Alabama
Alabama swimming and diving struck gold again and again and again Friday night at the Southeastern Conference Swimming and Diving Championships being held on the Auburn campus this week.
Senior Kaylin Burchell won the women’s 100 breaststroke while sophomore Connor Oslin won the men’s 100 backstroke. The Crimson Tide’s winning 400 medley relay of Oslin, sophomore Anton McKee, junior Brett Walsh and sophomore Kristian Gkolomeev used a school and conference record 3:04.25 to close out the Tides’ golden day.
Alabama is up to five SEC titles – three individual and two relays – already this week with one day of competition remaining. Gkolomeev won the 50 freestyle while he, sophomore Alex Gray, freshman Luke Kaliszak and junior Brett Walsh won the 200 freestyle relay on the meet’s second day.
Burchell won the 100 breaststroke in a time of 58.87, the only woman under 59 seconds in the meet. It was the Tide women’s first individual SEC title since 2009 when Alabama won a pair of diving titles. It was Alabama’s first 100 breaststroke title since Olympic bronze medalist Anne Poleska won in 2002. Burchell swam a 58.48 in prelims, lowering her own school record.
Oslin won the 100 backstroke with a school record 45.45, a time he matched leading off the Tide’s championship relay. He was the only swimmer under 46 seconds in finals, bettering the field by more than a half second. It was Alabama’s first SEC 100 backstroke title since Bryan Jennings won it in 1985.
The 400 medley relay bettered the previous conference record, set by Auburn in 2009, by a quarter of a second. Oslin opened things up with a fastest backstroke split of the night (45.45) while Gkolomeev closed things out with the best freestyle split (41.33). Alabama was almost a second ahead of runner-up Florida.
Alabama’s men head into the championships in fifth place with 610.5 points while the women are eighth with 470 points.
Arkansas
For the first time in five years, senior Nikki Daniels etched her mark in Arkansas swimming and diving history, becoming the first Razorback in half a decade to earn a spot on the SEC Championships podium and a top-three finish. The Wichita, Kansas native touched the wall third with a time of 59.52 in the 100 breaststroke finals on the fourth day of the 2015 SEC Championship in the James E. Aquatic Center Friday evening.
“I am so thrilled,” said Daniels. “In a meet like this when every point counts it’s so much more meaningful to race for your team than for yourself. I’ve been so close to that podium spot before, and to get it on my last chance was one of the highlights of my career as a Razorback.”
The last Razorback to make an appearance on the SEC podium was Yi-Ting Siow when she was crowned the 2010 SEC Champion in the 200 breaststroke.
“I’m just so proud of her,” said head coach Sean Schimmel. “For her to be here and to get top three is awesome. We’re looking to build off that going forward. It was outstanding, I’m just so happy for her. Her work, her dedication, her commitment and trust in the process that shows up there.”
Arkansas also set a new program record in the 400 medley relay to close the evening. Junior Anna Mayfield, Daniels, senior Susanna White and junior Maddie Monroe clocked a time of 3:35.09. The Razorbacks have set four records in as many days at the SEC Championships.
“The relays are rolling,” said Schimmel. “The girls are doing a really good job of swimming connected and getting it done. They know when it comes time for the relays you’ve got to make things happen.”
The Razorbacks opened the day in the 200 butterfly where three of their four swimmers clocked career-best times. Freshman Jessie Garrison registered a time of 2:00.15, good for the second alternate position heading into the finals. Junior Rachel Kessler and freshman Olivia Weekley also recorded a personal-best times with marks of 2:01.81 and 2:03.21, respectively.
In the 100 backstroke, the lone Razorback, senior Liz Braun, posted a 56.49, good for the 29th spot of the prelims.
In the final individual event of the prelims, Daniels scorched her heat to out-touch her opponents for a season-best 59.46. Her time placed her as the No. 3 seed heading into the 100 breaststroke finals. Freshman Maddie Edwards also picked up a new personal record with a time of 1:04.44.
On the diving side, junior Hannah Bortnick racked-up a career-high 212.30 score on the platform dive.
Auburn
Auburn’s men earned three bronze medals during Friday night’s finals at the 2015 SEC Swimming and Diving Championships.
Hugo Morris, making his second appearance in a championship final in as many nights, earned his first individual SEC medal of his career by lowering his PR time down to 1:42.11 to take the bronze medal in the men’s 200 fly final. The freshman became the first Tiger to medal in the event at the conference meet since Logan Madson set the school record and took third overall in 2009.
“It was great swimming from Hugo, especially being in this environment for the first time,” Auburn coach Brett Hawke said. “I thought he’s been outstanding all week.”
Michael Duderstadt nearly took down the school record en route to earning bronze in the 100 breast final. The sophomore posted a 51.93 to third overall, becoming the first Auburn swimmer to break the sub-52 second mark since Adam Klein set the school record at 51.80 in 2009.
“For Duder[stadt], swimming for the first time under 52 seconds was huge,” Hawke said of the sophomore. “I’m really proud of him and he’s worked hard for that. There was a lot of good swimming tonight, but I think we overswam a bit in some of those races. Tomorrow we have to come back in ready to compete and be patient.”
The freshman duo of Zach Warner and Jacob Molacek scored key points in the 100 breast final for the Tigers. Warner touched in at 52.74 for sixth, while Jacob Molacek tied for seventh overall with a swim of 52.76.
The men’s 400 medley relay team of Joe Patching, Duderstadt, Morris and Kyle Darmody took home Auburn’s final medal of the night, recording the nation’s fourth-fastest time at 3:06.01 to place third overall.
Auburn got a fourth-place finish from Patching in the 100 back at 46.36 and Kyle Darmody claimed seventh overall, recording a 46.70. Josh Booth placed 21st overall with a time of 48.33 in Friday’s C-final.
On the women’s side, Annie Lazor took sixth in the 100 breast final at 1:00.15. The junior collected the third-best time in school history during Friday’s prelim session with a 59.82. Natasha Lloyd was 15th at 1:01.24, while Beatriz Travalon earned a victory in the C-final with swim of 1:01.28.
Carly Scheper made her first career appearance in a championship final, taking seventh in the women’s platform diving final. The junior scored 239.55 in the five-dive list final. Scheper nearly set a personal-best in Friday’s prelims at 255.25 to earn a NCAA zone diving standard.
In the women’s 100 back final, Jillian Vitarius’ 53.65 earned an eighth-place finish. Sarah Reynolds placed 16th overall, clocking a 53.95 in the consolation final.
Alex Merritt placed 16th overall for the Auburn women in the 200 fly at 2:00.12, while Sarah Peterson won the C-final with a near personal-best time of 1:58.63.
The Tiger men head into the Saturday’s final day of action in third place with 760 points, while Auburn’s women are in sixth with 521 points.
Florida
The University of Florida No. 1 men’s and No.4-ranked women’s swimming & diving teams sit first and third heading into the final day of the Southeastern Conference Championships. Junior diver Kahlia Warner paced the Gators tonight, as she set a school-record on the women’s platform dive with a score of 326.45 points. This week’s meet is being held at the James E. Martin Aquatic Center in Auburn, Ala.
Warner, who finished third in prelims with a score of 265.80, finished runner-up in tonight’s finals.
In addition on the boards, junior Delaney Dye was the surprise of the day for the Gators, as she qualified for platform finals with a personal-best score of 241.95. Although she was thrilled just to make the final, Dye she still wasn’t satisfied. The Tallahassee, Fla. native finished eighth in final with a mark of 238.40. Her eighth place finish marked her highest-career finish in any event at the SEC Championships.
In the pool for the women, sophomore Taylor Katz captured the Gators highest individual, as she finished third in the women’s 200-yard butterfly with a time of 1:54.44. That mark ranks her third in UF history. Katz surpassed Gator Great Elizabeth Beisel’s time of 1:54.60, which she set a year ago.
On the men’s side, Florida put together one of its best races of the week in the 100-yard backstroke, as the Gators captured second, fifth and eighth in the event. Sophomore Jack Blyzinskyj paced the Gators as he finished runner-up in a time of 46.01 seconds. Behind Blyzinskyj was junior Corey Main and senior Christian Homer who clocked times of 46.52 and 46.73 seconds, respectively.
Earlier in the day, Blyzinskyj clocked a time of 45.81 seconds during the prelims, which ranks as the third-fastest mark in school history.
In addition, seniors Dan Wallace and Eduardo Solaeche-Gomez placed sixth and seventh in the men’s 200-yard butterfly and 100-yard breaststroke events with times of 1:42.49 and 52.78 seconds, respectively. Wallace’s mark is the fifth-fastest time in UF history.
Florida’s men (Blyzinskyj, Solaeche-Gomez, Christian Homer, Caeleb Dressel) and women (Ashlee Linn, Theresa Michalak, Natalie Hinds, Amelia Maughan) placed second and seventh in the lone relay event of the evening, the 400-yard medley. The men’s time was 3:05.09, which ranks fourth in school history, meanwhile the Gator women clocked a mark of 3:34.76.
UF is back in action tomorrow for the final day of the SEC Championships with prelims beginning at 11:00 a.m. ET and finals at 7:00 p.m. Florida's men's team are looking for its third-straight SEC Championship and 36th in program history, while the Gator women are looking to win their 18th conference title and the program's first since 2009.
Coaches Corner:
Head Coach Gregg Troy:
On his thoughts on today…
“We were pleased with our racing tonight. We had some especially good swims in a few spots, as all our guys backstrokes were really good and I’m really excited about the two relay events at the end of the night. Our women didn’t finish as high as they wanted, but we’ve had to make-shift and they’ve done a tremendous job. On the men’s side, we were just off another record. Overall, today was really good for us.”
On the men being in first place…
“Georgia had a real big day, but we’ve got to come in and swim well again tomorrow. It is what it is. If we come in and race and take care of business then we will be fine.”
Diving Coach Dale Schultz:
On his first SEC Championships as UF’s diving coach…
“This has been really special. We’re just trying to pick up where Donnie (Craine) left off. We’ve just been working really hard. What I’ve told our kids, is that the best thing to do is just to move forward in his honor.”
On Kahlia Warner breaking the school record…
“That was awesome. It was Monica Dodson’s school-record and Monica was an All-American at the University of Florida and that was a big record to go get. Her back 2.5 pike that got some 10’s that was cool. You don’t see that very often.”
On Delaney Dye making the finals…
“That was very emotional. When I get to work with a kid who has worked as hard as she (Delaney Dye) has worked this year and then you get those special performances. That’s what this is all about. That’s why we coach.”
Talking Gators:
Junior Kahlia Warner:
On placing second in the platform dive finals…
“That was the best set of dives that I have ever done in my life. I honestly didn’t even think that I was going to make the final. I went into it hoping to make the final but I was not very confident. 10-meter definitely isn’t my favorite thing to do but I did well.”
On breaking the school-record…
“It’s unbelievable. I’ve been trying to break a school-record for at least the last year. But I’ve really been trying on the springboard. I never, ever thought that I would get it on 10-meter. Wow.”
Junior Delaney Dye:
On competing in the finals…
“It was unbelievable. I wasn’t expecting (to make the) final in the platform event. I was just trying to get through it (prelims) and score as many points as I could but when I finished in eighth, it was unbelievable. It was the coolest feeling I have felt in my diving career yet. It was awesome.”
Georgia
Nicolas Fink, Chase Kalisz and Olivia Smoliga claimed individual titles to highlight Georgia’s showing on Friday at the Southeastern Conference Swimming and Diving Championships at Auburn’s James E. Martin Aquatics Center.
Following four days of competition, the Lady Bulldogs remain first with 1,082 points, with Texas A&M in second with 875 and Florida in third with 730.5. The Lady Bulldogs will be vying for a school-record sixth straight and 12th overall conference title on Saturday.
Seeking their first conference team title since 1955, the Bulldogs stand second with 848 points. Florida is first with 980 and Auburn is third with 760.
Fink capped his SEC career a perfect 4-for-4 in the 100-yard breaststroke. His winning time on Friday was 51.51. Fink is the fourth Bulldog and the ninth man overall to win an SEC event all four years, joining fellow Bulldogs Sebastien Rouault (500- and 1,650-yard freestyle) and Mark Dylla (200-yard butterfly).
“I’m certainly proud to have won this event four times,” Fink said. “This one is a tribute to the whole year. It’s not just something that happened here. It goes back to the training, the hard work and my teammates pushing me all year. They have made me a better swimmer.”
Kalisz touched first in the 200-yard butterfly, recording a time of 1:41.70.
"I'm really happy with the win,” Kalisz said. “My goal for this meet is to get as many points for my team as I can. I just swam my own race. I stayed back and stayed patient and utilized my strengths."
Smoliga claimed the 100-yard backstroke with a time of 51.47. She is Georgia's first SEC champion in the 100-yard backstroke since Neka Mabry in 2001.
“(Kylie Stewart and I) have been training all season and racing each other, so it was so nice to have her next to me,” Smoliga said. “She pushes me to be better. It was awesome to have so much Georgia representation in the backstroke."
Stewart’s time of 52.12 in the 100-yard backstroke landed her in third. Chantal Van Landeghem placed 12th in 53.50.
Hali Flickinger came in second in the 200-yard butterfly, registering a school-record time of 1:52.88. Courtney Weaver was fourth in 1:55.33, Megan Kingsley placed fifth in 1:55.34 and Lauren Harrington wound up sixth in 1:55.56.
The 400-yard medley relay of Smoliga, Annie Zhu, Harrington and Van Landeghem came in third in 3:34.01.
Darcie O’Brien placed ninth in platform diving with 238.55 points, followed by Kelly Thatcher in 15th with 224.65.
In the 100-yard breaststroke, Shannon O’Malley finished 14th in 1:01.23 and Olivia Boggs claimed 23rd in 1:02.49.
Taylor Dale finished third in 46.18 and Alec Cohen checked in 22nd in 48.37 in the 100-yard backstroke.
Ty Stewart came in fourth in the 200-yard butterfly with a time of 1:42.30, while Pace Clark took fifth in 1:42.33 and Mick Litherland finished 10th in 1:43.72.
The 400-yard medley relay of Dale, Fink, Stewart and Michael Trice took fourth in 3:06.26.
LSU
Diver Cassie Weil captured gold on platform and broke the school record to become the program’s ninth Southeastern Conference Champion on platform and 34th overall.
“On the women’s side today the platform event was really the culmination of the goals we set at our first team meeting,” LSU diving coach Doug Shaffer said. “Our divers embraced the goal and worked together to get two on the medal stand.”
Alex Bettridge earned her third medal of the championships with the second-highest score in school history (307.10). The senior earned bronze on platform. Bettridge ends the meet by accounting for 87 point, which is the most in LSU Swimming and Diving history.
“Alex’s performance at the SEC Championships was impressive,” Shaffer added. “She had a gold, silver, bronze, a personal best in each event, school record, SEC record and I don’t think you could ask for anything else.”
The men’s relay team of Logan Rysemus, Silas Dejean, Frank Greeff and Alex Linge swam an ‘A’ cut and set the school record in the 400 medley relay with a time of 3:09.23.
The LSU women’s team of Caley Oquist, Colleen O’Neil, Amber Carter and Leah Troskot also swam to an ‘A’ cut and broke the school record with a time of 3:35.32.
With just one day remaining, LSU sits in fourth place with 614 points on the women’s side and the men are in seventh with 420 points.
“We capped off the evening with a win on platform and two school records for our 400 medley relay teams,” LSU swimming coach Dave Geyer said. “When you add in Kara lowering her 200 fly record it was a great day. I’m really proud of those four men who responded with an ‘A’ cut after some tough racing already. We’re in the mix in team standings and we need to come out firing in the morning.”
Greeff made yet another championship final, this time in the 200 fly. Greeff finished seventh with a time of 1:43.34. In prelims, the senior posted a time of 1:43.15 which was just .01 seconds off his school record time.
Sophie Weber touched the wall sixth in the ‘C’ final of the 200 fly with a time of 2:00.18. Weber posted the seventh-fastest time in school history during prelims (1:59.38).
Sophomore Kara Kopcso broke her own school record in the 200 fly with a time of 1:56.06. Kopcso finished seventh in the championship final.
Daniel Swietlicki finished third in the ‘C’ final of the 100 back with a time of 48.09. His prelim time of 47.02 is seventh on the top times list.
In the ‘B’ final of the 100 back, Rysemus and Michael Young finished fourth and eighth respectively. Rysemus’s time of 47.21 was a personal best and he remains at fourth on LSU’s top times list. Young’s prelim time of 47.58 was also a personal best.
Danielle Stirrat touched the wall third in the ‘C’ final of the 100 back with a time of 54.13. Her time of 53.76 in prelims was a personal best.
Oquist finished sixth in the championship final of the 100 back for the second straight year. The junior tallied a time of 52.95 in finals and a season-best time of 52.76 in prelims.
Silas Dejean and Harry Ackland reached the ‘C’ final of the 100 breast. Dejean reached the final with the sixth-fastest time in school history (53.89). In the final, Ackland finished fourth (55.03) and Dejean finished fifth (55.14).
O’Neil finished fifth in the ‘B’ final of the 100 breast with a time of 1:00.67. The sophomore tallied the second-highest score in school history during prelims with a time of 1:00.16.
Missouri
The Mizzou men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams recorded five top-five finishes, including a second-place showing in the 100 breast from senior Sam Tierney, to highlight Friday competition at the 2015 Southeastern Conference Swimming and Diving Championships at the James E. Martin Aquatics Center in Auburn, Ala. The Tigers also set four school records on the day.
In addition to Tierney’s finish, sophomore Katharine Ross and redshirt junior Abby Duncan took fourth and fifth, respectively, in the 100 breast, the women’s 400 medley relay placed fourth and freshman Hannah Stevens took fifth in the 100 back.
The Tiger men sit in sixth-place with 549 points, while the women are eighth with 470 points.
Florida (980) leads the men’s field, ahead of Georgia (848), Auburn (760), Tennessee (687.5) and Alabama (610.5). On the women’s side, Georgia (1082) sits in first, followed by Texas A&M (875), Florida (730.5), LSU (614) and Tennessee (584.5).
Coming into finals as the top prelims qualifier, Tierney made a late charge in the final fourth of the race but was outtouched at the wall 51.51 to 51.64 to take runner-up honors. Tierney’s 51.64 was 0.04 faster than his old Mizzou record, which he set at November’s Mizzou Invite.
Senior Igor Kozlovskij and freshman Jordy Groters also competed in Friday night finals. Kozlovskij, swimming in the consolation final, placed 15th overall with a night time of 53.58, while Groters won the C final in a personal best 54.19.
In the women’s 100 breast, Ross and Duncan led the Mizzou charge with finishes of fourth and fifth. The duo qualified for the championship final after swims of 59.67 (Ross) and 59.77 (Duncan) in prelims and notched times of 59.64 (Ross) and 1:00.02 (Duncan) in finals.
Stevens also earned a spot in a championship final Friday, in the 100 back. The freshman, who swam a 52.32 in prelims, touched the wall in 52.38 in finals for her fifth-place finish.
In the 200 fly events, senior Mack Darragh and freshman Sharli Brady both set school records twice during the day. Darragh won the consolation final in an NCAA A cut and MU record 1:42.56, after a 1:43.69 in prelims. Classmate Andrew Phillips, who owned the school mark for one heat after a 1:43.72 in prelims, placed 11th overall with a finals time of 1:43.80. Additionally, junior Daniel Graviss was 14th with a personal best 1:44.18 and sophomore Martin Wallace placed 19th in a personal best 1:45.81.
Brady initially broke her own 200 fly mark in the morning session with a 1:57.17. She then smoked the consolation final field, easily winning that heat with a new school record of 1:55.88. Competing in the C final, freshman Erin Metzger-Seymour took third for a 19th-place finish after a 1:59.27.
Sophomore Carter Griffin earned a 10th-place finish for the Tigers in the 100 back after taking second in the 100 back consolation final. Griffin, who swam a personal best 46.94 in prelims to move into second all-time at Mizzou in the event, went 47.15 in finals. Additionally, junior Dillon Love won the C final after a night swim of 47.58, a new career best.
In the diving well, junior Lauren Reedy paced the Tigers with a 14-place finish on platform with 225.50 points. Freshmen Alexa Beckwith and Madeline McKernan also earned points for the team with finishes of 19th and 20th, respectively.
The men’s 400 medley relay knocked almost a full second off its old school mark with a 3:07.15 to place sixth. The quartet of Griffin, Tierney and sophomores Andrew Sansoucie and Michael Chadwick bested the old record of 3:08.08, set last season.
In the final event of the night, the Tiger women’s team of Stevens, Ross, senior Danielle Barbiea and junior Anna Patterson finished fourth in the 400 medley relay with a time of 3:34.34.
South Carolina
Freshman Heather Merritt and redshirt sophomore Kevin Leithold downed two more school records on the fourth day of the SEC Championships. Merritt finished the 100 backstroke preliminary in 54.14, breaking the previous school record of 54.74 record from 2009. Leithold broke his own record in of 53.36 in the 100 breaststroke with his time of 52.97 in the preliminary.
The Gamecock men are currently in ninth place with 359 points while the women are in 11th with 308 points. Florida leads the men’s competition with 980 points and Georgia is in first place on the women’s side with 1082 points.
Freshman Arkram Mahmoud finished 24th overall after racing in the C final of the men’s 200 butterfly. Mahmoud advanced to finals after recording a personal record of 1:46.43, which ranks fourth in school history, in the preliminary competition.
Freshman Caleb Tosh and junior Bobby Bittner also swam in the preliminary of the 200 butterfly. Tosh finished in 26th place with a career-best 1:47.16 while Bittner placed 37th with a career-best 1:49.77.
In the women’s 200 butterfly, senior Annika Jonsson led the Gamecocks with a 25th place finish (2:00.05), just missing the C final. Freshman Taylor Worrell (2:00.57) and seniors Elisabeth Worrell (2:00.98) and Charlotte Ward (2:02.21) placed 31st, 34th and 43rd, respectively.
Sophomore Jonathan Boland placed 20th overall in the men’s 100 backstroke with his time of 48.31. He set a personal record in the preliminary of 48.26, which ranks third in school history.
Senior Michael Covert came up just short of the C final with his 25th-place finish (48.45) in the 100 backstroke preliminary.
Heather Merritt (54.67) and Ashleigh Ferguson (54.68) finished 23rd and 24th overall in the women’s 100 backstroke, respectively. Merritt set a school record with her time of 54.18 in the preliminary to advance to the C final.
Sophomores Megan Carlson and Caroline Petrone also swam in the women’s 100 backstroke preliminary. The pair finished 31st and 41st with times of 55.34 and 58.34, respectively.
Freshman Nils-Wich Glasen placed 12th overall in the men’s 100 breaststroek with his personal record of 53.11, which ranks second in school history. Leithold finished 14th overall (53.52) and senior Alex Vance finished in 24th place with a time of 55.91.
Sophomore Evan Mahoney finished just short of the C final of the 100 breaststroke in 26th place with a personal record of 55.98. Freshman Jeremiah Bohon (56.20), senior Jared Kauffman (56.21) and freshman Thomas Hang (56.91) placed 28th, 29th and 33rd, respectively.
Senior Patricia Kranz and freshman Marissa Roth placed 10th and 24th in the women’s platform diving with scores of 238.05 and 196.70, respectively.
The Gamecock women wrapped up the night with yet another school record in the 400 medley relay. The team of Ferguson, Ellen Johnson, Merritt and Meredith Vay combined for 3:39.48 and an 11th place finish. The men’s relay team was disqualified.
NOTABLES
• Through four days of competition the Gamecocks have set six school records.
• The women’s team has broken three relay records.
• Akram Mahmoud and Caleb Tosh recorded NCAA B cuts in the 200 butterfly.
• Taylor Worrell, Elizabeth Worrell and Charlotte Ward all recorded career-best times in the 200 butterfly.
• Megan Carlson’s time in the 100 backstroke is a personal record.
• Heather Merritt and Ashleigh Ferguson recorded NCAA B cuts in the 100 backstroke
• Jeremiah Bohon and Thomas Hang both set personal records in the 100 breaststroke.
• Jonathan Boland’s time in the 100 backstroke is a NCAA provisional cut.
• Nils Wich-Glasen and Kevin Leithold’s times in the 100 breaststroke are NCAA B cuts
Tennessee
Tennessee reached the awards podium three times Friday at the SEC Swimming and Diving Championships at the James E. Martin Aquatic Center at Auburn University.
The Tennessee women finished the day with a gold medal in the 400 medley relay, their second straight medley relay gold. Senior Molly Hannis took silver in the 100-yard breaststroke for the third consecutive year. Freshman Sam McHugh earned his first SEC medal, a silver, in the 200-yard butterfly in his third A final of the week. McHugh's medal marked the fourth consecutive day where UT has reached the podium at SECs.
In the women's team standings, Tennessee is fifth with 584.5 points, LSU's 614. Host Georgia leads with 1082. As a team, the men are in fourth place with 687.5 points, ahead of Alabama heading into the final night of competition Saturday. Florida leads with 980.
"Everyone has a vision for the way they want to finish their meet," said Head Coach Matt Kredich. "We've been really consistent and it's hard for me to remember a team attitude that's been this consistent. I think that's a reflection of the way this team has gone through this season, handling success and failure. The team has a ton of resilience and I think that's a habit."
Tennessee's women's 400 medley relay team of Amanda Carner, Hannis, Harper Bruens and Faith Johnson ended the evening for the women by taking gold in the 400 medley relay in an NCAA A-cut time of 3:31.47, the sixth-fastest relay time in UT history.
Amanda Carner put Tennessee in the mix after the first leg with a 52.95 split, but Molly Hannis extended the lead to almost one full body length with a 58.66 breaststroke split. Harper Bruens(52.21) maintained the margin and Faith Johnson (47.65) carried the victory in the final 100 yards to give UT an A-cut and their second gold medal of the SECs.
"Amanda has never considered herself a very good 100 backstroker, but she swam a 53.20 during time trials, so she earned a spot on the relay," said Kredich. "Molly was definitely disappointed she didn't win the 100 Breast, (but) her first thought after the race was to get on with the relay.
"Harper's 52.21 is outstanding, considering she hasn't swam much butterfly. Faith insisted that she be put on the relay and she swam her fastest split. I think we caught some teams with off relays and it was a phenomenal way to end the night."
Sam McHugh opened the night for the Vols in the 200 Fly, where he finished in second place and earned the silver medal, thanks to a time of 1:42.01. McHugh earned the second-fastest time in program history during the morning preliminary session and improved on that time, now within a second of Melvin Stewart's 1:41.78 school record.
Hannis collected her third career silver medal in the 100 breaststroke in another exciting head-to-head battle, this time with Alabama's Kayli Burchell. Hannis swam the second-fastest time (59.38) during preliminaries and finished the finals with a 59.01 time, .14 seconds behind Burchell. Hannis now has earned a medal in the 100 Breaststroke in each of her four years as a Vol (one gold medal and three silver medals).
McHugh concluded his first SEC Championships with his third A final in as many days. The Chattanooga freshman improved his final position over the three events, finishing sixth in the 500 Free Wednesday night and fourth in the 400 IM Thursday night before Friday's second-place effort.
"I can't enough great things about him," said Kredich. "In some ways, he's a coach's dream. He listens intently and never have to tell him anything twice. He's self-reliant. He's self-sufficient and he has learned something every day he's been here. He's never had a slightly off day and he's really impressive. He swam a race tonight that showed a little inexperience, but a ton of desire to win and will be really valuable heading into NCAAs. That's a great first SEC meet for Sam."
Women's 200 Fly
Heather Lundstrom qualified for the A final by swimming the seventh-fastest time Friday morning and she gave UT some valuable points Friday night, where she finished eighth with a time of 1:57.07.
Madeline Tegner got off to a slow start in the B final, but stormed back in the final 50 yards to earn fourth place (12th overall) in 1:57.12. Mary Griffith finished right behind her teammate in 1:57.54.
Men's 200 Fly
Sam McHugh opened the night for the Vols in the 200 Fly, where he finished in second place and earned the silver medal, thanks to a time of 1:42.01. McHugh earned the second-fastest time in program history during the morning preliminary session and improved on that time, now within a second of Melvin Stewart's 1:41.78 school record.
Tyler Mills competed in the first race of the night, representing UT in the C final. The Johnson City native finished fourth with a B-cut time of 1:45.84, improving on his career-best time.
Women's 100 Back
Madison Hahn earned a spot in the B final after a career-best time in the morning session and utilized a strong final 25 yards to tie for 13th with Florida's Georgia Hohmann in 53.69.
Senior Erin Gaeckle finished her final SEC 100 Back race on a high note, winning the C final in 53.96, .07 off her career best set Friday morning. Teammate Anna DeMonte finished fourth for UT (54.27). All three swimmers earned a B-cut time.
Men's 100 Back
Sean Lehane qualified for the A final in the 100 Backstroke for the third straight year and earned 24 points for the Vols by finishing in sixth place (46.60). Jimmy Dagley earned a spot in the C final after tying for 23rd place. He finished eighth in the C final with a time of 48.97.
Women's 100 Breast
Hannis collected her third career silver medal in the 100 breaststroke in another exciting head-to-head battle, this time with Alabama's Kayli Burchell. Hannis swam the second-fastest time (59.38) during preliminaries and finished the finals with a 59.01 time, .14 seconds behind Burchell.
Colleen Callahan finished eighth in the B final (1:01.36), .03 seconds behind her preliminary time.
Men's 100 Breast
After swimming the third-fastest time in preliminary action, freshman Peter John Stevens continued his torrid pace with a 52.07 time, good for fourth place in the A final, as well as an automatic NCAA qualifying time.
Ross Dibblin gave the Vol breaststrokers a pair of top-4 finishes, earning third place in the B final with a career-best 53.10.
Women's 400 Medley Relay
The UT women earned their second medley gold medal in as many races, winning in 3:31.47. Amanda Carner put Tennessee in the mix after the first leg with a 52.95 split, but Molly Hannis extended the lead to almost one full body length with a 58.66 breaststroke split. Harper Bruens (52.21) maintained the margin and Faith Johnson (47.65) carried the victory in the final 100 yards to give UT an A-cut and their second gold medal of the SECs.
Men's 400 Medley Relay
Sean Lehane, Peter John Stevens, Jacob Thulin and Troy Tillman finished fifth with an automatic qualifying time of 3:06.86, the second fastest relay time in Tennessee history. Stevens' 51.96 split in the breaststroke put the Vols in contention midway through the relay, and also led the Vols to a NCAA automatic qualifying time.
Texas A&M Men
The Texas A&M men’s swimming and diving team stands in eighth place after four days of action at the 2015 Southeastern Conference Championships at the James E. Martin Aquatics Center on the Auburn University campus.
The Aggies have scored 385 points and are trailing Florida (980), Georgia (848), Auburn (760), Tennessee (687.5), Alabama (610.5), Missouri (549), LSU (420). Rounding out the team standings are South Carolina (359) and Kentucky (301).
The Aggies opened the night on a strong note with sophomore Turker Ayar grabbing second in the 200-yard butterfly “C” final in a time of 1:45.45. Earlier in the day, Ayar posted a huge personal record swim with a time of 1:45.03 in the preliminary heats, which put him No. 2 on Texas A&M all-time top 10 list in the race. Prior to Friday, Ayar was not even in the top 10.
Senior Hayden Duplechain was sixth in the 200 fly “C” final in a time of 1:46.39. In the morning prelims, Duplechain swam a lifetime best 1:45.90, which moved him to No. 5 on A&M’s top 10 list.
Texas A&M had a trio of swimmers in the 100-yard backstroke finals with freshman Brock Bonetti, junior Jacob Wallace and junior Alexandros Theocharidis earning evening swims. Bonetti and Wallace placed sixth and seventh in the “B” final, with Bonetti touching in 47.46 and Wallace finishing in 47.88. Theocharidis placed seventh in the “C” final in 48.53. In the morning prelims, all three backstrokers posted lifetime bests – Wallace (47.34), Bonetti (47.44) and Theocharidis (47.75).
The Aggies had two swimmers qualify for evening swims in the 100 breaststroke. Freshman Mauro Castillo finished 16th overall in 54.08, while freshman Jonathan Tybur was 23rd in 55.46.
Texas A&M closed out the night with an eighth place finish in the 400 medley relay with the foursome of Wallace, Castillo, senior Luke Shaw and junior Cory Bolleter touching the wall in a season-best 3:10.64, which made them the fifth-fastest relay in school history.
Texas A&M Women
Another strong day by the Texas A&M women’s swimming and diving team on Friday solidified the Aggies’ hold on second-place in the team standings at the 2015 Southeastern Conference Championships at Auburn University.
The Aggies have scored 875 points after four days of swimming and diving and trail only two-time defending champion Georgia (1,082 points). Rounding out the team standings behind the Bulldogs and Aggies are Florida (730.5), LSU (614), Tennessee (584.5), Auburn (521), Kentucky (499), Missouri (470), Alabama (403), Arkansas (320), South Carolina (308) and Vanderbilt (137).
The No. 4-ranked Aggies tallied a pair of runner-up finishes with the 400-yard medley relay grabbing second and freshman Beryl Gastaldello making her third trip to the award podium for an individual race.
The Aggies’ 400 medley relay of freshman Laura Norman, sophomore Franko Jonker, Gastaldello and senior Sammie Bosma rallied to finish second in a season-best time of 3:32.93 to Tennessee (3:31.47). The Aggies were sixth after the first two legs of the relay but rallied past Georgia, Kentucky, Florida and Auburn to grab second.
Gastaldello continued her spectacular SEC debut with a second-place finish in the 100-yard backstroke in a time 51.73, which pushed her to No. 2 on A&M’s all-time top 10 list in the race behind only 2014 NCAA Champion Paige Miller. Also scoring points for the Aggies in the 100 back were Norman (7th, 53.21), junior Claire Brandt (15th, 53.79) and senior Kelli Benjamin (18th, 54.08).
The Aggies opened the day with a pair of scorers in the 200 butterfly. Senior Emily Neubert placed 14th in 1:58.41 and Norman was right behind in 15th place in 1:59.37.
Even without the services of three-time NCAA Champion Breeja Larson, the Aggies still piled up 76 points in the 100 breaststroke. Junior Ashley McGregor led the way with a seventh place finish in the Championships final in a time of 1:00.45. The Aggies swept the top three spots in the consolation final with Jonker (9th, lifetime best 59.68), freshman Bethany Galat (10th, lifetime best 59.81) and sophomore Sycerika McMahon (11th, 59.93).
