Both Florida swim teams came into this weekend's tri-meet in Austin, Texas, with plenty of confidence and something to prove.
A couple of undefeated records between the two seemed impressive from the outside, but unranked competition so far this season helped cushion those numbers. This weekend's meet against two ranked opponents allowed the Gators to see where they truly stand at this point of the season.
Men beat Texas, drop decision to Indiana
No. 8 Florida men's swimming grabbed an impressive victory over top-ranked Texas after the conclusion of Saturday's matchup, winning in comeback fashion 178-175. UF finished Day 1 of the meet down by 10 points but rallied on the second day to avoid two losses in one day.
The third-ranked Indiana Hoosiers manhandled the Gators at the University of Texas Swimming Center over the meet's two-day duration, owning a comfortable 119-67 lead after the first day of action. On Day 2, it didn't get any better for UF, which eventually fell to the undefeated Hoosiers 227-126. The Gators now sit at 3-1 on the season.
On Friday, the team had a solid overall performance, finishing in the top 3 in all but four events. Junior Khader Baqlah continued his recent success in the pool, winning the 200-freestyle with the fastest time in the nation this season (1:34.84). Freshman newcomer Kieran Smith finished third in the same event for Florida with a time of 1:36.33. In the 100-yard back, redshirt senior Bayley Main clocked a time of 48.36 on his way to a third-place finish.
Saturday, the team was led by junior Grant Sanders, who won the 400-yard individual medley with a 3:50.61, currently the fastest time in the NCAA. Smith finished in second place with a time of 3:52.76. Junior Maxime Rooney set the fastest time of the season by a UF swimmer in the 100-freestyle. He finished in third place with a time of 44.27.
Coach Anthony Nesty had nothing but positive things to say after the meet.
“This was a great college tri-meet environment,” Nesty said in a release. “It was a successful team trip, and I am extremely proud of our men.”
Women outlast Indiana, fall to Texas
No. 19-ranked UF women’s team took care of business over No. 6 Indiana 198-155 but fell to the fourth-ranked Texas Longhorns 222-126 on Saturday. The Gators are now 5-1 this season behind strong performances from junior Kelly Fertel, sophomore Taylor Ault and freshman Mabel Zavaros.
On Friday, Fertel finished with the fastest time by a UF swimmer in the 200 IM with a mark of 1:59.52. In the 1000-yard freestyle, Ault set a new season-best time with a swim of 9:53.81 on her way to a second-place finish. Zavaros had a couple third-place finishes on Day 1 of the meet, including a personal-best in the 200-yard freestyle (1:49.11).
On Day 2, Fertel led the Gators with the fastest time this season by a Florida swimmer in the 400-yard individual medley. She'd go on to win the event with a time of 4:12.25. Ault continued her strong weekend as well with a new personal best in the 500-yard freestyle. A swim of 4:49.49 was good enough for bronze. Lastly, the freshman Zavaros added two more third-place finishes on Saturday, contributing to the 200-yard medley relay (1:42.96) and also the 200-yard backstroke (1:58.50).
Both teams have an important SEC matchup coming up on Oct. 26 when they head to Athens, Georgia to match up with the Georgia Bulldogs.
You can follow Evan Lepak on Twitter @evanmplepak or contact him at elepak@alligator.org.
