Georgia Tech Invite - Day Three

CLEMSON

The Clemson men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams
finished the Georgia Tech Invitational on Sunday afternoon with both
teams taking third place in a meet that featured some of the top
athletes in the country.  The women’s team finished with 471 points
and the men had 486 points.

Clemson had another relay team earn a NCAA-B time as the men’s group
of sophomores Seth Broster, Myles Oliver, Chris Reinke and Chris Dart
took third in the 400 free relay with a time of 3:00.80.

The 200 backstroke was a strong event for the Tiger men as senior Tom
Recko took second, sophomore Chris Dart finished fourth and freshman
Andrew Abeysinghe took eighth.

The men had another great showing as they had four men in the finals
for the 100 free.  Seth Broster took sixth, Myles Oliver seventh, Lee
Groseclose finished ninth, and also recording a lifetime best time of
46.01 in the prelims, and freshman Eric Bruck took tenth.  Senior Matt
Angelini scored for the Tigers with a seventh place finish in the 200
butterfly.

The women had a pair of scorers in the 1650 free as Sarah Smith and
Mandy Snell finished seventh and tenth respectively.  Freshman Sarah
Andrews took fifth in the 200 backstroke with a time of 2:00.67 which
puts her eighth all-time at Clemson.  Fellow freshman Meg Anderson had
another great race as she took second in the 100 free with a career
best time of 50.62 to move her into eighth all-time at Clemson.

Senior Katrina Obas took fourth in the 200 breaststroke and junior
Meggie Mizelle took fifth in the 200 butterfly for the Tigers.
In diving, Cassie Self took seventh on the platform, Brooke George was
tenth and Elizabeth Tatum was eleventh.  On the men's side, David
Giambra placed tenth.

The Tigers will have a break before they face Florida Atlantic in Boca
Raton, FL on December 18.


FLORIDA

Following a three-day competition at the 2009 Georgia Tech Invitational, the top-five University of Florida men's and women's swimming and diving teams both finished second to the squads from Florida State at the Georgia Tech Aquatic Center on the final day of competition Sunday.

With a dual meet slated between the two Florida schools at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center Tuesday, Nov. 24, FSU topped the UF women with 977.5 points to the Gators' second-place 933.5 points in Atlanta. Clemson (471), Georgia Tech (392.5), NC State (338), Gardner-Webb (197.5), FAU (154), FIU (117) and Auburn (42) rounded out the final standings in the women's portion of the invitational.

On the men's side, the Seminoles took the title with 1,055 points, while Florida came in second with 787. Clemson (486), Georgia Tech (453), NC State (340), FAU (164), Gardner-Webb (141) and Auburn (61) completed the men's team finishers.

The Florida men's 400-yard freestyle relay claimed the top spot in the final event of the evening (2:56.63) of competition. Composed of Brett Fraser (George Town, Cayman Islands), Shaune Fraser (George Town, Cayman Islands), Conor Dwyer (Winnetka, Ill.) and Roberto Gomez (Weston, Fla.), the quartet finished off a tough three-day battle with strong race.

S. Fraser, the NCAA record holder in the 200-yard fly, claimed the top spot in the event Sunday (1:45.80), and with help from sophomore Jose Crescimbeni (Holiday, Fla.) (1:49.72) and junior Balazs Gercsak (Budapest, Hungary), the Gators claimed 42 points in the event.

Junior Mike Joyce (Voorhees, N.J.) was UF's top finisher in the 200-yard breast (2:07.39), with an 11th-place finish in the consolation final, while Dwyer, Gomez and senior Raul Martinez (Caguas, Puerto Rico) picked up the points for the Orange and Blue in the 100-yard free with third, fourth and 16th, respectively.

B. Fraser clocked a 1:50.86 in finals of the 200-yard back, good for seventh, while Florida's distance freestyle crew dominated the field in the mile, sweeping second through sixth and also taking the eighth-place spot. Senior Ryan Crete (Sarasota, Fla.) (15:35.73), junior Logan Storie (Corvallis, Ore.) (15:35.90), sophomore Jeff Raymond (Davie, Fla.) (15:47.00), junior Joey Pedraza (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.) (15:53.39) and freshman Jason Taylor (Plant City, Fla.) (15:53.39) took the second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth place marks, while junior Balazs Gercsak (Budapest, Hungary) placed eighth (16:01.08).

In the men's platform, sophomores Anthony Lewark (Davie, Fla.) and Colin Bell (Coral Springs, Fla.) placed eighth (272.15) and 11th (244.10) and junior Grayson Patten (West Palm Beach, Fla.) claimed 13th (203.90).

After a first-place finish in the 200-yard free Saturday, sophomore Shara Stafford (Topeka, Kan.) rallied for the Gator women's team in the 100 free with an NCAA provisional mark victory (49.76), while senior Liz Kemp (Potomac, Md.) finished third (50.63). Florida's distance free corps consisted of sophomore Angelina Ballatore (Gainesville, Fla.) and freshman Eva Lehtonen (Rochester Hills, Mich.), who both clocked 16:49.60 to tie for fourth place in the 1650-yard free.

Teresa Crippen (Conshohocken, Pa.), Gemma Spofforth (West Sussex, England) and Lily Ramirez (Gainesville, Fla.) proved to be a triple threat in the 200-yard back in second, third and fourth, respectively, with times of 1:57.61, 1:57.87 and 2:00.25.

Sophomores Anna-Liisa Pold (San Diego, Calif.) and Kirsten Smith (Cary, N.C.) and freshman Corinne Showalter (Sarasota, Fla.) stacked the depth in the consolation final in 11th (2:00.76), 12th (2:02.47) and 14th (2:03.85).

Freshman Sarra Lajnef (Tunis, Tunisia), Smith and sophomore Daniela Victoria (Plantation, Fla.) placed seventh, 10th and 11th in the women?s 200-yard breast, while a total of seven Gators dominated the 10-woman championship final in the 200-yard fly.

Sophomore Jemma Lowe (Hartlepool, England) claimed the top spot in 1:58.89, while Crippen rallied for second (1:59.63). Freshman Jamie Bohunicky (Gainesville, Fla.) took fourth (2:01.09), Pold (2:03.18), Showalter (2:04.38), Kemp (2:04.64) and Lehtonen (2:06.60) placed seventh through 10th.

Florida finished out competition in Atlanta with a second-place finish in the 400-yard free relay, clocking a 3:23.21, after being out-touched by the ladies from Florida State (3:21.82).

In diving action, senior Kara Salamone (Hollywood, Fla.) (298.95), junior Monica Dodson (Franklin, Ind.) (246.25) and sophomore Kaylee Doback (Brandon, Fla.) (196.20) placed first, third and eighth in the platform competition.

Both Florida squads will be back in action Tuesday when Florida State travels to Gainesville for the in-state rivalry. Diving is slated to begin at 1 p.m., while swimming competition commences at 5 p.m. from the O'Dome.


FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL

The FIU swimming & diving team closed out action at the Georgia Tech Invitational on Sunday as the Panthers turned in another stellar performance against some of the toughest competition in the country.
 
The Panthers saw two juniors post qualifying times in the 200 backstroke preliminaries as both Daniella Sneir and Elly James went on to compete in the finals. Sneir swam the preliminary race in 2:09.42 before placing 26th in the finals with an improved mark of 2:08.27. James posted a time of 2:11.64 in prelim action and finished 30th in the finals with a time of 2:12.33.
 
Junior Erin Pavlick and freshman Krissy Metka also competed in a finals race but in the 200 breaststroke, each besting their qualifying marks from prelims in the finals competition. Pavlick registered a preliminary time of 2:25.09 before touching in 2:23.71 to place 22nd in the finals. Metka finished the qualifying race in 2:26.54 and went on to touch in 2:26.40 to place 28th in the finals.
 
The 200 butterfly event saw junior Yesica Rojas touch in 2:10.12 in the prelims, as she went on to compete in the finals race, taking 29th place with a faster mark of 2:10.09.
 
Freshman Kayla Derr and sophomore Vicnan Torres each earned lifetime bests in the 1650 freestyle, finishing in 18:09.30 for 17th place and 18:36.90 for 19th place, respectively. Freshmen Lauren Smith and Jenny Lee joined Derr and Torres in the 1650 free race improving on their performances at the Houston Invitational in early October, as Smith touched in 18:17.68 for 18th place and Lee finished in 19:02.84 for 20th place.
 
All three 400 freestyle relay squads performed well to close out the meet with some Panthers posting season-best times in the 100 free. FIU’s top team was the foursome of freshman Kelly Grace, sophomore Kariann Stevens, sophomore Caroline Foster and junior Mariangela Macchiavello, which teamed up for a time of 3:37.74 to finish eighth.
 
“I am very happy with the performance of the team at this very difficult and high-level competition where we swim against the best swimmers in the country,” said head coach Noemi Lung Zaharia. “The team’s positive, competitive approach to the races brought fast times in both individual events and relays. After these great performances we are looking forward to a period of hard work and more dual meets in January in our preparation fir the Sun Belt Conference Championships in February.”
 
FIU returns to the pool on Dec. 18 when the Panthers travel to Boca Raton, Fla., for the FAU Invitational. The meet is set to start at 11 a.m.


FLORIDA STATE

From beginning to end Florida State’s men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams dominated at the Georgia Tech Invite. In all the teams earned 21 event wins and 32 NCAA B-cut qualifying times.
 
“The weekend definitely reinforced some of the possible team goals for February and March,” said Head Coach Neil Harper.
 
On the women’s side, Florida State earned an overall score of 977.5. The team’s nearest competitors were rival Florida with 933.5 points and ACC foe Clemson with 471.
 
Day Three brought the women wins in four of the final seven meet events and four B-cut times.
 
The women began the final day with a sweep of the top three spots, and an overall six of the top ten spots in the 1650 free.  Freshman Marissa Harrington earned a B-cut time of 16:36.90 to claim the top spot in the event. Freshman Caroline Smith came in second (16:43.82) and Holly Mills came in third (16:43.82). Charlotte Broadbent (sixth, 17:02.81), Anja Buehner (eighth, 17:12.18) and Corey Allison (ninth, 17:16.47) rounded out the strong distance showing for the Seminoles.
 
Stephanie Sarandos earned her first individual win and second individual B-cut of the meet with her win in the 200 back (1:57.43). Freshmen Emily Harris and Jenna Jacoby also had strong showings in the event with a sixth and tenth place finish, respectively.
 
Freshman Kristine Polley earned her second individual victory of the meet and second individual B-cut with a first place finish in the 200 breast (2:14.23).
 
In the final event of the meet, the women cruised to a victory in the 400 free relay (Stevi Steinhauer, Jocelyn Phillips, C.J. Hendry and Brittany Selts) with a B-cut time of 3:21.82.
 
“The ladies performed great this weekend and possibly collectively beat a team that could be in the hunt for the NCAA title in March,” beamed Neil Harper.  “Our ladies’ depth was a huge factor in the team win.”
 
On the men’s side Florida State earned an overall score of 1055 points at the meet.  Like the women, the men’s nearest competitors were Florida (787) and Clemson (486).
 
The Florida State men’s team earned wins in three of the final seven meet events on Day Three and five B-cut times.
 
The men’s team started off the final day of the meet with Ian Rowe’s victory in the 1650 free (15:.09.03, B-cut), Andy Hodgson’s win in the 200 back (1:42.90, B-cut), and Rob Holderness’s first place finish in the 200 breast (1:58.08, B-cut).
 
Robby Hayes earned a second place, B-cut finish in both the 100 free (44.35) and as a member of the 400 free relay team (2:59.83) along with Hodgson, Mark Weber and Matt Shead.
 
Landon Marzullo earned his second event victory of the meet with a first place finish in the men’s platform dive (454.75). Florida State continues to prove its depth in men’s diving as four Seminoles finished in the top five of the event.
 
“The men’s team dominated this meet from Day One,” declared Harper. “Our entire team, especially our divers, displayed great levels of achievement and success.”
 
According to Harper, “Andy Hodgson proved this weekend why he is one of the best swimmers in the ACC.”
 
Hodgson earned three individual wins and three B-cut times. He was also a part of three winning relay teams, contributed to four B-cut relay times for Florida State.
 
“I’m so excited with how the swimmers and divers came together and performed at such a high level.  We gave them a little rest and they performed beyond our expectations.  We now have a serious challenge of dual meeting the Florida Gators in Gainesville on Tuesday where they are used to having phenomenal success.”
 
The Seminole’s matchup with the Gators will begin at 5:00 p.m. at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center.


GEORGIA TECH

The Georgia Tech men's and women's swimming and diving teams
ended the final day of competition at the 2009 GT Invitational on Sunday
in fourth place, as the men's team tallied 453 points on the weekend,
while the women's squad finished with 392.5 points.

Overall, Florida State finished first on both the men's and women's
sides. The Seminole men ended the weekend with 1055 points, while the
women finished with 977.5 points.

"I'm very pleased with how we performed overall on the weekend," said
swimming head coach Courtney Shealy Hart. "I can say that our team right
now is much faster now then we were at this point last year, which is
very encouraging. We had some great individual performances from Nigel
Plummer, Gal Nevo and Agatha Kwasnik, along with a great effort from our
divers as well.

"Now, we'll use the time we have off to train and get ready for the
final leg of the season and the ACC Championships."

Action started on the afternoon with the finals in the women's
1650-free, in which senior Jing Li was Tech's top finisher with an 11th
place finish in 17:18.98 to earn the Jackets six points. On the men's
side, freshman Colin Schouten was Georgia Tech's top finisher in 11th in
a time of 16:14.43 to earn six points.

Next in the women's 200-back, sophomore Keren Siebner finished eighth
after hitting the wall in 2:02.70 to earn the Jackets 11 points. On the
men's side back, Ilia Ayzenshtok was the Jackets' top finisher in 12th
in a time of 1:51.30 to earn the men's team five points. Senior Way Joe
Lee finished right behind Ayzenshtok in 13th after hitting the wall in
1:51.49 to earn four points.

Next in the 100-free, Kwasnik had an impressive showing, finishing in
fourth place in 50.75 to earn 15 points for Tech. Freshman Kate Riley
hit the wall in 51.55 to finish 12th and earn the Jackets five points,
while Sarah Broadley finished in 51.58 to place 12th and earn four team
points.

In the men's 100-free, Nigel Plummer continued his impressive season
with a victory in the event after hitting the wall in an NCAA B-Cut time
of 44.27. Meanwhile, freshman Eric Chiu finished 11th in the event after
hitting the wall in 46.13 to earn six points for Georgia Tech.

Next in the women's 200-breast, Hen Pauker was Georgia Tech's top
finisher in 14th with a time of 2:22.84, earning three points, On the
men's side, Nevo registered a solid third place finish after hitting the
wall in 2:03.17 to earn 16 points. Sophomore Matthew Vaughan finished
sixth in the event in a time of 2:04.67 to earn 14 points for the
Jackets, while Jeremy Jackson placed 14th in 2:08.78 to pick up three
points.

Next In the women's 200-fly, Christine Chuang was the Jackets' top
finisher in a time of 2:02.90 to earn six points, while Taylor Flynn
finished in 13th in a time of 2:03.84 to earn four points. On the men's
side, Ralph Long finished eighth after hitting the wall in 1:51.15 to
earn 12 points, while Nevo finished 11th overall in a time of 1:49.57 to
earn six points.

In the women's platform dive, Michele Bertolino was Tech's top finisher
in ninth place after posting a score of 183.45 in the finals to pick up
nine points. In the men's platform, freshman Chris Khosravi finished in
seventh after posting a score of 276.70 in the finals to earn the
Jackets 12 points.

The final two events of the day were the women's and men's 400-free
relay. In the women's event, the team of Kwasnik, Siebner, Broadley and
Riley finished in third place after posting a time of 3:24.97 in the
finals to earn 32 points for the Yellow Jackets. On the men's side, the
squad of Matt Tang, Plummer, Phillips, and Chiu finished fourth in
3:02.94 to earn 30 points.

The Georgia Tech swimming team is now idle until Jan. 16th when they
host NC State. The diving squad will take part in the Bama Diving Invite
from Dec. 17-19.