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Taking stock 2025: How Arizona swimming and diving is looking under Ben Loorz

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Taking stock 2025: How Arizona swimming and diving is looking under Ben Loorz


The offseason is here, with all of Arizona’s sports done for 2024-25 season and the 2025-26 campaigns still a little ways away.

Which makes this a great time to step back and see how all of the Wildcats’ programs are doing and how they’ve handled the move from the Pac-12 to the Big 12

Over the next few weeks we’ll take a look at each of the UA’s men’s and women’s athletic programs to see what shape they’re in and what prospects they have for the near future. We’ll break down each team and evaluate how it is performing under its current coaching staff, looking at the state of the program before he/she arrived and comparing it to now while also evaluating how that program fits into its new conference.

Next up: Ben Loorz’s swimming and diving team

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How it looked before

Arizona athletic director Desireé Reed-Francois hired Loorz as swimming and diving head coach in May 2024 after a 7-year run by Augie Busch. Loorz took over a legacy program that had fallen off under Busch’s reign. Arizona was once a top 10 program in both men’s and women’s swimming and diving, but sunk towards the middle of the Pac-12 over the last decade plus.

Loorz arrived in Tucson from UNLV, where he guided the Rebels to a total of five conference championships in eight seasons. Given Arizona’s recent history, and Loorz’s lack of experience at the Power 5 level, it was expected that Loorz would need some time and support to get Arizona back to being nationally competitive.

Where things stand now

In Loorz’s first season, the Arizona men’s team achieved a national ranking, earned several All-American honorable mentions and finished runner-up at Big 12 Championships. The men placed 29th at NCAA Championships, a decent result that also left significant room for improvement.

The women’s team followed a similar trajectory in year one under Loorz, also producing multiple All-American honorable mentions, a runner-up finish at Big 12 Championships and a 29th place finish at NCAA Championships.

The top end talent on both the men’s and women’s teams kept Arizona competitive throughout the season, but the program’s lack of depth kept the Wildcats from securing more points at NCAAs. For Arizona to again compete in the upper echelon of the sport, it will need to send far more swimmers to NCAAs.

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Big 12 vs. Pac-12

Arizona went down a notch in competition by moving to the Big 12 from the Pac-12, where schools like Stanford, Cal and USC take swimming and diving seriously. Arizona’s biggest competition in the Big 12 is, ASU, which has become a swimming powerhouse over the past decade. The Sun Devils swept the men’s and women’s Big 12 Championships this year and are heads and shoulders ahead of the rest of the conference.

Arizona’s runner-up finishes at conference championships were a positive step for the program, which had fallen towards the bottom of the Pac-12 under Busch. In the big picture, however, Arizona could have a harder time building relevancy competing in a conference that doesn’t value swimming and diving.

One big question

Will Arizona take the leap? There’s no getting around the fact that the Arizona swimming and diving teams are competing at a disadvantage compared to several years ago. Arizona was once one of the destinations for college swimmers but was usurped by rival ASU in the 2010s. Whereas the Sun Devils are regularly competing for national championships (at least on the men’s side), Arizona is looking to regain its place among the sport’s powers.

Loorz’s programs showed some real progress in his first year, with several swimmers and divers earning All-American honorable mentions. The expectations will be higher in Year 2 as Loorz has now had a full calendar year to bring in recruits and transfers, and develop returning swimmers. If the Arizona men’s and women’s teams can reach the top 25 at NCAAs, next season will be considered a step in the right direction.



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Arizona

Woman killed in crash near Lake Pleasant near Peoria

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Woman killed in crash near Lake Pleasant near Peoria


PHOENIX — State Route 74 was closed in both directions near Lake Pleasant in Peoria on Thursday afternoon due to a crash that killed a woman.

The Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) said the highway closed at about 1:15 p.m.

The closure was put into place at Lake Pleasant Parkway for the westbound lanes and 87th Avenue for the eastbound lanes.

ADOT did not say when SR74 is expected to reopen.

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The Peoria Police Department told KTAR News 92.3 FM that two vehicles collided and a woman was pronounced dead at the scene.

No other details were released.

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Treacherous rescue in northern Arizona; accidental shooting kills AZ man | Nightly Roundup

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Treacherous rescue in northern Arizona; accidental shooting kills AZ man | Nightly Roundup


Lightning prompts rescue efforts on northern Arizona mountain; accidental shooting leads to death of Arizona man; and more – here’s a look at some of your top stories on FOX10Phoenix.com for Wednesday, October 22, 2025.

1. Rescue efforts on northern Arizona mountain

What we know:

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Officials with the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office say one person was struck by lightning on Humphrey’s Peak, which is located north of Flagstaff, earlier today.

What we don’t know:

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Officials say a second person may have been struck by lightning, and crews are working to get up the mountain to see if that is the case.

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2. 3 hospitalized following East Valley shooting

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What we know:

Three people are in the hospital following a triple shooting late last night.

Big picture view:

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Mesa Police say officers responded to the scene, which is located near Lindsay Road and University Drive, after someone reported seeing someone running after hearing gunshots in the area. 

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3. Arizona man dies after gun incident

What we know:

An investigation is underway following an accidental shooting that resulted in the death of a 19-year-old man.

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Dig deeper:

The incident, according to the Mohave County Sheriff’s Office, happened on Oct. 13 at a campground. The victim has been identified as Donald Anthony Stickrath.

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4. Violent store attack caught on camera

What we know:

The Glendale Police Department released a video of a man who it says committed a violent attack at a store and then stole money from the registers.

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What’s next:

The suspect, identified as Gilbert Lara, is accused of kidnapping, armed robbery and aggravated assault.

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5. Taking a look at Arizona’s real estate market

Phoenix homes

What we know:

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Experts are weighing on whether it is currently the right time to buy real estate in the Grand Canyon State.

By the numbers:

It has been a rough three years for Arizona real estate. Prices are down nearly seven to eight percent since the peak in July 2022. 

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A look at your weather for tomorrow 

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Arizona women’s health clinics sound alarm over new visa fees for foreign doctors

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Arizona women’s health clinics sound alarm over new visa fees for foreign doctors


PHOENIX (AZFamily) — As Arizona faces a growing shortage of OB-GYNs, a new federal policy could make it even harder for women to access care across the state.

Women’s health provider MomDoc, which operates clinics throughout Arizona, says it may now be forced to pay up to $100,000 per doctor to keep some of its physicians.

The change stems from new guidance under the Trump administration affecting the H-1B visa program, which allows U.S. employers to hire skilled foreign workers, including doctors in specialty occupations.

Under the revised policy, healthcare providers must now pay a substantial fee to continue sponsoring foreign-trained physicians. “It will impact access to care in Arizona and in other states that are barely making it today,” said Nick Goodman, CEO of MomDoc.

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Currently in Arizona, fewer than 400 OB-GYNs deliver approximately 78,000 babies annually. According to Goodman, a major reason for the shortage is a decades-old freeze on funding for medical residency programs, which has prevented the training of enough new OB-GYNs in the U.S.

To fill the gap, MomDoc and other healthcare providers rely heavily on international doctors. Goodman says roughly 75% of their applicants are H-1B visa holders.

“Healthcare is already a very low-margin business,” Goodman said. “Adding a $100,000 fee makes it go from barely profitable to unprofitable.”

Experts warn the policy could further limit access to care, especially in rural or underserved areas where OB-GYN shortages are already severe.

However, there may be some relief. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently clarified that the fee does not apply to individuals who are already in the U.S. and are changing their visa status. Such as medical residents transitioning to full-time positions, as long as they have received USCIS approval.

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In the meantime, clinics like MomDoc are pursuing fee exemptions, hoping the new rule won’t apply to their current physicians. But Goodman warns that unless the policy is revised or rescinded, it could have lasting consequences.

“When you’re talking about the number of OB-GYN’s practicing in the state going down, which is already happening prior to this fee, it makes it harder and harder for women in Arizona,” he said.

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