AUBURN, Ala. – The new year has arrived, and Auburn Swim and Dive is poised to kick off 2023 with the same fervor as it left off in the fall.
Head coach Ryan Wochomurka has done more than point the program in the right direction. The men's and women's teams enter 2023 inside the Top-20 of the CSCAA rankings.
For the men, the No. 9 ranking is Auburn's highest since 2017, and the No. 19 ranking on the women's side is the program's best since the final ranking of 2020. Both are the highest ranking since Wochomurka and his staff arrived on the Plains.
The Orange and Blue own 24 top-20 swims in the country at the moment. Emily Hetzer has been dynamic in the distance events for the Tigers while the record-setting 100 breast from Anastasia Makarova has shown what firepower the women are working with.
Reid Mikuta owns the top time in the country in the 100 breast and will look to keep it that way through March. Like Hetzer, the men's distance group boasts several top-20 times with Michael Bonson, Mason Mathias and Grant Davis all grinding out solid swims. Meanwhile, brothers Nate Stoffle and Aidan Stoffle continue to push each other in the backstroke events.
When it comes to relays, there are few schools in the country trending like the Tigers at the moment. The men rank in the top 5 in the 200 free, 400 free and 400 medley.
Auburn begins the new year hosting Texas A&M before heading out on the road to Georgia Tech. The Tigers will celebrate Senior Day on Jan. 20 against rival Alabama.
Championship season is right around the corner, beginning with SEC's Feb. 15-19. The NCAA Women's National Championship in Knoxville, Tenn. Is slated for March 15-18 while the Men's Championship is set for March 22-25.