Swimming and Diving
The Gators Men's Swimming and Diving team won the 200 yard medley relay on the first day of the NCAA Championship. Going into the second day of competition, the Gators are in second place. (Photo via @GatorsSwimDv on Twitter)

Gators in Day 3 of Swimming and Diving SEC Championships

Macy Meis February 20, 2025 Gainesville, Gators Sports, Gators Swimming and Diving, SEC 50 Views

We all know Gators can swim. This week, they are doing just that. The SEC swimming and diving championships is taking place in Georgia. Wednesday was day three of the six day event, which brought many successes for the Gators. It also marked the start of individual swimming events. They are looking to continue that success, and more, throughout the rest of the championships.

Men’s Swimming and Diving

In the men’s 200 free relay timed finals, Florida finished in second place with a time of 1:13.29 (NCAA A Standard), just about a half a second behind Tennessee, who finished on top. Tennessee’s final time broke the Gators’ previous record of 1:13.34 from 2023. This time also broke Florida’s SEC meet record of 1:14.18 from 2023 as well.

The men’s 800M freestyle team shattered four records on their way to the gold. Senior Julian Smith set the second fastest time in program history in the 200 IM. Smith earned his spot on the top of the podium with a time of 1:39.38 (NCAA A Standard). He had the fastest 50 breaststroke split, swimming 28.49 to move from third to first place.

https://twitter.com/GatorsSwimDv/status/1892365040260448323

The men’s 500 freestyle finals ended with Jake Mitchell placing fifth with a time of 4:10.72, and Giovanni Linscheer in eighth place with a time of 4:16.30.

In the 50 freestyle finals for the men, Josh Liendo finished second with a time of 18.35 (NCAA A Standard), a three-tenth add from the 18.07 mark he set at last year’s NCAA Championships. Scotty Buff finished sixth with a time of 18.73, and Alex Painter finished seventh with a time of 18.80.

The men are pursuing their 13th-straight conference championship. They are one of two programs in the SEC to earn 12 straight titles. The team is in second overall with a team score of 421.5.

Women’s Swimming and Diving

In the women’s 200 free relay timed finals, Florida finished in seventh place, with a time of 1:28.24 (NCAA A Standard).

In the women’s 500 freestyle finals, Julie Brousseau finished third with a time of 4:34.59 (NCAA A Standard), and last year’s champion Emma Weyant finished sixth with a time of 4:37.98. Worth noting is Rachel Stege from the University of Georgia, who finished in second place for the second year in a row. She swam 4:34.28, which beat Brousseau by just over three-tenths.

In the women’s 200 IM finals, third placed Bella Sims finished with a time of 1:53.63 (NCAA A Standard) and seventh placed Zoe Dixon finished with a time of 1:55.25. Sims won this event last year with a time of 1:51.86, seeing around a two-second add.

The 3-meter dive for the women resulted in Camyla Monroy finishing sixth with 320.95 ponts, just 1.6 points more than seventh place.

The women are in pursuit of their third-straight conference title. Last year, they earned the program’s 19th SEC championship in school history. The team is in 3rd overall with a team score of 369.

The Gators’ Program

The Gators are looking for their third-consecutive SEC title sweep. They became the first conference program to win back-to-back titled since Auburn’s 2007 and 2008 run. There were several podium finishes and several school records set.

What’s Next

The Gators continue through Saturday evening, looking to maximize those wins.

Tune in live to watch the championships on ESPN+.

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