Three Future Gators Win Seven Medals at 2010 Speedo Short Course Junior National Championships
Monday, December 13, 2010 | Men's Swimming & Diving
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Three members of the University of Florida swimming and diving freshman class of 2011 combined to win seven medals last weekend at the 2010 Speedo Short Course Junior National Championships at the Georgia Tech Aquatic Center in Atlanta, Ga.
Leading the way for the future Gators was Colin Hamilton (Jacksonville, Fla.), who tallied four medals as part of The Bolles School's male relay squad. The eight-time high school All-American won gold on the 400-yard medley relay team with a meet-record time of 3:18.57 (44.92 split), while bringing home silver medals in the 400-yard freestyle relay (45.05 split) and 800 free relay (1:39.75 split). Hamilton's team's time of 3:01.03 in the 400 free relay and 6:38.98 in the 800 free relay would qualify for a NCAA “B” cut time. In the 200 free relay, which Hamilton helped break the meet record in 2008 (1:22.41), the high school national champion led his squad to a bronze-medal finish (1:23.24, 20.74 split). Hamilton's four medals helped The Bolles School, where current UF head coach Gregg Troy coached at from 1977-1997, finish first in the men's overall team standings with 504 points.
Setting a meet record of his own was Carlos Omana (Miami, Fla.), who broke the men's 400-yard individual medley record with a time of 3:47.60. The mark would have qualified for a NCAA “B” cut time. Omana's next-best outings were fourth-place finishes in the 200-yard backstroke (1:46.88) and 200 IM (1:47.52). The mark in the 200 IM would have also been considered a NCAA qualifying time. The Swimming World Magazine five-star recruit led all future UF swimmers with a ninth-place finish in the men's individual overall standings at the meet, finishing with 75 points.
Finishing just ahead of Omana in the 200 IM was Matthew Curby (Oviedo, Fla.), who won a bronze medal by clocking in at 1:47.47, which would be counted a NCAA “B” cut time. The Swimming World Magazine four-star recruit also placed third on the medal stand in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 44.74. Curby's next-best finish was a fifth-place 20.59 in the men's 50 free. The Hagerty High School senior concluded the meet just behind Omana with a 10th-place finish in the men's individual overall standings (70.5 points).
Other 2011 incoming freshmen competing in Atlanta included Harrison Curley (Winter Park, Fla.), Austin Ringquist (Hillsboro, Ore.), Billy Silva (Gainesville, Fla.), Matthew Thompson (Seminole, Fla.), Lauren Neidigh (Orange Park, Fla.) and Summer Stephens (Louisville, Ky.).
The seven medals come fresh on the heels of future teammate Matthew Elliott's (Peoria, Ill.) performance Dec. 3 at the 2010 AT&T Short Course National Championships, where the five-star recruit won a bronze medal in the men's 400 IM (3:47.28) at McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion in Columbus, Ohio.
Gator fans can click here for complete results from junior nationals and are also encouraged to follow the program on Twitter and Facebook. The University of Florida men's and women's swimming and diving program is in the midst of a break from competition before returning Jan. 7 to host Georgia Tech in the Gators' first home dual meet since Oct. 11.
