Florida Welcomes Georgia to O'Dome Friday for SEC Match-Up
Wednesday, October 28, 2009 | Men's Swimming & Diving
After opening the 2009-10 swimming and diving season with two consecutive road-meet weekends, the Florida men's and women's swim and dive squads will host the Georgia Bulldogs in the season home opener Friday at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center. Meet time is slated for 1 p.m., while the men's and women's one-meter diving competition will begin at 11 a.m.
Both the Florida men (2-0) and women (3-0, 1-0 SEC) are undefeated after the first two weeks of competition, with both teams capturing victories over Virginia to open the season. The men's team went on to defeat its second ACC opponent of the year in Atlanta, Oct. 23, when the Gators swam past Georgia Tech, 161-123, while the Lady Gators were last in action Oct. 23 and 24. A majority of the squad swam to two victories in a double-dual with conference opponent Arkansas (175-133) and Big 12 opponent Kansas (205-103) in Fayetteville. Additionally, nine members of the women's squad swam and dove to Florida's first invitational title of the season when they topped five other NCAA-caliber teams at the 2009 SMU Classic in Dallas, Texas. The Gators racked up 353 points and had a number of NCAA provisional marks and NCAA Zone Diving qualifications.
Georgia enters the Florida/Georgia showdown 1-0 on the women's side and 0-1 in men's dual meet action after competing against North Carolina in Athens, Oct. 23. The UGA women's squad took down North Carolina, 160-126. On the men's side, the Bulldogs dropped a 156-144 decision to UNC.
In the all-time series' between the two SEC foes, Florida holds the all-time advantage with a 57-15-2 record on the men's side and a 13-10 record in women's history. In the last outing, Thurs, Oct. 30, 2008, the women of Georgia edged UF, 143-100, in Gainesville, while the Florida men defeated Georgia, 139-102, in the O'Dome on the same date.
“We have two really good Georgia teams coming to town Friday,” head coach Gregg Troy said. “On the men's side, they are vastly improved from last year, and their women's squad, on paper, may be the best team in the country right now. It will give us a pretty good feel where we're at and it will be 'heads-up' racing the whole time. We've always planned this meet to be the same week of the Florida/Georgia football game and anytime you have football going on, it's a big deal. There's always a little extra incentive every time. The racing in this meet is really key. Both teams have potential NCAA winners and finalists in every event. When you put those things together, it gives you a really good feel of who you can count on in clutch seconds.”
Two members of the men's team have led the way for the Gators so far this season, including junior transfer Conor Dwyer (Winnetka, Ill.), and veteran senior Shaune Fraser (George Town, Cayman Islands). Dwyer, who will experience his first Florida/Georgia match-up Friday after transferring to UF from Iowa, holds the top times for Florida in the 100 free (44.92), 200 free (1:37.31) and 100 breast (56.96) so far this season. Dwyer's 200 free, recorded against Virginia in the first meet of the season, is an NCAA provisional mark.
Fraser, the defending 200 fly NCAA Champion and Record Holder, has established two NCAA provisional marks in both the 100 and 200-yard butterfly races, both against Virginia, after clocking a 48.12 in the 100 and a 1:45.93 in the 200 event.
On the women's side, sophomore Teresa Crippen (Conshohocken, Pa.), freshman Jamie Bohunicky (Gainesville, Fla.), sophomore Shara Stafford (Topeka, Kan.) and senior diver Kara Salamone (Cooper City, Fla.) were among the leaders in Dallas that secured NCAA time standards.
For their efforts, Bohunicky and Salamone were named SEC Female Freshman of the Week and SEC Female Diver of the Week, respectively.
Bohunicky helped the Gators to a first-place team finish in Dallas by securing an NCAA provisional mark with her first-place finish in the 500-yard free (4:51.52), while finishing first in her heat in both the 200 fly (2:03.37) and 200 free (1:49.33) races. Bohunicky also aided UF in a first-place 800-yard freestyle relay finish by swimming the fastest split for the Orange and Blue.
Salamone rallied for UF in the one and three-meter springboard diving competitions, finishing first on the three-meter board (314.90) and second in the one-meter competition (289.85). Both of Salamone's scores qualified her for the 2010 Zone Diving Championships, and she holds the top scores on both boards for the Gators so far in 2009.
“It's always good to be home in the O'Connell Center in front of our fans,” Troy said. “It's one of the fastest facilities in the country. It makes it very exciting and the athletes really enjoy swimming at home. It's always great to be home, there is always that comfort level.”
Entrance to cheer on the Gator swimming and diving teams against Georgia is free. The first 250 fans will receive a “Beat Georgia” t-shirt and one lucky fan will win tickets to the Florida vs. Georgia football game in Jacksonville, Fla., Oct. 31.
Florida vs. Georgia Swimming & Diving Order of Events
11:00 am
1 Meter Diving (Men & Women)
1:00 pm 400 Medley Relay
1,000 Freestyle
200 Freestyle
50 Freestyle
200 IM
1:50 pm (approximate)
3 Meter Diving (Women) – BREAK – 40 minutes
2:30 pm (approximate) 200 Fly
100 Free
200 Back
500 Free
3:00 pm (approximate)
3 Meter Diving (Men) – BREAK – 40 minutes
4:00 pm (approximate)
200 Breast
400 Free Relay
Gator fans can find complete results and a recap from the day's competition on www.GatorZone.com Friday afternoon.
-UF-
