BLACKSBURG - Virginia Tech announced Wednesday its swimming and diving schedule for the 2021-22 season. The Hokies are set to compete at the Christiansburg Aquatic Center seven times, including the Smithfield Commonwealth Clash against rival Virginia on January 15.
The Hokies have a lot of momentum heading into the season after making history at the NCAA Championships last season. The Virginia Tech men's team finished 11th with a total of 135 points, earning the highest finish and highest points scored in school history. The women's team finished 21st, the second highest overall finish in school history and received 55 points, the most in school history.
"We are in a spot where we can do better than we did last year," said head coach Sergio Lopez Miro. "We have 24 freshmen, a big class. With the experience we have as a team and the new talent we have coming in, Hokie Swim and Dive is going to keep pushing and moving forward and up, so I'm very excited about that."
The Hokies are set to swim against two ACC opponents, Duke and Virginia. Virginia Tech placed fourth at ACC's on the women's side. The Virginia Tech men's team placed third at the ACC Championship, marking its best finish in six seasons.
The Hokies will begin their season on Oct. 2 in Washington, D.C., as they face George Washington. Their first ACC matchup will be at home against Duke on Oct. 22.
On Oct. 29-30, Tech will travel to Ohio State to face the Buckeyes, Indiana, and Penn State. The Ohio State men's and women's teams both placed seventh at the NCAA Championships last season. The Indiana men's team finished sixth and the women's team finished 15th. The Hokies will return to Columbus Nov. 18-20 for the Ohio State Invite.
The U.S. Open location has yet to be determined, but the event will take place Dec 1-4.
The schedule also includes three Hokie Belt Challenges. The first dual will start on Sept. 25, followed by one on Nov. 6 and concluding on Jan. 8.
Tech will host Virginia on Jan. 15, quickly followed by Penn State Jan. 21-22. The Virginia Tech Invitational will take place Feb. 4-6.
The ACC Championships will be hosted by Georgia Tech in Atlanta, Ga., from Feb. 16-19.
The NCAA Zone A Diving Championship and National Invitational Championship dates have yet to be released but will take place in March 2022.
The Women's NCAA Championship will be held March 16-19 at Georgia Tech. The Men's NCAA Championship will be March 23-26, also at Georgia Tech.
