Florida Men, Georgia Women Emerge Victorious at SEC Championships

Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick

AUBURN – The Florida men won their third straight, while the Georgia women took their sixth straight victory at the 2015 SEC Championships.

Men’s Meet

The top three swimmers in the men’s 1650-yard freestyle all cleared the NCAA A cut in what proved to be an exciting finale.

Georgia’s Matias Koski grabbed the overall title in a time of 14:38.72 with Florida’s Mitch D’Arrigo (14:39.90) and Arthur Frayler (14:40.05) taking second and third in the mile.

Koski was so focused on winning, he lost count of his laps and wound up flipping at the finish similar to Connor Jaeger from the 2012 U.S. Olympic Trials in the 1500-meter free.

The men’s 200-yard backstroke proved to be a ridiculously deep field with five A cuts.

Tennessee’s Sean Lehane raced his way to the title with a time of 1:39.65, while Missouri’s Carter Griffin snared second in 1:40.17.

Auburn’s Joe Patching (1:40.46), Alabama’s Connor Oslin (1:40.77) and Alabama’s Christoph Reid (1:40.86) also turned in NCAA A cuts.

In a blazing fast 100-yard freestyle, Alabama’s Kristian Gkolomeev vaulted to 10th all time in the event for the win, matching it with his 50 free victory earlier in the meet.

All Time 100 Free

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Meanwhile, Florida’s Caeleb Dressel broke his own 17-18 U.S. National Age Group record of 42.31 set during prelims, and nearly became the fastest 18-under all time with a scorching 41.90.

This morning, Dressel’s 42.31 downed the 17-18 U.S. NAG of 42.34 set by David Nolan in 2011. Tonight, Dressel nearly beat Vlad Morozov’s 41.88 as the fastest 18-under time ever. Morozov posted his time as an 18-year-old freshman for USC at the 2011 NCAA Championships.

Just a few hours after moving to fifth all time in the men’s 200-yard breaststroke with a 1:51.58, Georgia’s Nic Fink touched in 1:51.79 to secure the SEC title.

South Carolina freshman Nils Wich-Glasen picked up second in 1:52.81, while Alabama’s Anton McKee took third in 1:52.92 – all under the NCAA A cut.

During the diving break, Auburn’s Fraser McKean claimed the 10-meter title by a wide margin with 451.95 points. LSU’s Daniel Helm took second overall with 416.80 points. Texas A&M’s Ford McLiney snared third with 414.55 points.

Auburn’s Arthur Mendes (42.63), Jacob Molacek (41.90), Michael Duderstadt (42.70) and Kyle Darmody (41.75) turned in the top time of the men’s 400-yard free relay with a 2:48.98 to close out the men’s meet.

Alabama’s Brett Walsh (43.15), Alex Gray (42.66), Connor Oslin (43.04) and Kristian Gkolomeev (41.35) hit the wall second in 2:50.20.

Florida’s Caeleb Dressel (42.20), Mark Szaranek (42.91), Pawel Werner (42.66) and Dan Wallace (42.54) finished third in 2:50.31.

Georgia also earned an NCAA A cut with a 2:51.68.

Team Scores

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Women’s Meet

Florida’s Jessica Thielmann led a trio of women under the NCAA A cut in the 1650-yard freestyle.

Thielmann clocked a time of 15:47.95 to win by nearly two seconds. Georgia’s Amber McDermott chased down second-place honors with a 15:49.79, while Texas A&M’s Sarah Henry turned in a third-place effort of 15:53.43.

Kentucky picked up another victory after Christina Bechtel’s 200 fly title as Danielle Galyer posted an NCAA A cut time of 1:50.95. Georgia’s Hali Flickinger snared second overall in 1:51.68 for an A cut of her own.

Texas A&M’s Lisa Bratton rounded out the top three in the 200 back with a time of 1:52.60.

Florida’s Natalie Hinds clinched the 100 free title with an NCAA A cut time of 47.26. Georgia’s Chantal van Landeghem (47.95) and Madeline Locus (48.17) took second and third behind her.

In an incredibly close battle, Alabama’s Kaylin Burchell swept the breaststroke events with a 2:08.08. She touched out Tennessee’s Molly Hannis, who placed second in 2:08.31. Georgia’s Annie Zhu claimed third in 2:08.94.

Georgia closed out a dominant run at the meet with an exclamation point as Madeline Locus (48.33), Olivia Smoliga (48.55), Lauren Harrington (48.49) and Chantal Van Landeghem (47.60) won in 3:12.97.

Florida’s Natalie Hinds (47.31), Ashlee Linn (NS), Amelia Maughan (NS) and Lindsey McKnight (49.52) took second overall in 3:14.12.

Texas A&M’s Beryl Gastaldello (47.59), Kristin Malone (49.04), Lili Ibanez Lopez (49.38) and Sammie Bosma (48.56) finished third in 3:14.57.

Auburn also cleared the NCAA A cut with a fourth-place 3:15.38, while Tennessee drew a tough disqualification.

Team Scores

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2015 SEC Swimming Championships, Day Five – Results

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