Dec. 18, 2015
NAPLES, Fla. – The Georgia Tech swimming & diving team had a solid showing in the Sunshine State, as the men and women both defeated Cincinnati & Florida Atlantic. The men beat Cincinnati by a score of 136.00-69.00 and FAU by a score of 166.50-38.50, while the women defeated Cincinnati, 116.00-89.00, and FAU, 149.00-55.00. The meet was the first tri-meet consisting of men’s and women’s teams to feature three female head coaches.
Yuval Safra, a senior from Israel, led the way for the men with victories in the 500 and 1000 free events. Maddie Paschal had another stellar day, taking first in both the 200 backstroke and 200 medley relay, the event in which she now holds the school record along with Florina Ilie, Morgan Lyons and Iris Wang after last month’s Georgia Tech Invitational. Wang also won the 100 free event.
“I’m very happy with all four of our wins today,” said head coach Courtney Shealy Hart. “I like where our team is and I’m looking forward to continuing our hard training starting tomorrow morning. Naples has been great for us.”
Naples wasn’t the only city to host the Jackets on Friday, as divers Brad Homza and Shannon Lumbra competed at Senior Nationals in Indianapolis. Homza was forced to scratch halfway through the semifinals due to injury, and Lumbra finished 29th.
For the second time in program history, Georgia Tech and the McAuley Aquatic Center will serve as the host site for the 2016 NCAA Swimming & Diving Championships. The Women’s Championships will be held March 16-19, followed by the Men’s Championships March 23-26. Georgia Tech previously hosted the 2007 NCAA Championships and the CRC was also the site of the 1996 Summer Olympics swimming and diving competitions.
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