other men's team swimmers with Division I B times are: Illya Glazunov, Jacob Lambros, Mazen Elkamash, Youssef Elkamash, Mantas Auruskevicius, Aslan Burbayev, and Fedir Bolychev.

Fans can find a complete recap following each day of the competition at www.gculopes.com.