2021 SEC Men’s Swimming Championships
Day Three Finals, Columbia, Missouri
The third night of finals kicked from the University of Missouri as many of USA’s best are in action at the SEC Men’s Swimming & Diving Championships. Florida holds the lead over Georgia in the team standings but the Bulldogs are closing the gap quickly with three wins on Thursday.
Florida grabbed wins from Kieran Smith in the 400 IM and Dillon Hillis in the 100 breast as the Gators hold a slim lead over Georgia, who got wins from Camden Murphy (100 fly), Jake Magahey (200 free) and Javier Acevedo (100 back).
The Gators also closed the night with a win in the 400 medley relay to give Florida three of the four relay wins thus far.
Team Scores (through 400 medley relay)
- Florida 916.5
- Georgia 868
- Texas A&M 615
- Tennessee 586
- Missouri 538
- Alabama 528
- Kentucky 507
- Auburn 465
- LSU 296.5
- South Carolina 216
400 IM
Florida flexed its muscles in the 400 IM final to start the night as juniors Kieran Smith (3:37.47) and Bobby Finke (3:39.15) went 1-2, with sophomore Kevin Vargas (3:43.45) improving from seventh seed to fourth overall. The Gators piled on the points to start the night as they are over 150 points ahead of second place Georgia, who had the most A-Finalists qualified for tonight.
The Gators had half the A-Final as Miguel Cancel (3:46.36) finished in seventh place overall.
Smith will likely drop the 400 IM in four weeks at NCAAs in favor of the 200 free, as he put up the second fastest time ever in the 800 free relay on Tuesday night. Smith utilized a strong 1:00.4 breaststroke split on the third 100 to pull away from the field as his time is second nationally to Texas freshman Carson Foster.
Georgia’s Ian Grum (3:40.51) finished in third place overall as he will swim the 100 back A-final later tonight as well, and should play a role in the 200 back tomorrow. Georgia’s Andrew Abruzzo moved from eighth to sixth with a 3:46.15 as Missouri’s Jack Dubois (3:43.98) and Alabama’s Nicholas Perera (3:46.40) also swam in the A-Final.
Event 8 Men 400 Yard IM
==================================================================
NCAA: N 3:33.42 3/24/2017 Chase Kalisz, Georgia
SEC Meet: S 3:35.76 2/16/2018 Hugo Gonzalez, Auburn
Pool: P 3:40.33 2/19/2016 Jay Litherland, Georgia
3:39.16 A
3:51.46 B
Name Year School Prelims Finals
==================================================================
=== A - Final ===
1 Smith, Kieran S JR Florida-FL 3:41.81 3:37.47PA
r:+0.70 23.13 49.99 (26.86)
1:18.59 (28.60) 1:45.49 (26.90)
2:15.85 (30.36) 2:46.93 (31.08)
3:12.95 (26.02) 3:37.47 (24.52)
2 Finke, Bobby C JR Florida-FL 3:44.46 3:39.15PA
r:+0.74 23.66 50.72 (27.06)
1:18.69 (27.97) 1:45.73 (27.04)
2:17.29 (31.56) 2:48.95 (31.66)
3:14.69 (25.74) 3:39.15 (24.46)
3 Grum, Ian P SO Georgia-GA 3:42.73 3:40.51 B
r:+0.73 23.37 50.42 (27.05)
1:18.32 (27.90) 1:45.56 (27.24)
2:17.29 (31.73) 2:49.82 (32.53)
3:15.64 (25.82) 3:40.51 (24.87)
4 Vargas, Kevin L SO Florida-FL 3:46.73 3:43.45 B
r:+0.65 23.97 51.14 (27.17)
1:20.80 (29.66) 1:49.10 (28.30)
2:19.80 (30.70) 2:50.96 (31.16)
3:17.70 (26.74) 3:43.45 (25.75)
5 Dubois, Jack R JR Missouri-MV 3:45.95 3:43.98 B
r:+0.66 23.89 51.01 (27.12)
1:20.26 (29.25) 1:48.15 (27.89)
2:19.53 (31.38) 2:51.71 (32.18)
3:18.44 (26.73) 3:43.98 (25.54)
6 Abruzzo, Andrew JR Georgia-GA 3:46.99 3:46.15 B
r:+0.78 23.97 51.73 (27.76)
1:20.78 (29.05) 1:49.34 (28.56)
2:21.65 (32.31) 2:54.53 (32.88)
3:20.89 (26.36) 3:46.15 (25.26)
7 Cancel, Miguel JR Florida-FL 3:46.37 3:46.36 B
r:+0.56 23.99 51.68 (27.69)
1:20.39 (28.71) 1:48.79 (28.40)
2:20.98 (32.19) 2:53.69 (32.71)
3:21.08 (27.39) 3:46.36 (25.28)
8 Perera, Nichola JR Alabama-SE 3:45.18 3:46.40 B
r:+0.63 23.89 51.05 (27.16)
1:20.51 (29.46) 1:49.31 (28.80)
2:20.32 (31.01) 2:52.25 (31.93)
3:19.73 (27.48) 3:46.40 (26.67)
100 Fly
In what was one of the most anticipated races of the night, Georgia’s Camden Murphy used a stellar final kickout and 25 to win the 100 butterfly final with a 44.81, just out-touching Missouri’s Danny Kovac (44.84) and Texas A&M’s Shaine Casas (44.91).
Kovac, the defending champ and swimming in his home pool, went out first at 20.62 as Casas, who elected for this event over the 100 back, was second at 20.65. Murphy, who was the only senior in the field, dug deep on the third 25 to put himself in contention and utilized his stellar underwaters to shoot to the lead, ultimately timing his finish perfectly to win the SEC title and Georgia’s first in the event since Doug Reynolds won in 2012.
The Bulldogs also grabbed points via Luca Urlando (45.15) in fourth as he broke 45 for the first time this morning. Florida maintained its lead with Eric Friese (45.65) finishing fifth.
Tennessee also grabbed a boat load of points in the B-Final as the Vols had Kayky Mota (46.16) in sixth place. Alabama’s Colton Stogner (46.55) and Texas A&M’s Jace Brown (47.21) also swam in the championship final.
Event 9 Men 100 Yard Butterfly
==================================================================
NCAA: N 42.80 3/23/2018 Caeleb Dressel, Florida
SEC Meet: S 44.21 2/18/2017 Caeleb Dressel, Florida
Pool: P 44.80 2/19/2016 Caeleb Dressel, Florida
45.05 A
47.43 B
Name Year School Prelims Finals
==================================================================
=== A - Final ===
1 Murphy, Camden SR Georgia-GA 44.77 44.81 A
r:+0.59 9.64 20.90 (11.26)
32.59 (11.69) 44.81 (12.22)
2 Kovac, Danny D JR Missouri-MV 45.16 44.84 A
r:+0.58 9.41 20.62 (11.21)
32.67 (12.05) 44.84 (12.17)
3 Casas, Shaine M JR Texas A&M-GU 44.92 44.91 A
r:+0.62 9.24 20.65 (11.41)
32.58 (11.93) 44.91 (12.33)
4 Urlando, Luca R FR Georgia-GA 44.97 45.15 B
r:+0.66 9.68 21.10 (11.42)
33.08 (11.98) 45.15 (12.07)
5 Friese, Eric E SO Florida-FL 45.68 45.65 B
r:+0.64 9.39 20.82 (11.43)
32.98 (12.16) 45.65 (12.67)
6 Mota, Kayky M JR Tennessee-SE 46.22 46.16 B
r:+0.62 9.91 21.20 (11.29)
33.70 (12.50) 46.16 (12.46)
7 Stogner, Colton JR Alabama-SE 46.45 46.55 B
r:+0.59 9.45 20.95 (11.50)
33.69 (12.74) 46.55 (12.86)
8 Brown, Jace C SO Texas A&M-GU 46.58 47.21 B
r:+0.64 9.76 21.71 (11.95)
34.11 (12.40) 47.21 (13.10)
200 Free
Georgia has started its climb in running down Florida at the 2021 SEC Men’s Swimming Championships at Missouri as freshman Jake Magahey won his first SEC title with a 1:32.22 in the 200 freestyle, utilizing a strong back half with a 23.55 last 50 to win ahead of Texas A&M’s Mark Theall (1:32.48). Magahey’s win is Georgia’s first in the event since Matias Koski in 2016 as the Bulldogs have now won two straight finals.
LSU’s Brooks Curry, last year’s SEC champion in the 100 free, was out first at the 50 with a 21.15 before Florida’s Trey Freeman, returning from a redshirt, took the lead at the 100. Curry ended up fighting back on the last 25 to finish in third at 1:32.64 while Florida’s Freeman was fourth at 1:32.88, his best time overall as he was a 1:33 in high school.
Georgia is now less than 100 points behind Florida as the Bulldogs had Zach Hils (1:34.34) and Bradley Dunham (1:34.63) finish in seventh and eighth, closing the gap on Florida who only had one swimmer in the A-Final.
Missouri’s Jack Dahlgren (1:34.00) and Texas A&M’s Coco Bratanov (1:34.24) also swam in the A-Final.
Event 10 Men 200 Yard Freestyle
==================================================================
NCAA: N 1:29.15 3/27/2019 Dean Farris, Harvard
SEC Meet: S 1:29.48 2/22/2021 Kieran Smith, Florida
Pool: P 1:29.48 2/23/2021 Kieran Smith, Florida
1:32.05 A
1:36.32 B
Name Year School Prelims Finals
==================================================================
=== A - Final ===
1 Magahey, Jake M FR Georgia-GA 1:33.42 1:32.22 B
r:+0.71 21.80 45.20 (23.40)
1:08.67 (23.47) 1:32.22 (23.55)
2 Theall, Mark J SR Texas A&M-GU 1:33.10 1:32.48 B
r:+0.69 21.61 44.97 (23.36)
1:08.68 (23.71) 1:32.48 (23.80)
3 Curry, Brooks V SO L S U-LA 1:33.21 1:32.64 B
r:+0.58 21.15 44.95 (23.80)
1:08.97 (24.02) 1:32.64 (23.67)
4 Freeman, Trey P SO Florida-FL 1:34.12 1:32.88 B
r:+0.67 21.44 44.80 (23.36)
1:08.54 (23.74) 1:32.88 (24.34)
5 Dahlgren, Jack JR Missouri-MV 1:33.66 1:34.00 B
r:+0.61 21.90 45.83 (23.93)
1:09.78 (23.95) 1:34.00 (24.22)
6 Bratanov, Kaloy JR Texas A&M-GU 1:34.19 1:34.24 B
r:+0.54 21.98 46.00 (24.02)
1:10.12 (24.12) 1:34.24 (24.12)
7 Hils, Zach C SO Georgia-GA 1:34.26 1:34.34 B
r:+0.70 21.95 46.03 (24.08)
1:10.17 (24.14) 1:34.34 (24.17)
8 Dunham, Bradley SO Georgia-GA 1:34.22 1:34.63 B
r:+0.71 22.13 45.72 (23.59)
1:10.27 (24.55) 1:34.63 (24.36)
100 Breast
Just when things started swinging Georgia’s way, Florida junior Dillon Hillis unleashed a 13.5 on his final 25 of his 100 breaststroke with a 51.22 to win his first SEC title. On the ESPN broadcast, Hillis mentioned to Elizabeth Beisel that he didn’t want to repeat what he did in 2020 where he was the top seed out of prelims but finished third in the final. Hillis had the eye of the tiger on the last 25 as he ran down Tennessee’s Michael Houlie (51.41), who was out quickly at the 50 with a 23.94.
Missouri picked up huge points with Ben Patton (51.80) finishing third and Fred Rindshoej (52.48) in fifth as the Tigers now sit in fifth overall in the team standings just behind Tennessee, who had Houlie and Jarell Dillard (52.68) in the final.
Georgia remains in second by less than 100 points as Jack Dalmolin finished in eighth at 52.80.
LSU freshman Mitch Mason (52.32) improved up to fourth from lane one, while Texas A&M’s Andres Puente (52.58) finished in sixth overall.
Event 11 Men 100 Yard Breaststroke
==================================================================
NCAA: N 49.69 3/23/2018 Ian Finnerty, Indiana
SEC Meet: S 50.03 2/18/2018 Caeleb Dressel, Florida
Pool: P 51.07 2/19/2016 Fabian Schwingenchloegl, Missouri
51.67 A
54.27 B
Name Year School Prelims Finals
==================================================================
=== A - Final ===
1 Hillis, Dillon JR Florida-FL 51.27 51.22 A
r:+0.64 10.98 23.98 (13.00)
37.68 (13.70) 51.22 (13.54)
2 Houlie, Michael JR Tennessee-SE 51.38 51.41 A
r:+0.61 10.77 23.94 (13.17)
37.22 (13.28) 51.41 (14.19)
3 Patton, Ben H SO Missouri-MV 52.01 51.80 B
r:+0.62 10.97 23.90 (12.93)
37.56 (13.66) 51.80 (14.24)
4 Mason, Mitchell FR L S U-LA 52.61 52.32 B
r:+0.73 11.34 24.74 (13.40)
38.53 (13.79) 52.32 (13.79)
5 Rindshoej, Fred FR Missouri-MV 52.52 52.48 B
r:+0.65 11.37 24.69 (13.32)
38.47 (13.78) 52.48 (14.01)
6 Puente Bustaman SO Texas A&M-GU 52.59 52.58 B
r:+0.63 11.22 24.63 (13.41)
38.47 (13.84) 52.58 (14.11)
7 Dillard, Jarel JR Tennessee-SE 52.65 52.68 B
r:+0.62 11.40 24.69 (13.29)
38.44 (13.75) 52.68 (14.24)
8 Dalmolin, Jack SR Georgia-GA 52.61 52.80 B
r:+0.57 11.41 24.73 (13.32)
38.74 (14.01) 52.80 (14.06)
100 Back
The Georgia Bulldogs cut the deficit to the Florida Gators to less than 30 points as senior Javier Acevedo won the 100 backstroke with a 44.96, claiming his first title since 2018 as he won three years ago as a sophomore. Acevedo took an Olympic redshirt last season for Georgia as he returned for his senior season to potentially win Georgia’s first SEC team title since 1955.
The Bulldogs also had Ian Grum (46.12) and Bradley Dunham (46.48) score in the A-Final as both swimmers had races earlier in the day with Grum swimming the 400 IM and Dunham in the 200 free.
Florida’s Adam Chaney was out quickly at the 50 with a 21.49, showing off his speed that was on full display last night in the 50 free where he won the event. But Chaney was hurting on the last 25, finishing second at 45.29, with senior teammate Clark Beach (46.26) in fifth place as the only senior in the field.
Alabama’s Matthew Menke (45.46) was out quickly as well at 21.54 and finished third at 45.46.
Auburn’s Lleyton Smith (46.86) and Texas A&M’s Ethan Gogulski (46.87) also swam in the championship final.
Event 12 Men 100 Yard Backstroke
==================================================================
NCAA: N 43.49 3/25/2016 Ryan Murphy, California
SEC Meet: S 44.24 2/21/2020 Zane Waddell, Alabama
Pool: P 45.25 2/19/2016 Connor Oslin, Alabama
44.95 A
47.77 B
Name Year School Prelims Finals
==================================================================
=== A - Final ===
1 Acevedo, Javi C SR Georgia-GA 45.34 44.96PB
r:+0.66 10.75 21.98 (11.23)
33.63 (11.65) 44.96 (11.33)
2 Chaney, Adam C FR Florida-FL 45.44 45.29 B
r:+0.88 10.38 21.49 (11.11)
33.38 (11.89) 45.29 (11.91)
3 Menke, Matthew SO Alabama-SE 45.47 45.46 B
r:+0.80 10.43 21.54 (11.11)
33.39 (11.85) 45.46 (12.07)
4 Grum, Ian P SO Georgia-GA 46.00 46.12 B
r:+0.68 10.93 22.32 (11.39)
34.29 (11.97) 46.12 (11.83)
5 Beach, Clark G SR Florida-FL 46.55 46.26 B
r:+0.52 10.81 22.22 (11.41)
34.15 (11.93) 46.26 (12.11)
6 Dunham, Bradley SO Georgia-GA 46.55 46.48 B
r:+0.70 10.89 22.32 (11.43)
34.45 (12.13) 46.48 (12.03)
7 Smith, Lleyton SO Auburn-SE 46.78 46.86 B
r:+0.52 10.87 22.37 (11.50)
34.58 (12.21) 46.86 (12.28)
8 Gogulski, Ethan SO Texas A&M-GU 46.80 46.87 B
r:+0.73 10.99 22.61 (11.62)
34.93 (12.32) 46.87 (11.94)
3m Diving
Diving was completed last week but is factoring into this week’s scoring.
Event 13 Men 3 mtr Diving
==================================================================
Name Year School Prelims Finals
==================================================================
=== A - Final ===
1 Mathews, Kurtis J SR Texas A&M-GU 457.15 474.00
2 Celaya Hernandez, Jua SR LSU-LA 400.00 472.40
3 Zhang, Mingli JR Kentucky-KY 401.60 415.05
4 Endo, Takuto FR Missouri-MV 376.40 414.60
5 Wade, Matt T JR Tennessee-SE 401.20 403.75
6 Hattie, Bryden R FR Tennessee-SE 391.80 398.05
7 Lane, Chase G SR Kentucky-KY 382.50 386.75
8 Duncan, Sam Kentucky-KY 395.95 373.65
400 Medley Relay
The Florida Gators won their third relay of the SEC Men’s Swimming Championships with a 3:02.66 in the 400 medley relay as the Gators have the lead heading into the last day of the meet. The team of Adam Chaney (44.99), Dillon Hillis (51.35), Eric Friese (45.04) and Kieran Smith (41.28) won from heat two as it wasn’t even close in the final heat when the top seeded teams jumped into the water on the back half.
Missouri had a strong showing for second place in their home pool, winning the last heat at 3:04.59 as the team of Jack Dahlgren (46.21), Ben Patton (51.16), Danny Kovac (44.84) and Freddie Rindshoej (42.38) finished runner-up. Alabama finished in third overall as they also swam in heat two, touching at 3:04.72 with the team of Matthew Menke (45.18), Derek Maas (52.19), Colton Stogner (46.02) and Matt King (41.33).
Georgia was fourth overall at 3:05.73 after coming in with the fastest seed time, while Texas A&M was fifth at 3:06.08.
The fastest splits outside the top three teams came from Texas A&M’s Shaine Casas (45.08), Tennessee’s Michael Houlie (50.88), Georgia’s Camden Murphy (44.96) and LSU’s Brooks Curry (41.06), who actually jumped on the start, giving the Tigers a DQ.
Event 14 Men 400 Yard Medley Relay
====================================================================
NCAA: N 2:59.22 3/23/2017 Texas
J. Shebat, W. Licon, J. Schooling, J. Conger
SEC Meet: S 3:02.17 2/21/2020 Alabama
Z. Waddell, L. Bell, T. Sesvold, L. Berneburg
Pool: P 3:03.86 2/20/2016 Florida
J. Blyzinsky, C. Dressel, J. Switkowski, C. Main
3:05.95 A
3:07.74 B
School Seed Finals
====================================================================
1 Florida-FL 'A' 3:09.24 3:02.66PA
1) Chaney, Adam C FR 2) r:0.27 Hillis, Dillon JR
3) r:0.37 Friese, Eric SO 4) r:0.33 Smith, Kieran JR
r:+0.68 21.38 44.99 (44.99)
1:08.72 (23.73) 1:36.34 (51.35)
1:56.74 (20.40) 2:21.38 (45.04)
2:41.01 (19.63) 3:02.66 (41.28)
2 Missouri-MV 'A' 3:06.30 3:04.59 A
1) Dahlgren, Jack A JR 2) r:0.09 Patton, Ben SO
3) r:0.24 Kovac, Danny JR 4) r:0.35 Rindshoej, Freddie FR
r:+0.70 22.37 46.21 (46.21)
1:09.77 (23.56) 1:37.37 (51.16)
1:57.89 (20.52) 2:22.21 (44.84)
2:42.52 (20.31) 3:04.59 (42.38)
3 Alabama-SE 'A' 3:07.28 3:04.72 A
1) Menke, Matthew T SO 2) r:0.23 Maas, Derek SO
3) r:0.14 Stogner, Colton JR 4) r:0.22 King, Matt FR
r:+0.71 22.07 45.18 (45.18)
1:09.36 (24.18) 1:37.37 (52.19)
1:57.99 (20.62) 2:23.39 (46.02)
2:42.63 (19.24) 3:04.72 (41.33)
4 Georgia-GA 'A' 3:04.85 3:05.73 A
1) Acevedo, Javi C SR 2) r:0.24 Dalmolin, Jack SR
3) r:0.14 Murphy, Camden SR 4) r:0.15 Downing, Dillon SO
r:+0.72 22.33 45.54 (45.54)
1:10.05 (24.51) 1:38.64 (53.10)
1:59.18 (20.54) 2:23.60 (44.96)
2:43.20 (19.60) 3:05.73 (42.13)
5 Texas A&M-GU 'A' 3:05.35 3:06.08 B
1) Casas, Shaine M JR 2) r:0.21 Puente Bustamandres SO
3) r:0.06 Brown, Jace SO 4) r:0.34 Bratanov, Kaloyan JR
r:+0.67 21.59 45.01 (45.01)
1:08.93 (23.92) 1:37.07 (52.06)
1:58.59 (21.52) 2:24.03 (46.96)
2:44.03 (20.00) 3:06.08 (42.05)
6 Tennessee-SE 'A' 3:06.50 3:08.06
1) Chambers, Micah T FR 2) r:0.22 Houlie, Michael JR
3) r:0.16 Mota, Kayky JR 4) r:0.27 Bailey, Seth JR
r:+0.68 22.68 48.05 (48.05)
1:11.53 (23.48) 1:38.93 (50.88)
1:59.85 (20.92) 2:24.87 (45.94)
2:45.11 (20.24) 3:08.06 (43.19)
7 Auburn-SE 'A' 3:12.70 3:09.43
1) Smith, Lleyton A SO 2) r:0.13 Mikuta, Reid FR
3) r:0.19 Eberly, Nik SO 4) r:0.26 Sztolcman, Chritian JR
r:+0.61 22.74 46.91 (46.91)
1:10.87 (23.96) 1:39.03 (52.12)
2:00.10 (21.07) 2:26.14 (47.11)
2:46.58 (20.44) 3:09.43 (43.29)
8 South Carolina-SC 'A' 3:17.98 3:12.07
1) Gropper, Guy FR 2) r:0.28 Massey, Luke JR
3) r:0.10 Yip, Jordan SO 4) r:0.00 Shperkin, Mark SO
r:+0.68 23.72 48.84 (48.84)
1:12.91 (24.07) 1:41.27 (52.43)
2:03.23 (21.96) 2:29.29 (48.02)
2:49.39 (20.10) 3:12.07 (42.78)
9 Kentucky-KY 'A' 3:14.61 3:15.22
1) Barker, Kyle W JR 2) r:0.23 Layne, Cj FR
3) r:0.32 Wilby, Mason JR 4) r:0.03 Berg, Max FR
r:+0.59 23.15 48.11 (48.11)
1:15.05 (26.94) 1:44.78 (56.67)
2:06.44 (21.66) 2:31.98 (47.20)
2:51.98 (20.00) 3:15.22 (43.24)
-- L S U-LA 'A' 3:14.07 DQ
1) Velasquez, Mig A JR 2) r:0.19 Mason, Mitchell FR
3) r:0.21 Petro, Michael JR 4) r:-0.11 Curry, Brooks SO
r:+0.75 23.11 48.28 (48.28)
1:12.72 (24.44) 1:40.23 (51.95)
2:01.94 (21.71) 2:27.84 (47.61)
2:46.99 (19.15) DQ (41.06)
