Arizona
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
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.
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.
Don’t miss these 5 metro Phoenix hidden gem restaurants
From Ethiopian cuisine to mesquite-grilled chicken, check out these five restaurants in metro Phoenix that have flown under the radar for too long.
A former candidate for Gilbert mayor has opened the first Arizona location of a Founding Fathers-themed ice cream shop in Chandler.
Brooker’s Founding Flavors Ice Cream is a Utah-based ice cream shop centered around the early history of the United States. Female employees scoop cones in bonnets and dresses; male employees wear tricorn hats and coats. The ice cream flavors have names like Martha Washington’s Colonial Cotton Candy and Alexander Hamilton’s Not Throwing Away My Scoop.
On a trip to Utah in 2019, Arizonan Shane Krauser went to a Brooker’s and was blown away.
“I walked out of that, called my wife Janelle and I said, ‘We will own one of these,’” Krauser said.
The couple had no previous restaurant experience, but decided to open up the chain’s first location outside of Utah, choosing a storefront near the intersection of Chandler Boulevard and Dobson Road. The store opened on June 6.
Krauser loves how the shop creates conversation among customers about American history.
“I love history. I love the Founding Fathers. I love the ideals of America,” Krauser said. “It’s an amazing concept.”
Opening Founding Flavors isn’t political, it’s a ‘labor of love’
Krauser is a retired lawyer turned motivational speaker who addresses topics including “freedom, the proper role of government and the parameters of the U.S. and state constitutions,” according to his website.
In 2024, Krauser ran for Gilbert mayor, but withdrew his candidacy amid scrutiny over involvement with a past investment fraud scheme and his son’s appearance in a video with the Gilbert Goons, The Arizona Republic reported.
Although the shop plans to host events celebrating the 250th anniversary of the U.S., such as one for Constitution Day in September, Krauser said he does not see the ice cream store as related to his political career.
“The mayoral run was something to be involved in politically. This is more of a labor of love,” Krauser said. “This is not political in nature at all. It’s an ice cream shop with an American theme.”
Details: 2560 W. Chandler Blvd. #3, Chandler. brookersicecream.com, 480-881-6100.
Reach the reporter at reia.li@gannett.com. Follow @reia_reports on Instagram.
Arizona CEO accused of stealing millions
Jeffrey Gottfurcht, the now-former CEO of Mesa startupo Cyber Dive, is accused of stealing at least $1.5 million from the company to buy gifts for his girlfriend. FOX 10’s Brian Webb has more.
PHOENIX – An Arizona chief executive officer is facing major legal trouble after being accused of embezzling money from his company.
What we know:
Cyber Dive is an Arizona startup that sells child-safety smartphones, designed so parents can monitor their children’s online activity. The company is run out of a business complex in Mesa, but the startup is barely hanging on after the CEO allegedly took off with the money to spend on his girlfriend.
Jeffrey Gottfurcht is facing federal embezzlement charges. He stands accused of lying and doctoring documents to trick investors before running off with at least $1.5 million.
On the company Facebook page, Gottfurcht claimed to be the first rheumatoid arthritis sufferer to scale Mount Everest.
Local perspective:
Red flags first popped up at the company on Feb. 13, with strange occurrences coming into the office.
Derek Jackson, who co-founded Cyber Dive, recalled the moment the discrepancies came to light.
“They mentioned to me something about getting routing documentation for funds from an acquisition deal,” Jackson recounted. “They said ‘where are those documents?’ He said he was gonna send him at 3 p.m. today, and my response was what deal are you talking about?”
Dig deeper:
Court documents show Gottfurcht used the money to buy his escort girlfriend a Lamborghini, a four-bedroom house in Miami, and a diamond ring. The girlfriend has posted videos on TikTok, but her identity is hidden because she has not been charged with a crime.
When asked to confirm if Gottfurcht purchased the car, the diamond ring, and the house, Jackson responded, “Yes. So it gets deep. Yes, it gets very deep.”
“It’s a huge gut punch,” Jackson said regarding the impact on the startup. “I think it’s been challenging to stay motivated to keep the company going because when this happened, Jeff drained the account to zero.”
At the Cyber Dive headquarters, half the workforce was let go. Jackson is now serving as the interim chief executive officer, looking for new investors to keep the lights on while coming to grips with the loss of a partner and friend.
Jackson stated that the total amount of money taken is closer to $4 million.
“I was in the army. I was an intelligence officer. I was targeting people in ISIS. I don’t even hate terrorists as much as I hate Jeff right now,” Jackson said.
The other side:
No one answered the door at the Paradise Valley home Gottfurcht shares with his wife and three children. Court paperwork shows that his wife is seeking a divorce, and helped turn her husband in to the authorities.
What’s next:
Gottfurcht was previously arrested in Scottsdale in May over allegations of domestic violence. He remains behind bars on a $250,000 bond.
The Source: Information in this report was gathered from Derek Jackson, and from court documents.
-
Lifestyle25 minutes agoJames Burrows, director of classic shows ‘Cheers’ and ‘Friends,’ dies at 85
-
Technology33 minutes agoNothing cancels this year’s CMF phone due to RAM prices
-
World40 minutes agoTwo-train crash leaves at least 1 dead, 89 injured as emergency crews rush to chaotic scene
-
Politics43 minutes agoDouble endorsement drama: Trump backs second candidate in red state’s GOP gubernatorial runoff
-
Health48 minutes agoMeasles-infected traveler may have exposed passengers at LAX and nearby hotel, health officials warn
-
Sports55 minutes agoWorld Cup Red Cards: 2026 Has More Red Cards Than Each Of Last 2 World Cups
-
Technology58 minutes agoChina’s brain chip breakthrough raises big questions
-
Business1 hour agoRanch lovers can soon travel with a TSA-friendly kit of the popular American dressing
