Feb. 17, 2011
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - The Auburn swimming sprinters shined on the second day of the 2011 SEC Swimming Championships as the Tigers captured the men and women's 50 free and 200 free relay titles Thursday at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center on the campus of the University of Florida.
The Auburn men stand in first after Thursday's finals with 378 points. Florida is second with 308 points and Tennessee is third with 263.5 points. The Auburn women are in third with 272, while Florida holds a slim lead with 291 points and Georgia is second with 286 points.
"The day overall was strong and we kept ourselves in the meet," head coach Brett Hawke said. "This meet is all about good, old-fashioned racing and we saw that tonight. Winning the 50 free and the 200 free relay on both sides gives the team great momentum going into tomorrow."
The Tigers opened the sprint events with a 1-2 finish in the men's 50 free. Senior Adam Brown won the event with a NCAA "A" cut time of 19.05, which is tied for the fastest time in the country this year. The win marks the ninth year in a row that an Auburn sprinter has won the event.
"Adam has stepped his game up in training the last few weeks and it's really showing through at this meet," Hawke said. "He's racing really fast and putting himself amongst the top in the country."
Junior Karl Krug touched in second for Auburn with a time of 19.37. Auburn has finished 1-2 in the 50 free for six-straight years.
Freshman Chris Manning finished fifth in the 50 free with a career-best time of 19.78, while Drew Modrov was sixth (19.79) and Marcelo Chierighini was eighth (19.97). Senior Kohlton Norys and sophomore Tony Cox swam in the consolation final with Norys taking 11th (19.78) and Cox finishing 13th (19.95).
Junior Arianna Vanderpool-Wallace picked up where she left off after the morning's session and took first in the 50 free in a SEC and Auburn-record time of 21.34. She broke her own record of 21.46, which was set during the preliminaries. The win was the fifth victory in the event for Auburn and the first time since 2001.
"Coming into SECs, I wasn't expecting a time like that at all," Vanderpool-Wallace said. "I'm not fully rested so I'm very excited to see what happens at NCAAs."
Scoring points for Auburn in the championship final was sophomore Hannah Riordan, who took fifth in career-best time of 22.28. Freshman Emily Bos captured the consolation final, swimming to a ninth-place finish in career-best time of 22.73. Freshman Olivia Scott was 14th (22.97) and sophomore Lindsey Norberg came in 15th (23.24).
The Tigers closed out the evening with a pair of victories in the 200 free relay. The men's team of Brown, Chierighini, Manning and Krug swam an "A" time of 1:16.56, beating the Florida squad by almost two seconds. The Auburn women of Riordan, Vanderpool-Wallace, Norberg and Scott won the event in an "A" time of 1:28.25.
Sophomore Kyle Owens had a stellar performance in the 200 IM as the Johnson City, Tenn., product took third in a career-best time of 1:44.28. Senior Andrew Mitchell qualified for the championship final and was eighth overall in 1:47.23. Freshman Nimrod Hayet and sophomore Stuart Ferguson competed in the consolation final, taking 10th (1:46.67) and 13th (1:47.93), respectively.
Auburn freshman Zane Grothe opened up the meet competing in the championship final of the 500 free. The Boulder City, Nev., native finished fifth in a career-best time of 4:17.99.
Competing in the 200 IM for the women was Caitlin Geary. The senior from Orlando finished sixth in the 200 IM in 1:58.33. Her time of 1:57.31 in the prelims was a season-best time.
Sophomore Katie Gardocki and senior Micah Martindale scored points for the Tigers in the 500 free as each swam in the consolation final. Gardocki took 13th in 4:43.61 and Martindale was 18th in 4:48.84.
Friday opens with the preliminary session at 10 a.m. from the Stephen C. O'Connell Center. The morning starts with the 400 IM and follows with the 100 fly, 200 free, 100 breast and 100 back. Live results and live streaming are available at www.gatorzone.com.
Auburn Swimming and Diving
2010 SEC Swimming Championships - Day Two Finals
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Stephen C. O'Connell Center; Gainesville, Fla.
Team Scores
Women: 1. Florida - 291; 2. Georgia - 286; 3. Auburn - 272; 4. LSU - 190.5; 5. Tennessee - 157; 6. South Carolina - 148; 7. Kentucky - 121; 8. Alabama - 108.5; 9. Arkansas - 100; 10. Vanderbilt - 46.
Men: 1. Auburn - 378; 2. Florida - 308; 3. Tennessee - 263.6; 4. Georgia - 202; 5. Alabama - 129; 6. Kentucky - 125; 7. LSU - 116.5; 8. South Carolina - 94.
Auburn Top Finishers - Women: 500 Freestyle - 13. Gardocki (4:43.61); 200 IM - 6. Geary (1:58.33); 50 Freestyle - 1. Vanderpool-Wallace (21.34); 200 Free Relay - 1. Riordan, Vanderpool-Wallace, Li. Norberg, Scott (1:28.25).
Men: 500 Freestyle - 5. Grothe (4:17.99); 200 IM - 3. Owens (1:44.28); 50 Freestyle - 1. Brown (19.05); 200 Free Relay - 1. Brown, Chierighini, Manning, Krug (1:16.56).
Notes
- Auburn tallied four titles on the day.
- Adam Brown won the 50 free in a season of 19.05, which is tied for the fastest time in the nation.
- The win marks the ninth-consecutive year Auburn has won the event - Fred Bousquet (2003-2005), Cesar Cielo (2006-2008), Matt Target (2009), Gideon Louw (2010).
- Karl Krug took second in the 50 free, marking the sixth-straight year the Tigers have finished 1-2 in the event.
- Arianna Vanderpool-Wallace broke her own SEC and Auburn record in the 50 free, winning in 21.34.
- The win is the fifth time in Auburn history a Tiger has won the event.
- Vanderpool-Wallace set the previous record during the morning's prelims with a time of 21.46.
- The men's 200 free relay of Brown, Marcelo Chierighini, Chris Manning and Krug clocked a time of 1:16.56 and won the event for Auburn for the ninth-straight year.
- The women's team of Hannah Riordan, Vanderpool-Wallace, Lindsey Norberg and Olivia Scott won the 200 free relay in "A" cut time of 1:28.25.
- Zane Grothe's fifth-place finish in the 500 free is the best Auburn finish in the event since 2007.
Quotes
Brett Hawke, head coach
On Adam Brown's 50 free performance
"Adam has stepped his game up in training the last few weeks and it's really showing through at this meet. He's racing really fast and putting himself amongst the top in the country."
On Arianna Vanderpool-Wallace's 50 free performance
"Arianna is an outstanding competitor. She keeps getting better with every swim. We're aiming for her to go faster at NCAAs."
On the evening overall
"The day overall was strong and we kept ourselves in the meet. There are still some areas where we need to improve, but we really stepped up tonight and raced. This meet is all about good, old-fashioned racing and we saw that tonight. Winning the 50 free and the 200 free relay on both sides gives the team great momentum going into tomorrow."
On Zane Grothe's swim in the 500 free
"We're very proud of Zane's performance. It was an exceptional swim for a freshman."
Arianna Vanderpool-Wallace, junior
On winning the 50 free
"Coming into SECs, I wasn't expecting a time like that at all. I'm not fully rested so I'm very excited to see what happens at NCAAs."
On winning the 200 free relay
"We knew we could win that race and that's just what we did. We put the fastest girls together and came away on top."
Chris Manning, freshman
On winning the 200 free relay
"We kept the momentum after the 50 free and put together a fast relay."