Bottazzo, Gonzalez Win SEC Titles on Day Three of SEC Championships

Wednesday, February 18

Knoxville, TN

Swim Prelims: 9:30 a.m. | Diving prelims: 12 p.m. | Finals: 5:30 p.m.

Florida Gators

462

Southeastern Conference

Anita Bottazzo and Jesus Gonzalez SEC Champions - Day three

Anita Bottazzo and Jesus Gonzalez capture the first golds for the women's and the men diving teams.

Bottazzo, Gonzalez Win SEC Titles on Day Three of SEC Championships

Thursday, February 19, 2026 | Men's Swimming & Diving, Women's Swimming & Diving

Wednesday Results Championship Central

By: Abby Wisecup

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Florida's Anita Bottazzo became the first Gator to claim the women's 100 breaststroke gold medal since 2007, while Jesus Gonzalez secured Gator diving's first men's 3-meter title of the meet on day three of the 2026 SEC Championships at the Allan Jones Intercollegiate Aquatic Center. In total, Florida advanced 19 swimmers to Wednesday night finals, including nine championship finalists.

Through 15 events, the No. 4 Florida men sit in second place with 462 points, trailing Texas by just 8.5 points. The No. 10 Florida women stand third with 340.5 points, behind Tennessee (377) and Texas (345).

Standings after Day 3⃣ pic.twitter.com/xQ5GLXDEOA
— Gators Swimming & Diving (@GatorsSwimDv) February 19, 2026

After entering finals as the top seed, Bottazzo swam a 57.11 to punch her NCAA Championships ticket and Florida's first gold medal of the meet. The sophomore becomes the seventh Gator to win the event and the first since Caroline Burckle in 2007, extending Florida's SEC league-best total to 12 titles in the event.

ANITA. BOTTAZZO.🤯

🟠Bottazzo wins gold with a time of 57.11, the first time the Gators have won gold in the event since 2007 pic.twitter.com/Xf163yPNzy
— Gators Swimming & Diving (@GatorsSwimDv) February 18, 2026

Overall, the women placed three swimmers in the evening session. Molly Mayne finished fifth in the championship final (59.39), while senior Anna Moore shaved 0.61 seconds from prelims to clock a 1:00.07 in the B final, which ranks 10th in program history. Grace Rainey added points in the C final with a 21st-place showing (1:00.81).

On the men's side, Koen de Groot earned silver in the 100 breast with a 50.22, resetting the third-fastest time in program history from his prelim time of 50.72. Aleksas Savickas placed 10th in the B final (51.95), while freshmen Nil Cadevall and Jordan Willis scored in the C final after finishing 20th (52.75) and 24th (53.20), respectively.

Podium finish for Koen🥈 pic.twitter.com/BJGuc3WPDV
— Gators Swimming & Diving (@GatorsSwimDv) February 19, 2026

Gonzalez turned in a clutch championship performance on men's 3-meter. An 85.75 on his Reverse 3 ½ Somersault Tuck moved him into podium contention and a 76.50 on his final dive sealed the gold medal with a total score of 423.05. He becomes the 13th Gator to win the event and gives Florida 19 men's 3-meter SEC titles, which ties for the league high. Conor Gesing advanced to the championship final as well and finished sixth (400.65) after scoring an 81.60 on his final dive. Jesus Agundez Mora posted a 322.25 in prelims to finish shy of a finals spot at 18th, but contributed seven points to the men's team total.

🗣️OH. MY. GOODNESS

🟠Jesus Gonzalez scores an 85.75 on his 4th dive of the Men's 3-Meter Final pic.twitter.com/8kDBqo8J8i
— Gators Swimming & Diving (@GatorsSwimDv) February 19, 2026

Lainy Kruger added a sixth-place finish in the women's 200 fly (1:55.83) and Addison Reese finished 12th overall after a fourth-place swim in the B final (1:56.64).

In the men's 200 fly, Matthew Cairns was the lone Gator racing in the event and dropped nearly two seconds from his seed time in prelims (1:43.55) to advance from heat two into the B final. He finished 15th overall in 1:43.63.

In the women's 100 back, Catie Choate led the way with a fourth-place finish at 51.36. Carly Meeting (T-18th, 53.11), Zuri Ferguson (22nd, 53.31) and Aspen Gersper (24th, 53.37) combined for 10.5 points in the C final.

The men's 100 back saw Scotty Buff and Jonny Marshall in the championship final, as both finished the same as their seeded positions with Marshall finishing fourth (44.57) and Buff seventh with the program's fourth-fastest time of 44.85. Aiden Norman captured the C final in 45.97 (17th overall), dropping 0.42 from prelims, while Caleb Maldari placed 20th (46.44).

Prelim Notables

Michaela Mattes finished 33rd in the women's 200 fly (2:02.38)
Gracie Weyant placed 35th in the women's 100 breast (1:02.20)

Up Next
Thursday's prelims will start at 9:30 a.m. and includes the 100 fly, 400 IM and 200 free. The women's 3-meter diving prelims are scheduled for 12 p.m. with the consolation final following. Finals are slated for 5:30 p.m. with the 400 medley relay closing out day four of SEC Championships.

All meet information, including schedules, tickets, heat sheets/results, streaming links, parking and fan policies, can be found on the 2026 SEC Swimming & Diving Championships Central page. Every session will be streamed on SEC Network+ with championship finals called by Gator Great Elizabeth Beisel, Rowdy Gaines and Joe Bieninati. Live Stats will be available on the Meet Mobile app and at Tennessee's live results website.

Current Men's Team Scores

1.	Texas	470.5
2.	Florida	462
3.	Tennessee	414.5
4.	Auburn	316
5.	LSU	282
6.	Georgia	281
7.	Kentucky	280
8.	Missouri	206
9.	Alabama	198.5
10.	Texas A&M	159.5
11.	South Carolina	142

Current Women's Team Scores

1.	Tennessee	377
2.	Texas	345
3.	Florida	340.5
4.	Auburn	274.5
5.	South Carolina	254.5
6.	LSU	248
7.	Alabama	238
8.	Texas A&M	211
9.	Georgia	201
10.	Missouri	169.5
11.	Kentucky	132
12.	Arkansas	89
13.	Vanderbilt	58

By the Numbers
NCAA Individual Qualifiers

NCAA Relay Qualifiers

Men's 200 medley relay - Jonny Marshall, Koen de Groot, Scotty Buff, Josh Liendo

Medal Count

Men's Gold
- 200 Medley Relay – Jonny Marshall, Koen de Groot, Scotty Buff, Josh Liendo
- 1,650 Free - Ahmed Jaouadi
- 3-meter diving – Jesus Gonzalez
Women's Gold
- 100 Breast – Anita Bottazzo
Men's Silver
- 100 Breast – Koen de Groot
Men's Bronze
- 1,650 Free - Ahmed Hafnaoui

Records

NCAA
- Jonny Marshall, Koen de Groot, Scotty Buff, Josh Liendo – 200 Medley Relay – 1:20.03
SEC
- Jonny Marshall, Koen de Groot, Scotty Buff, Josh Liendo – 200 Medley Relay – 1:20.03
SEC Meet
- Jonny Marshall, Koen de Groot, Scotty Buff, Josh Liendo – 200 Medley Relay – 1:20.03
Program
- Jonny Marshall, Koen de Groot, Scotty Buff, Josh Liendo – 200 Medley Relay – 1:20.03
Allan Jones Aquatic Center Pool
- Jonny Marshall, Koen de Groot, Scotty Buff, Josh Liendo – 200 Medley Relay – 1:20.03
- Ahmed Jaouadi – 1,650 Free – 14:25.14

Men's Top-10 Program Times

200 Medley Relay
- 1. Jonny Marshall, Koen de Groot, Scotty Buff, Josh Liendo – 1:20.03
1,650 Freestyle
- 2. Ahmed Jaoudi – 14:25.14
- 3. Ahmed Hafnaoui – 14:30.74
100 Breast
- 3. Koen de Groot – 50.22
100 Back
- 4. Scotty Buff - 44.85

Women's Top-10 Program Times

200 Medley Relay
- 9. Catie Choate, Anita Bottazzo, Beatriz Bezerra, Lainy Kruger – 1:35.81
800 Free Relay
- 10. Julie Brousseau, Lainy Kruger, JoJo Ramey, Sylvia Statkevicious - 6:59.86
100 Breast
- 10. Anna Moore – 1:00.07

2026 SEC Swimming & Diving Championships Remaining Schedule & Streaming Links (All times Eastern)
Thursday, Feb. 19

9:30am – 100 fly, 400 IM, 200 free prelims
- Stream Prelims: https://bit.ly/3OgfHoI
12:00pm – Women's three-meter prelims (consolations after)
- Stream diving prelims: https://bit.ly/3OqBBp9
5:30pm – 100 fly, 400 IM, 200 free, Women's three-meter finals and 400 medley relay
- Stream finals: https://bit.ly/46VjbmP

Friday, Feb. 20

9:30am – 200 breast, 50 free, 500 free prelims
12:00pm – Men's platform (consolations after)
5:30pm – 200 breast, 50 free, 500 free, Men's platform finals and 200 free relay

Saturday, Feb. 21

9:30am – 200 IM, 100 free, 200 back prelims
12:00pm – Women's platform (consolations after)
5:30pm – 200 IM, 100 free, 200 back, Women's platform finals and 400 free relay

Stay Connected
Fans can stay up to date with the Florida Gator swimming & diving teams by following @GatorsSwimDv on X and catch up with the latest news and content of the team. Like the team's Facebook page at Florida Gators Swimming & Diving Fans can also keep up with the team by following them on Instagram at @Gatorsswimdv