California took the lead after day 2 of the Georgia Invitational.
California Press Release
ATHENS, Ga. – Noemie Thomas won the 100-yard butterfly, Amy Bilquist claimed the 100-yard backstroke and Cal swept two more relay events on the second day of the Georgia Fall Invitational Saturday.
The Golden Bears grew their lead in the three-day event and now have 638 points to 565 for Georgia. Virginia (491), Michigan (404) and Florida State (284) round out the top five teams in a competition that features four of the top 10 schools in the country.
Cal opened the night the way it began Friday with a relay victory, this time in the 200 medley relay. Bilquist, Abbey Weitzeil, Thomas and Farida Osman finished in 1:35.19, which ranks as the second-fastest time in the country so far this year and the third fastest in school history. Cal's B relay of Kathleen Baker, Marina Garcia, Maddie Murphy and Valerie Hull was fifth in 1:36.84 for another time that falls among the Bears' all-time top 10.
Thomas captured the 100 fly in personal-best 50.67 and now ranks No. 1 in the country and No. 4 all-time at Cal. Osman, the reigning Pac-12 champion in the event, was right behind in 51.20, while Baker was fourth in 51.85. Both Thomas and Osman swam under the NCAA A qualifying standard.
Bilquist earned a narrow win in the 100 back, touching in 51.12, which was just ahead of Georgia's Olivia Smoliga, who finished in 51.24. Freshman Keaton Blovad took third in 52.42 with Kristen Vredeveld sixth in 53.50.
The final event of the night was the 800 free relay, with Cal's Katie McLaughlin, Baker, Bilquist and Weitzeil placing first in 6:58.83, just over half a second ahead of runner-up Michigan. Baker gave the Bears the lead on her second leg, and Cal held onto the advantage the rest of the way.
In other finals, Celina Li finished third in the 400 individual medley in 4:07.50. Vredeveld took fourth in the 200 free (1:45.32) with Blovad seventh in 1:46.05, while in the 100 breaststroke, Garcia was fourth in 1:00.55 and Weitzeil seventh in 1:00.98.
Through Saturday night, the Bears have automatically qualified four relays for the upcoming NCAA Championships, and six individual swims have also been under the A standard.
ATHENS, Ga. – After a strong first day at the Georgia Fall Invitational, the Cal men's swimming team didn't let off the gas pedal at all on day two as the Bears rolled to more race wins and kept the team lead entering the final day at the University of Georgia.
With 574 points, Cal leads the team competition. Georgia is next with 520 while Auburn is third with 472.
In much the same fashion as Friday, Cal used a big performance in the night's opening 200-yard medley relay to get momentum going. The team of Ryan Murphy, Connor Hoppe, Pawel Sendyk and Michael Jensen turned in a time of 1:23.76 to beat second place Florida State by nearly two seconds. The time was well below the NCAA A standard and stands as the top time in the country so far this year.
The Bears were just getting started. Andrew Seliskar placed third behind Olympic silver medalist Chase Kalisz and fellow Olympian Jay Litherland in the 400 individual medley but his time of 3:39.54 gave the sophomore his A standard in the event.
The 100 butterfly came next and Cal returned to the winner's circle, with Justin Lynch posting a time of 45.85 that was just outside the NCAA A cut. One race later, it was Cal again with the victory as freshman Michael Jensen outdueled Litherland to win the 200 freestyle in a time of 1:33.76. Fellow freshman 'Aukai Lileikis placed fourth and Ryan Kao won the B final in a time that would've placed him fifth in the A final.
A tremendous morning showing put four Cal swimmers in the A final and one in the B final of the 100 breaststroke and the Bears followed that with a good showing at night. Connor Hoppe finished second, Carson Sand placed third, Hunter Cobleigh took sixth and Matt Whittle placed eighth in the A final while Zach Stevens took fourth in the B final.
With an already strong day in hand, Murphy stepped to the blocks for the 100 backstroke and stayed true to his usual form, winning in a time of 44.61 that was well below the NCAA A standard. That left only the 800 freestyle relay to close out the night and the team of Seliskar, Jensen, Lileikis and Murphy closed with a flourish, posting a time of 6:16.22 to win by over two seconds.
Action wraps up Sunday with the 1,650 free, 200 back, 100 free, 200 breast, 200 fly and 400 free relay.
Georgia Press Release
ATHENS, Ga. --- Chase Kasliz, Jay Litherland, Olivia Smoliga, Emily Cameron and two relays picked up NCAA automatic qualifying times for Georgia during Saturday’s races in the UGA Fall Invitational in Gabrielsen Natatorium.
After the second day of competition, the Bulldogs are in second with 520 points, trailing California’s 574 and leading Auburn’s 472. The Lady Bulldogs are also in second with 565 points, trailing California’s 638 and leading Virginia’s 491.
“We were having a big night,” said head coach Jack Baurele. “We had a lot of swimmers, both veterans and young swimmers post big swims, which is exciting to see. My biggest concern is how each individual and relay is racing and we had a heck of a night.”
Kalisz and Litherland both posted A cuts in the 400 individual medley with a 1-2 finish in 3:36.98 and 3:38.19, respectively. Gunnar Bentz finished fourth in 3:42.89, while Mick Litherland placed 10th in 3:48.96, Kevin Litherland took 13th in 3:50.55, James Guest stopped the clock in 3:51.07 for 14th and Aidan Burns reached the wall in 3:52.37 for 16th.
Kalisz continued his winning streak with a first place finish in the 100 breaststroke, finishing in 52.31. James Guest placed 10th in 54.14 and Colin Monaghan took 14th in 54.86.
Jay Litherland also came in second in the 200 freestyle, finishing in 1:34.04, while Bentz placed fifth in 1:36.31, Kevin Litherland placed seventh in 1:37.29 and Walker Higgins stopped the clock in 1:37.66 for eighth.
Taylor Dale placed third in the 100 butterfly in personal-best fashion of 46.48, while Mick Litherland finished 14th in 47.78. Dale also claimed second in the 100 backstroke in 46.28.
Jay Litherland, Kalisz, Kevin Litherland and Bentz notched the first men’s relay A cut of the night with a second place finish in the 800 freestyle relay in 6:18.31.
Ian Forlini took fourth on the 3-meter springboard with a score of 343.85, while Walker Wheeler placed 13th with 279.70 and Charlie Clifton finished 16th with 246.25.
Dale, Kalisz, Bentz and Jay Litherland placed ninth in the 200 medley relay in 1:27.17.
On the women’s side, Cameron earned an A cut by winning the 400 individual medley in 4:05.09, followed by Rachel Zilinskas in sixth in 4:11.40.
Smoliga also picked up an A cut in the 100 backstroke, with a second place finish in 51.24. Kylie Stewart followed with a second place finish in 52.65, while Chelsea Britt took fifth in 53.07 and Meryn McCann came in 11th in 54.24.
Smoliga, Cameron, Veronica Burchill and Chantal Van Landeghem combined for an A cut in the 200 medley relay, finishing second to California in 1:35.89.
Burchill came in third in the 100 butterfly in 51.79, followed by Chelsea Britt in sixth in 52.18, Kylie Stewart in seventh in 52.54 and Caitlin Casazza in 12th in 53.96.
Meaghan Raab placed second in the 200 freestyle in 1:44.47, while Meryn McCann touched to wall in 1:46.71 for 12th and Jordan Stout finished 13th in 1:48.03.
Madison Duvall finished 12th on the 1-meter springboard with a score of 245.50.
Cameron won the consolation final of the 100 breaststroke in 1:00.67 while Casazza finished 11th in 1:01.95.
Raab, Cameron, Stewart and McCann placed fourth in the 800 freestyle relay in 7:06.07.
Virginia Press Release
ATHENS, Ga.—The Virginia men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams broke three school records on the second day of the Georgia Fall Invitational Saturday (Dec. 3) at Gabrielsen Natatorium in Athens, Ga.
After two days, the Cavalier women are in third place with 491 points, behind California (638) and Georgia (565). Michigan is fourth (404), while Florida State is fifth (284). The UVA men are in fourth place with 414.5 points, behind California (574), Georgia (520) and Auburn (472). Florida State is fifth (356.5) and Michigan is sixth (334).
“We continued to have great performances on both sides today,” UVA head coach Augie Busch said. “Those last relays (800 free) were exceptional in the way they fought. We are trying something different this year with a lot less rest for this meet and they’re swimming awesome nonetheless. We look forward to tomorrow and the chance to capitalize on many more opportunities.”
Senior Laura Simon (Simmern, Germany) won the women’s 100-yard breaststroke in a school-record time of 58.41. Sophomore Vivian Tafuto (Hummelstown, Pa.) was fifth in 1:00.62, while freshman Madeleine Vonderhaar (Lakeside Park, Ky.) was eighth in 1:01.05. In the prelims, Vonderhaar’s 1:00.83 ranks fifth on UVA’s all-time list, while fellow freshman Mary Claire Tansill’s (Bristow, Va.) 1:01.43 ranks eighth.
Senior Kaitlyn Jones (Newark, Del.) finished second in the women’s 400 IM in 4:07.15 after breaking the school record in 4:06.33 during the prelims. Sophomore Rachel Politi (Bexley, Ohio) finished seventh in a time of 4:11.49, which ranks ninth on UVA’s all-time list. Jones also set a school record in the women’s 100 fly prelims in 51.58.
In the women’s 800 free relay, the team of Jones, junior Jennifer Marrkand (Westford, Mass.), freshman Morgan Hill (Olney, Md.) and sophomore Eryn Eddy (Loveland, Colo.) placed third in an automatic NCAA-qualifying time of 7:04.80. The men’s team of freshmen Joe Clark (Worcester Park, Great Britain) and John Whiteside (Fairfield, Conn.), senior Austin Quinn (Chagrin Falls, Ohio) and sophomore Bryce Keblish (Fairfield, Conn.) also finished third in 6:23.71.
The women’s 200 medley relay of Jones, Simon, senior Ellen Thomas (Guildford, United Kingdom) and junior Caitlin Cooper (Atlanta, Ga.) finished third in an automatic NCAA-qualifying time of 1:36.45.
The team of Clark, sophomores Alex Albracht (Mission Hills, Kan.) and Zach Fong (Moorestown, N.J.) and senior Matt Lockman (Charlottesville, Va.) finished fourth in the 200 medley relay in 1:26.18, which ranks fourth on UVA’s all-time list.
In the men’s 200 free, Whiteside finished third in a time of 1:35.37, which ranks 10th on UVA’s all-time list.
In men’s 3-meter diving, freshman Bryce Shelton (Vienna, Va.) finished third with a finals score of 344.30. On the women’s 1-meter boards, sophomore Kirsten Parkinson (Stamford, Conn.) finished 10th overall with 246.25 points.
Keblish and Fong placed fourth and sixth in the men’s 100 fly, respectively. Keblish’s time of 46.65 ranks in a tie for second on UVA’s all-time list, while Fong’s 47.00 is fifth.
In the men’s 400 IM, freshman Ted Schubert (Ashland, Va.) placed seventh in 3:47.89, which ranks 10th on UVA’s all-time list, while Quinn was eighth in 3:49.52. Quinn’s prelim time of 3:44.86 ranks third on UVA’s all-time list and redshirt sophomore Brendan Casey (Santa Monica, Calif.) posted a 3:47.50 in the B final, which is ninth on the same list.
Marrkand (1:45.45) and Eddy (1:45.74) finished fifth and sixth in the women’s 200 free. Marrkand’s prelim time of 1:45.11 and Eddy’s prelim mark of 1:45.73 rank fifth and eighth on UVA’s all-time list.
Clark touched fifth in the men’s 100 back in a time of 47.20. His prelim time of 46.31 ranks third on UVA’s all-time list.
Thomas placed eighth in the women’s 100 fly in 53.63.
Florida State Press Release
Athens-Ga. – The Florida State swimming and diving teams continued to make history on the second day of the Georgia Fall Invite at the Gabrielsen Natatorium.
“It was just another great day for us,” FSU head coach Neal Studd said. “We had some amazing swims across the board. We got a few more NCAA qualifiers and more school records. I couldn’t have asked for a better day.”
The Seminoles set three school records and earned three more NCAA automatic times standards on Saturday as junior Natalie Pierce smashed the school record in the 100 breaststroke preliminary round by over two seconds with a time of 58:37. This puts her second nationally, behind 2016 Olympic Champion Lilly King of Indiana. Pierce placed second in the finals with 59:16.
She broke Sami Pochowski’s mark of 1:00.49 that was set back in 2015.
“We’ve been working on a few things,” Studd said. “But I think the key for her is she’s enjoying herself while she’s competing and having fun.”
Starting off finals, junior Ariel Barber, Pierce, junior Tayla Lovermore, and senior Lydia Ware continued their strong showing from Friday night by setting a new school record in the 200 medley relay. The team swam a mark of 1:36:58, which automatically qualifies them to the 2017 NCAA Championships.
The women’s 200 free relay team of freshman Nika Blank, Ware, Lovemore and junior Alexi Smith were just under the NCAA A standard in the morning time trial, touching with a time of 1:28.97 for another FSU record.
Sophomore Meg Brown swam in the top heat of the 400 IM, placing fifth with a time of 4:11.37 while senior Caroline Neil took 11th at 4:18.87.
Lovemore came back, posting her personal best in the 100 fly, touching with a time of 52.02, which is the second fastest all-time. Ware also scored a career best in prelims of 53.56, but touched in 13th place at finals with a mark of 54.01. Sophomore Leila Johnston followed in 15th (54.58)
Sophomore Michelle Turek was the lone Seminole competing in finals of the 200 free. She placed 18th with a final time of 1:47.74.
In addition to Pierce, junior Christina Loh followed in third with a time of 1:00.47. Loh’s new personal record was also under the previous school record by Pochowski and now ranks her second all-time.
Barber added a win in the B final of the 100 back beating her personal best by over a second swimming a 53.95.
The men’s team started the night off with a runner-up finish in the 200 medley relay behind the team of seniors Stefan Stojmenovic, Jason Coombs, freshman Nate Samson, and junior Chad Mylin finished second at 1:25:63.
Sophomore Max Polinski continued to improve in his first collegiate outing by posting a time of 3:49.48, which is good enough for fourth on FSU’s all-time top 10.
Stojmenovic placed 15th in his first of two individual races on the night, touching with a time of 47.83 in the 100 fly.
Four earned second swims in the 200 free, including sophomores Kanoa Kaleoaloha, Emir Muratovic, senior Jemal Le Grand, and junior Calvin Bryant. Kaleoaloha led the way, tying for 13th at 1:37.48 after swimming a personal best time in prelims of 1:36.88.
Coombs was back to his ways, by swimming a 52.71 finishing fourth in the A heat of the 100 breast. Senior Jason McCormick (54.18), junior Rafa Van Leeuwarde (55.13), and freshman Matt Ankerholz (55.75) finishing 11th, 15th and 16th respectively.
In diving, junior Tyler Roberge led for the men, placing second on 3-meter with a final score of 347.90. Senior Dylan Grisell followed in fifth place (339.50) while freshman Aidan Faminoff was 10th at 319.20.
The women competed on 1-meter, as Ayla Bonniwell led the way with a score of 272.85 for fifth place. Sophomore Cassidy Gebhart placed seventh with a total of 261.15.
Sunday’s events will include the 1650 free, 200 back, 100 free, 200 breast, 200 fly, 400 free relay and platform diving. Prelims will start at 9:30 a.m. with finals following at 3 p.m.
