THE FLATS – A record-setting relay capped an impressive showing for Georgia Tech swimming and diving against a highly competitive field in the first day of the Georgia Tech Invitational on Thursday at the McAuley Aquatic Center.
After day one, the men’s team sits in fourth place with 202.5 points, while the women’s team is in eighth place at 125 points.
“I’m extremely proud of the way our team came out today and competed,” head coach Courtney Shealy Hart said. “We brought a ton of energy all day long, supporting each other through every event, and it showed in our final relay when Rod, Caio, Christian and Darren broke the school record and won the 400 medley and with Rod breaking the 100 back record to start the relay. I’m also really proud of Cami for winning the 3-meter. She’s worked so hard to come back from her injury and I’m so happy to see her back in first.”
The Yellow Jackets will return for Day 2 of the Georgia Tech Invitational on Friday, Nov. 16. Prelims will begin at 10 a.m. with finals starting at 5:30 p.m. The entirety of the GT Invite is broadcast live on ACC Network Extra.
Men’s Highlights
Georgia Tech swimming and diving capped an impressive day in the pool with a school-record shattering performance in the 400 medley relay. Led by the team of Rodrigo Correia, Caio Pumputis, Christian Ferraro and Darren Lim, the squad broke out of the gates and never looked back, finishing with a time of 3:06.87, which was good enough to beat the field by nearly three seconds and break the program record by a full second.
Correia’s opening split of 45.53 on the 100 back also broke his own school record.
Then Pumputis once again took the 200 IM event by storm, winning the event with a career-best NCAA B qualifying time of 1:42.89. He reached the final by setting a then-personal-best with another NCAA B cut of 1:43.70. Also reaching the A final was Tim Slanschek, who swam a personal-best 1:48.20 in the prelims before finishing 10th overall in the finals at 1:49.88.
Colt Williamson kicked off the meet for Tech with a bang, turning in an NCAA B qualifying fifth-place 500 free time of 4:21.38 in the 500 free prelims to move on. Tech also had Clark Wakeland and Brennan Day have career days in the 500 free as Wakeland recorded a 4:26.42 (16th) and Day swam 4:28.19 (20th). Daniel Jacobs (21st – 4:28.80) and Jookas Koski (22nd – 4:29.28) also made the C finals for Tech.
In the A finals, Williamson recorded another NCAA B cut to finish seventh overall. Wakeland (4:27.79) and Day (4:29.17) to finish 18th and 20th, respectively, overall in the B finals. Jacobs then finished first in the C finals (21st overall) with a season-best 4:25.82 before Koski finished third (23rd overall) with a 4:25.97.
In the 50 free prelims, Corben Miles swam a career-best NCAA B qualifying time of 19.73 to finish fourth overall and make the A finals. Rodrigo Correia then tied for 13th with a 20.10 to make B finals before Darren Lim made the C finals off a 20.29 (t-23rd).
In the finals, Miles finished eighth with another NCAA B cut of 19.79 before Correia turned in a season-best NCAA time of 19.96 to win the B finals. Ferraro shaved .04 off his prelim time to finish tied for 16th overall with a 20.16. Lim finished ninth in the C final (29th) with a time of 20.65.
In the evening’s other relay, the Yellow Jackets’ squad of Miles, Ferraro, Lim and Correia finished fourth overall with a season-best 200 free relay time of 1:18.74.
In diving, senior Matt Casillas fell just outside the top 10 finals qualifiers in the 1-meter event, scoring a 282.60 to finish 11th.
Women’s Highlights
Completing her comeback, sophomore diver Camryn Hidalgo topped the competition in the 3-meter, winning the event with a final score of 335.75 after a second-place prelim tally of 325.55.
Emily Ilgenfritz continued her fine week by turning in a time of 4:49.05 (14th) in the 500 free to make the B finals, while freshman Morgan Johnson swam a 4:54.05 (29th) to qualify for the C finals. In the B finals, Ilgenfritz blew away the field by winning the heat and finishing 11th overall with an NCAA B time of 4:45.18. Johnson then finished eighth in the C finals, eclipsing her previous season-best time with a 4:53.76.
Catriona MacGregor swam a season-best 2:03.80 in the 200 IM to advance to the C final, before finishing with a finals time of 2:03.63 for ninth in the heat, 29th overall.
Then in the 50 free, Iris Wang solidified her spot in the B finals by racing to a season-best 22.83 to finish 14th. Once in the finals, she finished fifth in the heat and 15th overall with a time of 22.86.
In the evening relays, the 200 free relay team of Wang, Ilgenfritz, Lila Best and Allie Paschal swam a season-best 1:32.65 to finish ninth and score. Then in the 400 medley relay, the Yellow Jackets scored well as the squad of Paschal, Florina Illie, Laura Branton and Wang finished fifth with a time of 3:39.38.
Tech Tidbits
* The 400 medley relay team of Rodrigo Correia, Caio Pumputis, Christian Ferraro and Darren Lim broke the school record by winning with a time of 3:06.87 (3:07.86 by Correia, Loschi, Southern, Harasz).
* Correia’s opening split of the 400 medley relay was also a 100 back school record at 45.53 (prev. 45.65 by Correia in 2017).
* Freshman Morgan Johnson eclipsed her previous career-best in the women’s 500 free finals with a time of 4:53.76 after already breaking her PR in the prelims (4:54.05).
* Sophomore Camille Long turned in a new career best in the women’s 500 free prelims when she swam a 4:56.38 (prev. 4:58.16 at 2017 GT Invite).
* Freshman Maddie Hadd recorded a season-best time in the women’s 500 free prelims, swimming a 4:58.01.
* Freshman Macleary Moran swam a season-best 4:59.70 in the women’s 500 free prelims.
* Junior Lindsay Wallace turned in a season-best time of 5:00.94 in the women’s 500 free prelims.
* Senior Colt Williamson turned in a NCAA B qualifying time of 4:21.38 in the men’s 500 free prelims to make the A finals. In the finals, he turned in another B qualifying time of 4:22.93 to finish seventh overall.
* Freshman Clark Wakeland recorded a season-best time of 4:26:42 in the men’s 500 free prelims to make the B finals.
* Junior Brennan Day also swam a season-best time of 4:28.19 in the men’s 500 free prelims to advance to the B finals.
* Freshman Daniel Jacobs turned in a season-best time of 4:25.82 in the men’s 500 free C finals, almost three seconds faster than his then-career-best prelim time of 4:28.80.
* Junior Joonas Koski recorded a season-best time of 4:29.29 in the men’s 500 free prelims to move on to the C finals.
* Junior Clay Hering also turned in a season-best time of 4:31.92 in the men’s 500 free prelims.
* Sophomore Aidan Brook recorded a career-best time of 4:44.57 in the men’s 500 free prelims (prev. 4:44.64 at 2017 GT Invite).
* Sophomore Catriona Macgregor finished the women’s 200 IM prelims with a season-best time of 2:03.80.
* Sophomore Celine Nugent turned in a career-best time of 2:04.98 in the women’s 200 IM prelims (prev. 2:07.81 at Northwestern in 2017).
* Freshman Nicole Williams swam a season-best time in the women’s 200 IM prelims, kicking to a 2:06.26.
* Sophomore Julia Shuford recorded a season-best time of 2:11.54 in the women’s 200 IM prelims.
* Sophomore Caio Pumputis won the men’s 200 IM prelims with a personal-record time of 1:43.70 (prev. 1:44.83 at 2018 ACC-Big Ten Challenge).
* Junior Tim Slanschek advanced to the A finals off a career men’s 200 IM prelim performance of 1:48.20 (prev. 1:48.20 (prev. 1:48.65 at 2018 ACC Championships).
* Freshman Tanner Doan turned in a season-best time of 1:52.06 in the men’s 200 IM prelims.
* Senior Iris Wang swam a season-best time of 22.83 in the women’s 50 free prelims.
* Sophomore Allie Paschal records a personal-record time of 22.72 in the women’s 50 free prelims (prev. 23.75 at 2018 ACC Championships).
* Sophomore Celine Nugent turned in a career-best swim in the women’s 50 free prelims – 23.98 (prev. 24.29 at FSU, vs. Pitt in 2018).
* Senior Laura Branton swam a season-best 24.06 in in the women’s 50 free prelims.
* Freshman Jami Williams recorded a season-best time of 24.15 in the women’s 500 free prelims.
* Sophomore Corben Miles turned in a career-best NCAA B qualifying time of 19.73 in the men’s 50 free prelims to advance to the A final (prev. 19.95 at 2018 ACC Time Trials).
* Sophomore Austin Daniel recorded a career-best time of 20.60 in the men’s 50 free prelims (prev. 20.65 at the 2018 Bulldog Invitational).
* Junior Aidan Pastel swam a season-best time of 20.96 in the men’s 50 free prelims.
* Sophomore Jeffrey Murray turned in a season-best time of 21.06 in the men’s 50 free prelims.
* Sophomore Jonathan Vater recorded a season-best time of 21.51 in the men’s 50 free prelims.
* Freshman Tyler Branscombe turned in a season-best time of 21.69 in the men’s 50 free prelims.
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