The Georgetown men’s and women’s swim teams are gearing up for the Big East swimming championship, which starts Wednesday and runs through Saturday in Louisville, Ky. The Hoyas are looking to improve off of last year’s league-worst performance at the championship.

Perhaps the biggest accomplishment of Head Coach James Holder’s first season at Georgetown has been qualifying 36 of the 43 swimmers and divers on the team for the championship. The swimmers now have the opportunity to take that accomplishment to the next level this weekend.

The Blue and Gray began the process of preparing in earnest — known in swimming as tapering — for the Big East championship after a Senior Night victory over cross-town rival George Washington.

Georgetown has several scoring threats, but one of last year’s top finishers is probably the Hoya in the best position to finish high on the scoreboard. Junior Victor Lopez-Cantera, who finished 11th in the 200-yard butterfly last year, looks capable of topping that performance and finishing even better this year.

Sophomore Paul Quincy, particularly adept at the 500 freestyle, is another swimmer who has rattled off a series of best times and could do so again at the championship.

The Hoyas also boast several relay teams, especially on the women’s side, that have performed with distinction during the dual meet schedule. Big things could be coming from them on Wednesday, the opening day of the meet, which features only relay events.

In any case, it seems certain that the team will be able to improve on last year’s performance, both on the scoreboard and with times. Georgetown swimmers set 12 school records at last year’s championship, and it is likely that they will top that number this year.

Georgetown will face some of the best swimming teams in the country in the tournament, including the No. 19 Louisville men’s squad and a Notre Dame women’s team that has won every Big East championship since 1997.

Despite the tough competition, Holder remains optimistic.

“My goal all season has been for each swimmer to swim one best time,” he said. “If we do that, the points will take care of themselves.”