Alabama
Alabama’s men brought home double gold on the second night of the Southeastern Conference Swimming and Diving Championships being held on Auburn’s campus this week while the Crimson Tide women broke three school records.
Sophomore Kristian Gkolomeev, the defending NCAA 50 freestyle champion, dominated the competition in the 50 freestyle, winning with a school-record 18.64. It was Alabama’s first SEC 50 freestyle title since 1990 when Olympic Gold Medalist Jon Olsen swept the 50, 100 and 200 freestyles.
“It was a really good race, I felt really good,” Gkolomeev said. “It was a close race in the morning, so I was pumped up for tonight and put up a really good time. I was so excited. I’m really glad to get that win. It (last year’s SEC 50 freestyle final) is the only 50 race I’ve lost since coming to Alabama last January. I’m so happy to get that one back.”
Gkolomeev came back one event later and led off the Tide’s first SEC relay championship since 1994, combining with sophomore Alex Gray, freshman Luke Kaliszak and junior Brett Walsh. Gkolomeev got things started with another blistering 50, touching the wall with an 18.69 while Walsh brought things home with an 18.87.
“There really aren’t any words to describe it,” Walsh said. “It’s the first time we’ve won a relay (since 1994) and my team put me in a great position to bring it home. I didn’t really care about the time, I just wanted to out-touch the guy next to me.”
The Tide snapped Auburn’s string of conference 200 freestyle relay titles at 12, becoming the first team other than the Tigers to win the sprint event since 2002. It was Alabama’s first SEC relay win since 1994 and its first 200 freestyle relay titles since 1992.
“It’s been a long time,” UA head coach Dennis Pursley said. “What makes it even more special is that’s Auburn’s relay – they’ve owned that one for a quite a few years - so to be able to come into their backyard and take that title from them was a special opportunity and our guys stood up and got the job done. I’m proud of them.”
All four members of the Tide’s winning relay also scored in the 50 freestyle, led by Gkolomeev in first, Gray in eighth, Walsh in ninth and Kaliszak in 14th. Walsh’s 19.50 at night won the “B” final and would have placed him fifth in the championship final.
Sophomore Anton McKee got thing started in the right direction when out-battled South Carolina’s Akaram Mahmoud for a spot on the awards podium in the 500 freestyle. McKee earned a bronze medal with a career-best time of 4:14.98 that ranks him second all-time at Alabama, just .16 of a second off Mark Randall’s 2010 school record.
Freshman Christopher Reid, who joined the Tide in January for the spring semester, posted a 1:46.94 in the 200 individual medley finals, which ranks him second all-time at Alabama, and placed him 18th Wednesday night.
On the women’s side of the slate, freshman Mia Nonnenberg got the Tide on the board in the 200 individual medley with a 14th place finish. In prelims, the rookie broke the school 200 IM record with a 1:58.12, bettering Kate Shannon Gray’s 2010 mark of 1:58.15. Senior Kaylin Burchell used a career-best 1:58.36 to take 18th place overall.
After coming within .01 of the school 50 freestyle record earlier this season, sophomore Bailey Scott broke through in Thursday’s finals, posting a career-best 22.57 to take 18th place and break senior Kristel Vorna’s 2014 mark of 22.66.
Scott came back later in the night to lead off the Tide’s 200 freestyle relay with a 22.67, combining with Vourna, freshman Temarie Tomley and junior Justin Panian to take fifth place with a school-record 1:29.03, nearly a second faster than the previous mark set last season.
Sophomore Taylor Zablocki scored off the 1-meter springboard, taking 20th place after tallying 259.60 points in the day’s only diving event.
After breaking four school records on day one of this year’s SEC Championships, Alabama broke five more on day two – including two relay and three individual standards, for a total of nine already this week and 10 on the season. Alabama’s women broke the school 400 freestyle relay record in the fall.
Arkansas
A program record and six career-bests were set in Arkansas women’s swimming and diving’s second day of action at the 2015 SEC Championships at the James E. Martin Aquatic Center Wednesday evening.
The Razorback 200 free relay team of senior Susanna White and juniors Nina Drolc, Maddie Monroe and Anna Mayfield set the Arkansas record with a time of 1:29.62, good for seventh. The Razorbacks have set two program records in as many days at the 2015 championship meet.
"The two swims that really stood out to me were the 200 free relay and Chelsea Tatlow's 200 IM," said head coach Sean Schimmel. "For the relay, that was a long time coming and it was great to see them finally put that together. And it was great to see Chelsea get a career-best time."
Arkansas’ individual efforts were highlighted by two 10th-place finishes in the finals from Mayfield in the 500 freestyle and freshman Chelsea Tatlow in the 200 IM.
To begin the day, Mayfield and junior Aiden Lister both qualified for the 500 free finals with times of 4:42.83 and 4:45.53, respectively in the prelims. Lister’s time marked a personal-best while freshman Chloe Hannam also notched a new career-best with a time of 4:48.95.
Tatlow led the way for the Razorbacks in the 200 IM prelims, registering the 15th best time (1:58.99) and earning a spot in the finals. Sophomore Mary-Margaret Soderberg took first in her heat with a personal-best time of 2:00.18 and freshman Maddie Edwards clocked a career-best time of 2:05.49.
In the 50 freestyle prelims, White clocked a time of 22.64, good for a spot in the finals while Monroe clocked a new personal-best time of 23.04.
Mayfield opened the finals of day two in the 500 free where she claimed tenth place with a time of 4:42.74. Lister then took 16th place with a time of 4:47.56. While Mayfield was bound by the ‘B’ final heat, her time overall would have been good for seventh place in the ‘A’ heat and overall.
Tatlow then also snagged a tenth-place finish in the 200 IM where she battled for registered a career-best time of 1:57.69. Like Mayfield, Tatlow was restricted to placing in the ‘B’ heat, but her overall time pegged her No. 7 in the event.
To close the individual event finals, White out-touched her opponents in the ‘C’ final to win her heat and clinch 17th place with a season-best time of 22.55.
On the diving side, junior Shelby Bartlett picked-up a point for the Razorbacks with a 24th-place finish on the one-meter boards with a score of 251.50.
Auburn
Auburn earned two silver and two bronze medals on the second day of the 2015 SEC Swimming and Diving Championships at the James E. Martin Aquatics Center.
Both Auburn’s men and women picked up a silver medal in the 200 freestyle relay. On the men’s side, Jacob Molacek, Michael Duderstadt, Arthur Mendes and Kyle Darmody recorded the nation’s second-best time of the year at 1:16.07.
The women’s 200 freestyle relay of Megan Fonteno, Allyx Purcell, Ashton Ellzey and Valerie Hull wrapped up the night with a second-place finish, touching in at 1:28.05.
“I thought today was a well raced by our freshmen and sophomores. They are continuing to grow,” Auburn head coach Brett Hawke said. “Our women have continued to show fight and grit to get back in striking distance. We’re really proud of how everyone performed. As we move towards the rest of the week, we’ll continue to improve and get better.”
Joe Patching earned his first career individual SEC medal with a third-place finish in the 200 IM. The sophomore’s time ranks as the second-best time in school history; only former Tiger George Bovell (1:42.66) has posted a quicker time in program history. Alex Hancock gave the Tigers key points with an eighth-place finish in the 200 IM championship final.
Molacek posted his best time of the year in the 200 IM consolation final, touching in at 1:43.71. The freshman’s swim is now the fourth-fastest time by a Tiger in program history. Jordan Jones placed 15th overall with a 1:46.80.
In the men’s 50 free, Darmody earned his second-consecutive bronze medal with a season-best time of 19.33, while Duderstadt went 19.70 to place seventh overall. Peter Holoda swam in the consolation final, swimming a 20.18 for 16th.
Purcell continued her climb up the Auburn record book in the 50 free, clocking a 22.02, a personal best, and the third-fastest mark in school history. Fonteno was second in the consolation final, just shy of breaking a personal record, collecting a 10th-place finish overall with a time of 22.42. Ellzey was 12th overall at 22.56, while Hull took 14th with a time of 22.62 in the B-final.
Hugo Morris scored for the Auburn men in the 500 free, placing 21st overall at 4:23.02. On the women’s side, Ashley Neidigh took 22nd overall clocking a 4:48.32 in the C-final.
Florida
The University of Florida No. 1 men’s and No.4-ranked women’s swimming & diving teams sit second and third following day two of the Southeastern Conference Championships. The Gators captured their third and fourth SEC titles during tonight’s finals. This week’s meet is being held at the James E. Martin Aquatic Center in Auburn, Ala.
Florida’s women set the tone in the 200-yard individual medley relay as the Gators captured first, second and third in the 200-yard individual medley, highlighted by redshirt freshman Theresa Michalak capturing her first-career SEC Championship with a mark of 1:56.09. Right behind Michalak were juniors Lindsey McKnight and Ashlee Linn who clocked times of 1:56.16 and 1:56.40, respectively. Their three times rank third, fourth and fifth in school history.
In the other individual events for the women, juniors Jessica Thielmann and Natalie Hinds finished runner-up and sixth in the 500-yard and 50-yard freestyle races with times of 4:36.62 and 22.13 seconds, respectively.
On the men’s side, sophomore Mitch D’Arrigo began the night by winning the men’s 500-yard freestyle, his first-career SEC Championship, in a time of 4:10.77. That mark ranks him second in program history behind senior Dan Wallace’s time of 4:10.73, which he set at last season’s conference championships.
In addition to D’Arrigo, senior Eduardo Solaeche-Gomez and freshman Caeleb Dressel finished runner-up in the men’s 200-yard individual medley (1:43.15) and 50-yard freestyle (18.93). Earlier in the day, Dressel clocked Florida’s second-fastest time in program history, as he touched the wall in 18.89 seconds during this morning’s prelims.
Florida’s men (Matt Curby, Corey Main, Pawel Werner, Dressel) and women (Hinds, McKnight, Linn, Michalak) placed third and sixth in the lone relay event of the evening, the 200-yard freestyle relay. The men’s time was 1:17.60, which ranks fourth in school history, meanwhile the women’s clocked a mark of 1:29.43.
UF is back in action tomorrow for day three of the SEC Championships with prelims beginning at 11:00 a.m. ET and finals at 7:00 p.m.
Coaches Corner:
Head Coach Gregg Troy:
On the women’s 200 IM finishing first, second and third…
“It was great. To have those three girls (Theresa Michalak, Lindsey McKnight, Ashlee Linn) do that well is great. They are all younger so to have big improvements and post their best times is great. It’s tough when you have to replace Elizabeth Beisel but they did a great job.”
On the men’s 500-yard freestyle…
“It was a good race. Those guys (Mitch D’Arrigo and Dan Wallace) know each other real well. That was race was a little bit of cat-and-mouse. Dan knows that Mitch likes to take over in the end and Mitch knew that Dan likes to get a fast start so it was fun for both of them. It was good times for each of them and I’m real pleased with where they are as we look towards to NCAA meet.”
On what each team needs to improve upon…
“We have to come in tomorrow morning and do really well. We were great this morning and we put ourselves in a good position tonight and I thought we did well this evening. We could have been better in a couple of spots but we just have to keep coming to the blocks. We closed the gap a little bit with Georgia on the men’s side and it’s really tight in the women’s meet. It’s really fun.”
Talking Gators:
Sophomore Mitch D’Arrigo:
On racing against Dan Wallace and their relationship…
“Dan (Wallace) is one of the best athletes around right now. He’s pushed me really hard the whole year, as losing to him last year (D’Arrigo placed second to Wallace in the 500-yard freestyle at the 2014 SEC Championships) was really hard for me. Dan just really knows what to do and how to race. I just tried to stay with him throughout the race and it happened to end with me winning, which I am very happy about.”
On winning his first-career SEC title…
“I still haven’t realized it yet. I was very nervous coming into the race this year after what happened last year but I’m obviously really excited.”
Redshirt Freshman Theresa Michalak:
On winning her first-career SEC title and what it meant to have her teammates finish second and third behind her…
“I’m so happy that all three of us did it. It’s just great considering that all three of us swim together all the time and we went through so many things as a group. I think my time was pretty good because I won, but I’m just so happy that all three of us did so well.”
Georgia
On the strength of four more titles, both of Georgia’s squads moved into first place on Wednesday at the Southeastern Conference Swimming and Diving Championships at Auburn’s James E. Martin Aquatic Center.
Chantal Van Landeghem (50-yard freestyle), Amber McDermott (500-yard freestyle) and Ty Stewart (200-yard individual medley) claimed individual titles to highlight Georgia’s showing on the second day of the conference meet. The Lady Bulldogs’ 200-yard freestyle relay of Maddie Locus, Van Landeghem, Olivia Smoliga and Lauren Harrington also came in first with a time of 1:27.55.
Following two days of competition, the No. 2-ranked Lady Bulldogs stand first with 526 points, with Texas A&M in second with 442 and Florida in third with 410. The No. 8 Bulldogs, seeking their first conference team title since 1955, are first with 421 points, followed by Florida (391.5) in second and Auburn (379) in third.
“We are very, very pleased with the way the day went,” Georgia head coach Jack Bauerle said. “The kids really swam tough. Our men had a heck of a night after not having a heck of a morning, but we came back and turned it around. Our ladies are really utilizing our depth. We’re getting points up and down the lineup, and that’s such a key in this meet.
“We want our teams to go out and perform to our best each time we compete. If we can do that, everything takes care of itself. I’m really pleased with our performance today.”
Van Landeghem and Locus went 1-2 in the 50-yard freestyle with times of 21.74 and 21.77, respectively. Smoliga won the B final in 21.96 for ninth, followed by Harrington in 11th at 22.54.
“It feels really great,” Van Landeghem said. “I wanted to come out and race hard. The atmosphere is awesome, so I’m really happy. I’m also so proud of Maddie. I was as happy for her as I was for myself because I know how hard she’s trained.”
McDermott won her second 500-yard freestyle title with a time of 4:35.19. Brittany MacLean took fourth in 4:41.62 and Rachel Zilinskas placed sixth in 4:42.84. Jordan Mattern won the B final for ninth in 4:41.78, followed by Stephanie Peters in 11th at 4:43.42 and Anna Kolanowski in 19th at 4:46.60.
“I’m really happy, especially since I also won it my freshman year,” McDermott said. “It’s nice to start off with a bang and end with a bang. The key was to swim my own race, take it out as fast as I could and try to hold on.”
Olivia Ball finished fourth on 1-meter springboard with 320.30 points.
In the 200-yard individual medley, Emily Cameron came in fifth in 1:57.04, followed by Meaghan Raab in seventh in 1:57.91, Annie Zhu in 11th in 1:57.99 and Courtney Weaver in 21st in 1:58.78.
On the men’s side, Stewart went 1:42.82 to claim the 200-yard individual medley. Chase Kalisz took fourth in 1:43.44, Nicolas Fink was sixth in 1:43.60, Gunnar Bentz placed 10th in 1:44.10 and Jared Markham came in 12th in 1:45.71.
“I feel on top of the world,” Stewart said. “I’m so glad I could contribute to our team. I finally got there. I’ve been waiting for a swim like this for 2½ years and it feels so good.”
Michael Trice came in fourth in the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 19.39, eclipsing his own school record. Taylor Dale took 20th in 20.08.
Kevin Litherland paced the Bulldogs in the 500-yard freestyle as he came in fifth with a time of 4:16.36. Matias Koski dominated the B final with a time of 4:12.01 to take ninth, followed by Jay Litherland in 13th at 4:18.84 and Alec Cohen in 15th at 4:21.40. Garrett Powell won the C final for 17th in 4:16.62.
The 200-yard freestyle relay of Trice, Koski, Dale and Fink came in fifth in a school-record 1:17.96.
Kentucky
University of Kentucky diver Rebecca Hamperian won a silver medal and swimmer Isaac Jones broke a school record to highlight the second day of the Southeastern Conference Swimming and Diving Championships on Wednesday.
Hamperian claimed UK’s first podium finish of the five-day conference championships with a second-place finish on 1-meter. Hamperian advanced to the finals along with senior Christa Cabot after the duo also placed in the top eight on 3-meter on Monday.
Jones’ school-record time came in the 500 freestyle relay. He was one of four Wildcats to advance to the finals in the event and one of three to record a time that marked in the top nine in team history.
“It was a good day overall,” UK head coach Lars Jorgensen said. “Becca and Christa were both fantastic on 1-meter today, they were fun to watch. The 500 freestyle guys were really good and Isaac had a great swim to get a school record. Our women’s 200 individual medley swimmers were also much improved today, they’ve come a long way.”
Hamperian, a redshirt sophomore, placed second with a career-best 329.20 points on 1-meter. Hamperian reached the podium by nearly nine points, but earned a silver medal by a 1.05-point margin. Cabot finished seventh with a 312.10, beating out LSU’s Cassie Weil by 0.45 points.
“The girls did a great job today,” UK diving coach Ted Hautau said. “The 1-meter competition is extremely competitive, and Christa had to make a big move to get into the finals. It was huge to get two athletes into the finals, and they both dove well in the finals. Rebecca is really growing up, handling pressure, performing in big moments. Really proud of her, she’s a lot of progress this year, she’s matured a lot.”
One of 10 Wildcats to advance to the finals on Tuesday, Jones recorded a 4:18.42 in the 500 freestyle to earn his first career school-record time. The freshman’s school-record time, to place 12th, headlined an impressive lineup of four Wildcats in the finals of the men’s 500 freestyle. In addition to Jones’ 12th-place finish, junior Scott Crosthwaite was 16th overall with a 4:24.31, the third-fastest time in program history, while sophomore Drew Aviotti notched the ninth-fastest time in team history with a 4:22.90 to finish 20th. Sophomore Brandon Flynn placed 19th with a 4:21.80.
Through the second day of the SEC Championships, the UK women are seventh with 246 points, while the men are 10th with 169 points. Georgia leads both rankings, with 526 women’s points and 421 points by the men.
The Championships continue Wednesday at Auburn’s James E. Martin Aquatics Center. Fans can follow along with live swimming results at AuburnTigers.com. Diving results can be found on DiveMeets.com. Both the prelims and finals will be broadcast live on the SEC Network+. Additional updates and behind-the-scenes notes and photos can be found at @UKSwimDive.
The women’s 200 individual medley was a near-record-setting event for the Wildcats. Sophomore Danielle Galyer placed 3rd in the C final and 19th overall in 1:58.55, just 0.06 shy of her own school-record time. Freshman Bridgette Alexander was 24th overall in 1:59.66. Alexander made the finals with a 1:59.17, the second-fastest time in program history.
UK notched a pair of top-24 finishes in the women’s 500 freestyle. Sophomore Kelly Berger posted a season-best time of 4:46.76 to finish fourth in the C final and 20th overall. Fellow sophomore Kendal Casey notched a 4:51.36 to place 24th overall.
The final two events of the evening’s finals was the 200 freestyle relay, where both the men and women placed 10th. The men, with seniors Brent Dillon and Michael Christian and juniors Zac Zandona and Matt Roman tallied a 1:20.98. The women, with freshman Alyssa Ruffing, seniors Abby Myers and Kristen Wilson and sophomore Morgan Contino recorded a 1:32.09.
In the men’s 200 individual medley, Dillon tied for 24th in the prelims with a personal-best and NCAA ‘B’ qualifying time of 1:48.30. In the swim-off to qualify for the evening’s final, Dillon finished second.
In the men’s 50 freestyle, sophomore Sean Gunn led the Wildcats with a personal-best 20.36 to place 30th overall. The women were led by senior Christina Bechtel, who finished 26th in 22.95, just shy of a spot in the top 24 and the finals.
LSU
Diver Alex Bettridge captured first, set the school record and set the Southeastern Conference record on one-meter on the second day of SEC’s. Bettridge posted a score of 350.30 and took first by 20 points.
“It’s still kind of new to me and I wasn’t expecting it,” Bettridge said. “I had no idea where I was on the leaderboard because I was just zoned in. I think winning tonight gives our group momentum going forward. One of our goals is to go 1-2-3 on platform. After tonight, I think it’s possible and I’m looking forward to the rest of the week."
The senior became the 33rd SEC Champion in LSU women’s swimming and diving history. Bettridge had compiled 266.8 points with just one dive remaining. Needing just 40 points to capture the win, Bettridge tallied a score of 61.10 to secure gold.
“There are few moments in coaching when you’re blessed to have everything just comes together,” Shaffer said. “Alex was in the right position with the right opportunity. She competed in a manner that allowed her to shine in the best way that she could to become an SEC Champion, secure the SEC record and break the LSU record.”
“This was incredible to see her perform at this level. I usually watch the scores but today I just watched her perform. She was in complete control and I knew she had it in her. It was fun to watch her compete and see it go her way.”
In addition to Bettridge’s performance, Weil also reached the final on one-meter. Weil finished eighth with a score of 311.65. Allie Alter scored for the Lady Tigers with a ninth-place finish and a score of 261.25.
The LSU women sit in fourth place after two days with 321 points, while the LSU men are in ninth place with 189 points.
“It was a solid day for us,” LSU swimming coach Dave Geyer said. “There were definitely some things we could have done better in the morning for better placement at night. At the same time we had some swims where our team stepped up and outperformed our expectations in both session. The spotlight tonight definitely goes to Alex for her incredible performance on the diving board.”
Sophomore Devon Dabney started off the finals session by finishing seventh in the ‘B’ final of the 500 free with a time of 4:46.26. Dabney broke the school record in the prelims with a time of 4:45.91.
Colleen O’Neil touched the wall fourth in the ‘B” final of the 200 IM with a time of 1:58.58. O’Neil’s time of 1:58.46 in prelims was enough for the fourth-fastest time in school history.
Kara Kopcso also finished eighth in the ‘B’ final of the 200 IM (1:59.42). Caley Oquist tallied a time of 1:58.65 for fourth in the ‘C’ final of the 200 IM.
Marco Gonzalez and Joao Mescolote raced to a two-three finish in the ‘C’ final of the 50 free. Gonzalez finished with a time of 20.04 and Mescolote finished with a time of 20.07.
Amber Carter wrapped up the individual events on day two by finishing fifth in the “B’ final of the 50 free with a time of 22.61.
The LSU men’s team of Mescolote, Gonzalez, Devin McCaffrey and Alex Linge finished seventh in the 200 free relay with a time of 1:18.84. The women’s team of Carter, Leah Troskot, Kate Zimmer, and Oquist finished ninth with a time of 1:30.17.
In prelims of the men’s 500 free, Jake Markham touched the wall in 4:26.47 for the sixth-fastest time in school history. Fellow freshman Jane MacDougall also added her name to the top times list with the eighth-fastest 500 time in school history (4:50.60).
In the 200 IM, Daniel Swietlicki and Logan Rysemus added more top times. Swietlicki posted a time of 1:48.70 for the eighth fastest time in school history. Rysemus finished the individual medley event in 1:48.97 to move one spot up in the list to 10.
“There are still three more full sessions ahead of us so we need to keep looking forward and taking each day as they come,” Geyer added.
Missouri
The Mizzou men’s sits in sixth-place (251 points) and the women sit eighth (240 points) after day two action at the 2015 SEC Swimming and Diving Championships on Wednesday, Feb. 18 at the James E. Martin Aquatics Center in Auburn, Ala.
On the women’s side, Georgia (526) sits in first, followed by Texas A&M (442), Florida (410), LSU (213), while Tennessee (311) rounds out the top five. Georgia (421) also leads the men’s field, ahead of Florida (391), Auburn (379), Tennessee (329) and Alabama (311).
In the 500 free, freshman Kira Zubar took second in the C final to place 18th overall in a finals swim of 4:46.31. Her evening time, two seconds faster than her 4:48.39 in prelims, moved the freshman into fourth all-time at Mizzou in the event. Sophomore Brittany Hammond also swam the event in prelims, notching a personal best 4:52.37.
For the men, sophomore Nick Davis jumped into second all-time at MU in the 500 free with a personal best time prelims time of 4:23.20 to finish 26th. Also taking part in prelims were senior Eegan Groome (4:24.00) and sophomore Carter Griffin (personal best 4:24.07).
Mizzou had three men advance to Wednesday’s finals in the 200 IM. Senior Mack Darragh led the way for the Tigers with a fifth-place finish in the consolation final, right ahead of senior Igor Kozlovskij’s 14th finish. Darragh swam a 1:45.62 in finals, while Kozlovskij clocked a time of 1:46.37 in finals after a 1:46.31 in prelims. Junior Daniel Graviss won the C final with a personal best swim of 1:46.62, over a full second better than his old low and a time that now ranks him fifth all-time in Tiger history.
Freshman Sharli Brady, swimming in the 200 IM C final, won the race with a strong swim of 1:57.99. The time was a career best by a second and a half and rocketed her to rank second in Tiger history in the event.
The Tigers advanced four men to the men’s 50 free finals, with sophomore Michael Chadwick and junior Matthew Margritier in the consolation final and freshman Jordy Groters and senior Sam Tierney in the C final. Chadwick placed 10th overall after taking second in the B final in a time of 19.81, while Margritier took fourth in 19.87. Groters and Tierney placed 23rd and 24th, respectively, after swims of 20.24 and 20.35. In prelims, Groters swam a personal best 20.07.
Junior Anna Patterson and freshman Rachel Hayden also represented Missouri in the 50 free finals after earning spots in the consolation (Patterson) and C (Hayden) finals. Patterson finished 15th overall with a 22.72 in finals, after a 22.52 in prelims, while Hayden placed 23rd with a finals time of 22.85.
In the diving well, the Tiger women received points from junior Lauren Reedy and freshman Alexa Beckwith on 1-meter. Reedy placed 11th in prelims with a tally of 280.80, less than 10 points out of advancing to finals. Beckwith recorded 273.35 points to take 14th-place.
In the final swimming events of the night, the Mizzou men took sixth in the 200 free relay, while the women placed eighth overall. The men’s quartet of Margritier, Chadwick, Tierney and Groters clocked a time of 1:18.50, while Hayden, senior Danielle Barbiea, freshman Hannah Stevens and Patterson swam a 1:30.05.
South Carolina
After two days of competition at the SEC Championships, the Gamecock men are in seventh place with 249 points while the women are in ninth place with 224.
Georgia is currently leading the Championship with 421 points on the men’s side and 526 on the women’s.
Freshman Akram Mahmoud put his name atop the Gamecock record book for the second time this season with his time of 4:15.11 in the men’s 500 freestyle, which earned him a fourth place finish. He advanced to the championship final with his fourth-place performance (4:15.38) in the preliminary. Freshman Tomas Peribonio also qualified for the A final after taking sixth in the preliminary with a personal record of 4:16.84. Junior Marwan El Kamash earned a spot in the B final with his preliminary time of 4:17.71, he finished 11th overall with a time 4:17.72. Freshman Travis Morrin placed 48th overall in the preliminary with a personal record of 4:31.48.
In the women’s preliminary race, freshman Taylor Worrell led the Gamecocks with a 30th place finish after recording a career-best time of 4:49.91. Senior Annika Jonsson finished in 32nd place (4:50.94) and sophomore Cooper Brown in 36th place with personal record of 4:53.59. Junior Ashleigh Ferguson, senior Charlotte Ward and freshman Sarah Smith placed 40th, 41st and 42nd, respectively.
Freshman Nils Wich-Glasen raced in the C final of the men’s 200 IM, finishing 20th overall (1:47.13). His preliminary time of 1:46.58 is a personal record and ranks second in school history. Freshman Bryce Kananowicz, senior Jared Kauffman and freshman Thomas Hang also swam in the preliminary and placed 30th, 37th and 41st, respectively.
Freshman Heather Merritt’s personal record time of 2:00.41 in the women’s 200 IM preliminary, earned her a 30th-place overall finish. Juniors Ellen Johnson and Elise Weisert both posted career-best times and placed 48th and 55th overall, respectively.
In the preliminary of the men’s 50 freestyle, sophomore Joshua Clothier led the Gamecocks with his 35th place finish (20.56). Freshman Patrick McCrillis placed 38th overall with a personal record of 20.64. Sophomore Robert Gilchrist (20.87) and Evan Mahoney (21.04) both recorded career-best times and finished in 40th and 47th place, respectively.
The Gamecocks were represented by freshman Meredith Vay in the finals of the women’s 50 freestyle. Swimming in the C final, Vay’s finished 20th overall with a time of 22.73, which is a personal record and ties for third in school history. Senior Rachel Elliott and Freshman Mairyn Branaman placed 38th and 47th overall, respectively.
In the women’s 1-meter diving final junior Lauren Lamendola medaled for the Gamecocks with her third-place finish (328.15). Senior Patricia Kranz advanced to finals in her second-straight event and finished in 6th place with a score of 318.75.
The Gamecocks wrapped up the second night of finals with a ninth-place finish in the men’s 200 freestyle relay and an 11-place finish in the women’s race.
NOTABLES
• Akram Mahmoud now holds two school records at South Carolina, the 500 freestyle and 1,650 freestyle.
• In the men’s 500 freestyle, Akram Mahmoud, Tomas Peribonio and Marwan El Kamash all recorded NCAA B cut times.
• Tomas Peribonio’s preliminary time of 4:16.84 is personal record and ranks third in school history.
• Nils Wich-Glasen’s time in the 200 IM (1:46.58) is an NCAA B cut, his preliminary time is a career-best and ranks second in school history.
• Thomas Hang’s time of 1:56.52 in the 200 IM is a personal record.
• Meredith Vay recorded an NCAA B cut time of 22.73 in the 50 freestyle, which ties for third in school history.
• Mairyn Branaman’s time of 23.81 in the 50 free is a personal record.
• The men’s 200 free relay time of 1:20.68 ranks 10th in school history.
QUOTABLE
Head Swimming Coach McGee Moody
“We had good parts and we had bad parts (today). The men’s 500 freestyle was really, really good. We put two up in the A final (Akram Mahmoud and Tomas Peribonio). Marwan (El Kamash) was one of the faster guys in the B final, which was good. Akram was a little faster tonight and broke our team record, so that was really special swim. Meredith Vay had a very good day, she went a lifetime best her 50 freestyle. Our two relays at the end were solid but not great. These are probably two of our weakest relays the whole week, so getting them out of the way and moving forward with the other relays is good. The divers did great again tonight. Every one of our divers scored today and essentially kept our women in the mix for the second day. We have our strongest days coming up so we’re going to try to be better tomorrow.
Head Diving Coach Todd Sherritt
“Really, everyone is diving great. Marissa (Roth) and Julia (Vincent), they didn’t get in the finals but they did really well. Patti (Patricia Kranz) had a phenomenal preliminary and really did a good job (in finals), she just missed one dive. Coming off her third-place finish from last night, she was a little tired but I was pretty pleased with her performance. Lauren (Lamendola) was just lights out. She’s never, as long as I’ve been working with her, put together a (dive) list like that. I didn’t know how she was going to handle finals because she’s never been in before. What I saw today was when she gets to finals, gets the crowd and has the lights on her, she steps it up.”
Tennessee
Tennessee sent 15 swimmers to the Wednesday night finals session of the 2015 SEC Championships and the Vols gained some valuable points to move up into the upper half of the overall standings.
Through two full days of competition at Auburn University, the UT women climbed to fifth place in the team standings with 311 points (10 points behind 4th place LSU) while defending champion Georgia leads with 526. The UT men are fourth with 329.5, and Georgia leads with 421.
A night after securing three gold medals, two of which coming in relays, the UT sprinters secured their relay prowess in the SEC Championships by posting top-4 finishes in both the men's and women's 200-yard freestyle relay.
Similar to the 200 medley relay a night ago, the women's 200 free relay team of Faith Johnson, Harper Bruens, Amy Lubawyand Cherelle Thompson earned the bronze medal with a time of 1:28.92. Johnson and Bruens have earned two relay medals in as many days. Meanwhile Thompson earned her second 200 Free Relay medal for the second consecutive year, and Lubawy earns her first career SEC Championship medal.
The men's quartet of Joshua Romany, Gustav Aberg Ledjstrom,Jacob Thulin and Troy Tillman secured the sixth-fastest relay time in program history by earning fourth place in 1:17.76. After falling behind in the first half of the race, Tillman helped the Vols fight back with a 19.01 anchor split.
Tennessee sent 10 sprinters in total to the finals session and picked up 62.5 points, led by senior Tillman, who finished the 50 Free A final in 19.58, good for sixth place and .04 seconds off his pace set during the preliminaries, where he passed Octavio Alesi for ninth in UT program history.
Meanwhile, Johnson and Bruens finished their individual races within the top eight of the 50 Free for the UT women. Johnson finished fourth with a season-best 22.00 time, while Bruens finished seventh (22.16), but passed Jenny Connolly for sixth place overall in Tennessee program history.
In his fourth and final year competing in the A final of the 200 Individual Medley, senior Tristan Slater finished in fifth place, a jump from his seventh-place finish last year, in 1:43.10. That time was faster than the program record-breaker which Slater set during Wednesday's preliminary session.
Junior Amanda Carner also broke the UT program record in the 200 IM earlier in the day at preliminaries, and she continued her fast swimming by improving on that mark. Her 1:57.65 time in the A final resulted in a sixth-place finish, which bumped UT up to fifth place after the 200 IM.
The 500 Free featured a pair of A final debutantes for both the men and women. Freshman Sam McHugh earned a sixth-place finish by completing the race in 4:17.05, which is good for an NCAA B-cut time as well as fifth place in UT program history.
Meanwhile, Madeline Tegner wrapped up her first A final appearance by passing Leslie Mix for fourth in UT history, thanks to a 4:42.73 time and a fifth-place finish. Tegner also set a new career-best time in the event.
MEN'S 500 FREESTYLE
Competing in his first individual SEC A final of his career, Sam McHugh earned 24 points for the Vols by finishing in sixth place in 4:17.05. The NCAA B-cut time also serves as a new career-best time for McHugh, beating his previous time set at the 2014 Nike Cup in November. McHugh remains fifth all-time in the event, inching closer to fourth-place Melvin Stewart (4:16.45).
WOMEN'S 500 FREESTYLE
In her first career SEC Championship final, Madeline Tegner represented UT in the A final and finished fifth in 4:42.73. Tegner passed Leslie Mix for fourth all-time in Tennessee history, while also setting a new career-best time. Morgan Dickson finished strong during the back half of the B final to earn fifth place (13th overall) in 4:45.98, the second fastest time for Dickson this season.
MEN'S 200 IM
Having qualified for the A final for the fourth time earlier in the day, Tristan Slater improved upon last year's seventh-place result by finishing fifth in 1:43.50, improving upon his program-record time set in the preliminaries. A year after finishing as an alternate in the 200 IM, Austin Hirstein earned points for UT by finishing seventh in the C Final in 1:48.21.
WOMEN'S 200 IM
Junior Amanda Carner also broke the UT program record in the 200 IM earlier in the day at preliminaries, and she continued her fast swimming by improving on that mark. Her 1:57.65 time in the A final resulted in a sixth-place finish, which bumped UT up to fifth place after the 200 IM.
MEN'S 50 FREESTYLE
Tennessee sent five sprinters in total to the finals session, led by senior Troy Tillman, who finished the 50 Free A final in 19.58, good for sixth place and .04 seconds off his pace set during the preliminaries, where he passed Octavio Alesi for ninth in UT program history.
Swedes Gustav Aberg Ledjstrom (19.91) and Jacob Thulin (20.08) finished fifth and seventh respectively in the B final, whileJoshua Romany won the C final in his SEC Championship debut (19.90). Fellow freshman Ryan Coetzee finished fifth in 20.16.
WOMEN'S 50 FREESTYLE
Faith Johnson and Harper Bruens represented the Big Orange in the A final of the 50 Free. Johnson earned fourth place, while Bruens (7th) surpassed Jenny Connolly for sixth overall in Tennessee program history. Cherelle Thompson finished the B final in eighth place in 22.86, while Amy Lubawy (22.67) and Alex Cleveland (22.75) finished third and fifth respectively in the C final.
MEN'S 200 FREESTYLE RELAY
After a long video replay, Tennessee continued its relay prowess by fighting back in the final two legs to claim fourth place with a time of 1:17.76. Joshua Romany, Gustav Aberg Ledjstrom, Jacob Thulin and Troy Tillman posted the sixth-fastest 200 Free Relay time in UT history.
WOMEN'S 200 FREESTYLE RELAY
Similar to the 200 medley relay a night ago, the women's 200 free relay team of Faith Johnson, Harper Bruens, Amy Lubawyand Cherelle Thompson earned the bronze medal with a time of 1:28.92. Like the men, the women's time also is now the sixth-fastest time in program history.
Texas A&M Men
Texas A&M junior Cory Bolleter tallied the men’s swimming and diving team’s top finish on day two of the Southeastern Conference Championships on Wednesday at the James E. Martin Aquatics Center on the Auburn University campus.
The Aggies stand in eighth place after two days of action with 222 points. Georgia leads the way with 421 points, followed by Florida (391.5), Auburn (379), Tennessee (329.5), Alabama (311), Missouri (251), South Carolina (249), Texas A&M, LSU (189) and Kentucky (169).
Bolleter, a team captain from San Antonio, Texas, took fifth place in the Championship final of the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 19.55 after posting a season-best of 19.48 in the morning prelims. Also contributing points for the Aggies in the 50 free was sophomore Jacob Gonzales, who placed third in the consolation final (11th overall) with a time of 19.85, which was just off his lifetime best of 19.82 set during a time trial on Tuesday.
The Aggie duo of senior Hayden Duplechain and junior Antoine Marc combined to chip in 10 points in the 200 IM. Duplechain placed third in the C final (19th overall) with a time of 1:47.08 and Marc was right behind in fifth place (21st overall) in 1:47.53. Both Aggies posted lifetime bests in the morning prelims with Duplechain touching in 1:46.68 and Marc in 1:47.16.
The Aggies closed out the day with an eight place finish in the 200 free relay with the foursome of Bolleter, Gonzales, senior Luke Shaw and sophomore Turker Ayar touching the wall in 1:18.86. All four Aggies posted a sub-20 second split with Gonzales’ 19.46 split leading the way.
Texas A&M Women
Boosted by a school record effort from freshman Beryl Gastaldello and a host of other strong performances, the Texas A&M women’s swimming and diving team climbed to second in the team standing at the 2015 Southeastern Conference Championships on Wednesday at the James E. Martin Aquatics Center on the Auburn University campus.
The Aggies’ strong day two performance boosted them from sixth to second with 442 points. Georgia leads the way with 526 points, followed by Texas A&M, Florida (410), LSU (321), Tennessee (311), Auburn (259), Kentucky (246), Missouri (240), South Carolina (224), Arkansas (204), Alabama (187) and Vanderbilt (90).
Gastaldello, from Miramas, France, took down one of the oldest records at Texas A&M with a blistering time of 21.85 that supplanted the 21.93 by Triin Aljand at the 2009 NCAA Championships. The French National Team member also guaranteed her spot at the 2015 NCAA Championships by achieving a NCAA automatic cut. Gastaldello continued her strong SEC meet debut with the school record after contributing one of the fastest fly legs on the Aggies’ 200 medley relay on Tuesday.
“It was fun to see that record go down,” Aggie head coach Steve Bultman said. “I loved it when Triin set it, but it was time for it to be broken. Beryl did a great job and she was just a tenth of a second from winning it. This is exactly when we’ve been seeing from Beryl in practice, so her performance wasn’t a surprise but it’s nice to see it in a meet.”
Also in the 50 free, senior Sammie Bosma placed eighth in the Championship final in 22.36, while senior Lili Ibanez was 22nd (22.79) and junior Claire Brandt was 24th (22.86).
The Aggies piled up 73 points in the 500 freestyle with senior Sarah Henry leading the way with a third place finish in the Championship final. Henry, the 2013 SEC Champion in the the 500, finished in a time of 4:38.10 behind 2014 SEC and NCAA Champion Amber McDermott of Georgia and Jessica Thielmann of Florida. Sophomore Sarah Gibson took eighth in the A final in 4:43.99. Junior Colleen Konetzke was fourth in the B final (12th overall) in 4:43.43, while freshman Nancy Schuchardt won the C final in a time of 4:46.00.
A&M showed off its depth by scoring a whopping 87 points in the 200 IM. Freshman Bethany Galat took the early lead but ended up fourth in a time of 1:56.53, while fellow freshman Kristin Malone placed eighth in 1:59.24. Another freshman, Lisa Bratton, won the consolation final with a time of 1:57.28, while junior Meredith Oliver was right behind in fifth (13th overall) in 1:58.83. Finishing out the A&M scoring were sophomore Sycerika McMahon (22nd, 1:58.87) and junior Ashley McGregor (23rd, 1:59.22).
The Aggie divers chipped in 45 points in the one-meter dive with sophomore Madison Hudkins leading the way with a fifth place finish with 319.00 point total. Sophomore Destine’e O’Neal placed 16th with a score of 267.95, while fellow sophomore Courtney Hattie was right behind in 17th with 267.40.
Texas A&M closed out the night with a fourth-place finish in the 200 free relay with the foursome of Galat, Gastaldello, Brandt and Bosma hitting the wall in a season-best time of 1:29.01.
