The No. 3 UF men’s swim and dive team and the No. 6 women’s team came into their final meet before the winter break looking to make a splash. With record-setting performances from multiple athletes, the men (3-2) and the women (4-1) were able to sweep the three-day Georgia Invite at the Gabrielsen Natatorium in Athens. The men finished with a score of 1,157.5 points, and the women finished with 1,156.5 points to help each squad secure the win.
Both of Florida’s squads faced off against Georgia, Alabama, LSU and Missouri. Only the men competed against Wisconsin, while only the women competed against South Carolina and Georgia Southern.
UF sophomore Bella Sims broke her own school record in the 500-yard freestyle with a first-place time of 4:31.06.
In the men’s 100-yard breaststroke, UF senior Julian Smith was the first Gator to ever finish under 50 seconds, with a time of 49.98, to secure first place.
Meanwhile, in the women’s 100-yard breaststroke, UF freshman Anita Bottazzo secured the fastest time in program history of 57.49 seconds. This was the third-fastest time recorded by a freshman.
For the Wednesday events, the “A” group for the UF men’s 200-yard freestyle relay consisting of junior Josh Liendo, freshman Alexander Painter, junior Ed Fullom-Huot and Smith finished in first with a time of 1:15.10. This was the seventh-best time in program history for this race.
The women finished in third place in the same race. In the same race where Sims broke her school record, UF finished fifth.
Smith and UF junior Zoe Dixon each recorded first-place finishes in the 200-yard IM. Smith finished with a time of 1:41.01, while Dixon finished with 1:54.57.
In the 50-yard freestyle, the men claimed a first-place finish thanks to Liendo’s time of 18.80 seconds. Painter finished in third with a time of 19.24 seconds. The women finished eighth in the same race.
In the 400-yard medley relay, Sims and Bottazzo finished in first with a time of 3:26.27, the second-best in program history Smith and sophomore Jonny Marshall finished in first place with a time of 3:02.95.
The UF women finished fourth in the 3-Meter diving, and the men finished third in the 1-Meter diving.
Moving on to Thursday’s events, the UF women recorded the fourth-best time in program history in the 200-yard medley relay of 1:35.16, which secured second place.
The men finished first in the same race with 1.21.49, the third-best time in UF history.
In the 400-yard IM, the women recorded the top seven finishes in the race, with Sims finishing first and senior Emma Weyant finishing in second. UF junior Gio Linscheer recorded a second-place finish for the men in the same race.
Florida recorded dual first place finishes in the 100-yard butterfly. Liendo finished in first with a time of 44.60 seconds. UF senior Olivia Peoples finished with a time of 51.56 seconds.
For the women, UF sophomore Camyla Monroy finished second in the 1-Meter diving with a score of 303.35. Sophomore Conor Gesing finished in third for the men in the 3-Meter diving.
In the 800-yard free relay, the UF men and women recorded another dual first place finish. The men finished with a time of 6:12.85, and the women finished with a time of 6:56.63.
The 100-yard backstroke yielded another first place finish for the men. Marshall finished with a time of 45.02 seconds. UF sophomore Catie Choate finished in third for the women with a time of 51.69 seconds.
The final day of events yielded more success for the Gators.
Smith recorded another first-place time of 41.71 seconds in the 100-yard freestyle final.
However, the 200-yard backstroke final yielded another dual first-place finish for Florida. Sims recorded another finish in the top spot with a time of 1:49.43. Marshall finished in first with a time of 1:38.46.
The men had another first-place finish in the 200-yard breaststroke. UF junior Aleksas Savickas finished in first with a time of 1:51.59. Sophomore Molly Mayne finished in second for the women at a time of 2:09.15.
The 200-yard butterfly yielded more first-place finishes for Florida. Liendo finished in first for the men with a time of 1:39.14. Sophomore Lainy Kruger claimed first place for the women at a time of 1:55.22.
In the 400-yard freestyle relay, UF had another dual first-place finish. The men finished with a time of 2:46.81, and the women finished with a time of 3:11.79.
Liendo broke a school record in the 200-yard butterfly with a time of 1:39.14 to secure first place.
The Gators will not compete as a team again until Jan. 3 against Indiana at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center. In the meantime, select Gators will compete at the U.S. Open and the Diving Nationals.
Contact Jackson Colding at jcolding@alligator.org. Follow him on X @Colding_Jackson.
Jackson Colding is a junior sports journalism major and The Alligator's Fall 2024 Swim and Dive Reporter. In his free time, he enjoys going to the gym and playing hockey. He cannot wait to be as involved with The Alligator as possible.
