MILWAUKEE – The Milwaukee men's and women's swimming and diving teams open the 2021-22 season this weekend as they travel to IUPUI on Saturday. The meet will start at 3 PM and will be a preview the Horizon League Championship pool as the IUPUI Natatorium will host the championships for the second consecutive season.
 
Scouting the Jaguars
IUPUI opened its season on September 26 and will host the Panthers with four meets under its belt. Most recently, the Jaguars swam at the Indiana Intercollegiates, finishing second out of 10 on the men's side and fourth out of 12 on the women's side.
 
The Jaguars were selected fourth on both sides in the preseason poll after both teams placed fourth at the Horizon League Championships last year.
 
Milwaukee owns a 4-1 advantage in the all-time dual series against IUPUI.
 
A Decade With Clements
Entering his 12th season as Milwaukee's head men's and women's swimming and diving coach, Kyle Clements has led the Panthers to unprecedented heights. In his first ten years at the helm, Clements has completely reshaped Milwaukee's history, bringing home an unprecedented 12 team trophies – four Horizon League Championships and eight runner-up finishes – over that span.
 
MKE has also had a lot of individual success, breaking all but two of the combined 72 school and freshman records during Clements' time at Milwaukee, including one freshman record in the abbreviated 2021 season.
 
Clements' highlights also include four NCAA appearances, an NCAA individual runner-up finish (Emily McClellan), three-time coach of the year honoree, four athletes of the year, three newcomers of the year, and 55 individual league titles.
 
Diving Duo
Sophomores McKenzie Sanchez and Jared Kleczka came up big for the Panthers in their second seasons. Sanchez earned a pair of podium finishes at the Horizon League Championships, placing first in the one-meter (290.30) for the second consecutive season and third on the three-meter board (248.60).
 
Prior to the championships, Sanchez established a new career-best on the one-meter (302.78) against Green Bay on March 7. Her score placed her second in program history and the sophomore also claimed victory in the three-meter at the same meet. The Racine, Wis., native collected second place finishes on both boards in two meetings with UIC.
 
Kleczka also earned a pair of podium finishes at the Horizon League meet, placing second in the one-meter (302.95) and fourth in the three-meter (280.35). Prior to the championships, the Franklin, Wis., native posted a career-best in the one-meter (317.85) in the season-opener against UIC, which ranks fifth in program history.
 
Both divers qualified for the NCAA Zone Diving Championships but did not compete due to COVID-19.
 
Breaking Into the Record Books
On the final day of the Horizon League Championships last spring, freshmen Robert Petersen and Zach McClellan each broke the former MKE freshman record in the 200 fly. Petersen placed second (1:49.41) while McClellan finished third (1:50.35) in the B-finals of the 200 fly, surpassing the previous freshman standard in the event set in 2016.
 
The times also placed the freshmen on the Panther top-10 list, with Petersen checking in at eighth and McClellan right behind at ninth.
 
Petersen also posted season-best times in a pair of other events at the championships. The Oswego, Ill., native placed 18th in the 100 fly (50.40) and 23rd in the 500 free (4:48.31) to cap a productive first season.
 
McClellan closed his first season with a pair of season-best times in the 200 IM (1:52.35) and 400 IM (4:10.09) at the championships. The Sylvania, Ohio, native placed 16th and 17th, respectively, in the two events.
 
Mighty Meland
After a strong freshman campaign, sophomore Molly Meland continued to post impressive marks in the pool, especially at the Horizon League Championships. The Golden Valley, Minn., native recorded a fourth-place finish in the 100 fly (55.85), a mark that cracked the program top-10 list. She added two more podium finishes with a fifth-place finish in the 50 free (23.70) and eighth in the 100 back (57.71). The sophomore also competed in the 200 medley relay and the 400 medley, assisting the team to a pair of fourth-place finishes.
 
Alongside her performance at the championships, Meland picked up pair of individual victories to help lead the Panthers to a win over Green Bay last March, topping the field in the 100 fly and the 100 back.
 
Up Next
The Panthers will be back in action in a week on Saturday, October 30 with their home opener against UIC at 12 PM inside the Klotsche Natatorium.