AUBURN, Ala. – As head coach Ryan Wochomurka and the Tigers keep an eye fixed on the SEC Championships in two weeks, his squad kept the momentum going with a slew of excellent swims to kick off the Auburn Invitational on Friday.
WOMEN
Averee Preble, Lilly Byrne and Payton Marvin set the tone in the opening race of the day for the Tigers. Leading from start to finish in the 500 free, the trio went 1-2-3 with Preble leading the way with a solid 4:47.27.
No Tiger swims better in the IM's than Hannah Ownbey. The junior touched the wall at a solid 1:58.85 with Maggie Gholston and Daisy Platts close behind in the second and third.
Lexie Mulvihill continues to trend in the right direction before SEC's. Her 22.64 in the 50 free led everyone in the pool. Meanwhile, teammates Claudia Thamm and Emma Steckiel also showed well with a 22.93 and 23.04, respectively.
Meghan Lee, Valerie Tarazi, Abby Gibbons and Emma Steckiel kicked off the afternoon session with a more than solid performance in the 200 medley relay, touching in at 1:38.47.
Colby Hurt put in a personal best in the 400 IM during the morning time trials. In the afternoon, Hurt swam well again, clocking a 4:14.15.
There's a new queen atop the 100 fly times this season and her name is Abby Gibbons. Gibbons' 53.03 was more than enough to take over the crown leading into SEC's in a few weeks. Claudia Thamm, Hannah Mattson and Avery Bargeron also performed well, taking third through fifth place.
In the 200 free, Polina Nevmovenko paced the field on Friday evening. However, it was Hannah Ownbey, Averee Preble and Lilly Byrne who all dropped time in the event for their season-bests.
A trio of Tigers dominated the scoreboard in the 100 breast. Brynn Curtis, Ainsley Jones and Val Tarazi all turned in respectable times.
To finish out the evening, Kensley Merritt picked up the win in the 100 back with a 52.95. Teammate Kyla Maloney dropped over .3 seconds for a season-best 53.05.
MEN
Michael Bonson and Mason Mathias were the two who kicked things off in the men's 500 free. Bonson led the way with a 4:16.31 with Mathias nipping at his heels just .06 seconds behind.
It was Seth Maschmeier's personal best 1:45.15 in the 200 IM that paced the field on Friday. Danny Schmidt and Evan McInerny took second and third.
A host of Orange and Blue Swimmers went sub-20 seconds in the men's 50 free. Freshman Kalle Makinen hit the wall second overall with a 19.52. Mihalis Deliyiannis, Logan Tirheimer and Aidan Stoffle were all 19.75 or better. Nate Stoffle also powered in a 19.84.
Evan McInerny and Collin Klingman continued the theme of dropping time for Auburn on Friday. Both swam season-bests in the 400 IM with McInerny leading the way at 3:47.81.
Speaking of dropping time. Sohib Khaled, Logan Tirheimer, Seth Maschmeier, Rusty Jerger, Reid Mikuta and Tate Cutler were all up to the task in the 100 fly. Khaled's 46.98 represented the third sub-47 performance of the season so far.
Auburn dominated the 200 freestyle. Mikkel Gadgaard took the crown in the event with Ryan Husband, Christian Sztolcman close behind. Fans didn't forget Jon Vanzandt's 1:35.35 swim as well.
When it came to the 100 breast, Alejandro Flores dialed up a season-best 53.22.
Rounding out the night, Kalle Makinen and Tate Cutler each found a swim sub-48 in the 100 back.
UP NEXT
The Tigers will round out the AU Invitational beginning at 10 a.m. CT with the First Chance Meet to follow right after.
Swim and Dive starts AU Invitational off strong
