Florida Plays Host to Georgia in First LCM Meet of the Season
Thursday, October 27, 2011 | Men's Swimming & Diving
Following a week off for the Florida men's swimming and diving team and a successful weekend for the women at Arkansas and the SMU Classic, both squads will take to the pool again on Friday, October 28, when they play host to Southeastern Conference rival, Georgia. The meet will mark the first long course meter (LCM) meet of the season for both the Gators and Bulldogs in preparation for the upcoming Olympic Trials and Games. Both teams will take to the water at 11:00 a.m. at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center Natatorium for the swimming competition, with diving set to begin at 9:45 a.m.
Admission is free to the event. Florida students that are registered as Rowdy Reptiles can earn four valuable Rowdy Reptile Points by bringing their Gator1 I.D. to the marketing table located in the Gate 2 lobby of the O'Connell Center.
Floridaswimnetwork.com will provide a live stream of the meet against Georgia. The broadcast will air live on GatorVision and begin at 10:45 a.m. ET.
“This week we face a whole different dynamic with Georgia,” remarked head coach Gregg Troy. “We've competed against good teams up to this point, but now we have the Georgia women's team coming and they're probably one of the most talented teams in the country.”
“They're all big-name, experienced athletes, but not someone that we can compete with. We're just going to have to do a lot better on our depth end and some of are younger swimmers are going to have to go to a new level,” said Coach Troy. “It will be a good weekend and great experience.”
Friday's meet against Georgia is the 76th in program history for the men's squad and the 24th for the women. It is the longest standing competition for the men's squad. The first time the two teams met was in 1931, a year after the Florida program was founded – the Gators won the meet 45-20. The match-up between Georgia and Florida is the second longest in school history for the women, behind in-state foe Florida State, as both teams met for the first time in 1973 amidst the start-up of the women's team here in Gainesville. Florida grabbed the W, defeating Georgia 102-27.
Since both teams met the first time in 1930 and 1973, it is one of the closest contested series in women's program history as they edge the Bulldogs narrowly, 13-12, while the men lead the series a little more comfortably at 59-15-2.
The last time Georgia traveled to Gainesville was almost two years ago to the day, on Oct. 30, 2009. Florida's women's swimming and diving team was edged by Georgia 137-104. It has been three years since Georgia's men's squad has made the trip for a dual meet. Florida defeated Georgia 139-102 in 2008.
The Bulldogs are coming off a victory over North Carolina, as each squad improved to 2-0 on the season. The victory over the Tar Heels marked the 75th straight win at home for Georgia's women's swimming and diving team. Sophomore Melanie Margalis paced the Bulldogs for the women with three victories in both the 100 and 200 breast as well as the 400 IM. For the men, freshman Nic Fink led the way with a sweep of both breaststroke events.
The last time out, the UF men's squad defeated LSU at home 185-115 to stand 1-0 on the season and in SEC competition. The women made their first road trip of the season when they traveled to Fayetteville, Ark., to claim their second win of the year. Together, they combined to win 12 of the night's 16 events and post seven NCAA “B” cut times, led by Sarah Bateman(Orlando, Fla.) and Elizabeth Beisel (North Kingstown, R.I.) with two individual and relay victories a piece.
Gator fans are encouraged to follow the swimming and diving program via Twitter or Facebook. A complete recap of the meet will be available on www.Gatorzone.com following the conclusion of the meet on Sunday evening.
For meet notes please click here.
MEET INFORMATION
| TIME | EVENT |
| 9:30 AM | 1 Meter Diving (Men & Women) |
| 11:00 AM | 200 Medley Relay 200 Free 100 Back 100 Breast 200 Fly 50 Free |
| 12:00 PM | 3 Meter Diving (Men & Women) |
| 12:45 PM | 100 Free 200 Back 200 Breast 400 Free 100 Fly |
| 1:15 PM | 15 Minute Break |
| 1:45 PM | 400 Individual Medley 400 Free Relay |
