By Lauren Sampl<\/i><\/p>\n
BOULDER, Colorado, January 16. WHILE many of the top college teams boasted tough schedules this weekend, the University of Texas swimmers found themselves racing two top-ranked teams in the Georgia Bulldogs and Auburn Tigers. Southern Methodist also hosted a two-day Classic in Dallas against powerhouses Michigan, Southern California, and Florida. Here are a few highlights. <\/p>\n
On Thursday night, Auburn and Texas faced off on Auburn's home turf. The Lady Tigers, ranked 12th in the nation, pulled off a stunning upset over the third-ranked Lady Longhorns, winning by a final score of 183-117. Micah Martindale (500 free, 4:52.28; 1000 free, 9:54.33), Arianna Vanderpool-Wallace (50 free, 22.38; 100 free, 49.05) and Emily Bos (100 back, 53.71; 200 back, 1:57.17) led Auburn with two individual wins apiece. Anna Aguero was victorious in both the one-meter and three-meter diving events.<\/p>\n
On the men's side, Auburn emerged with the dual meet win over top-ranked Texas. Michael McBroom of the Longhorns earned wins in the 1000 free (9:08.74) and 500 free (4:30.43), while teammate Nick D'Innocenzo touched first in the 200 IM (1:48.25) and 200 breast (1:56.96).<\/p>\n
Texas was back in action on Saturday afternoon in Athens, as an exciting battle unfolded between the number two-ranked Georgia women and the number three-ranked Texas women. The Bulldogs emerged victorious by a final score of 169.5 to 130.5. Georgia posted wins in 10 of 16 events, with Kelsey Gaid (200 back, 1:56.50; 100 back, 54.59), Allison Schmitt (200 free, 1:47.19; 500 free, 4:50.29) and Melanie Margalis (100 breast, 1:01.38; 400 IM, 4:10.51) all posting two victories apiece.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the defending NCAA champion Texas men scored a narrow victory over the Georgia men, posting 135 points to Georgia's 106. Nick D'Innocenzo (400 IM, 3:50.77; 200 breast, 1:58.66) and Jimmy Feigen (50 free, 19.89; 100 free, 43.90) touched first in two events each, while Drew Livingston (1-meter diving, 372.52; 3-meter diving, 399.90) was impressive in the diving well.<\/p>\n
In Dallas, the Michigan men took home the team title at the two-day SMU Classic, ahead of North Carolina, Southern California, SMU, Florida, and Purdue. Southern Cal's Vladimir Morozov (50 free, 19.95; 100 back, 48.74; 100 free, 43.69), SMU's Tom Cole (100 breast, 54.67; 200 breast, 1:57.75), North Carolina's Tyler Harris (400 IM, 3:46.54; 500 free, 4:23.66), Michigan's Daniel Madwed (100 fly, 47.99; 200 fly, 1:45.28) and Florida's Conor Dwyer (200 free, 1:37.09; 200 IM, 1:47.09) all posted wins in multiple events. <\/p>\n
In Division 3 action, the Kenyon women posted quick times en route to a win over Carnegie Mellon. Hannah Saiz swam to an NCAA automatic qualifying time in the 200 fly with a time of 2:04.77. Additionally, Anna Connolly won the 50 free (23.93) and 100 free (51.65) in NCAA B cut times.<\/p>\n