UF Men’s Swimming & Diving: Gators Conclude Final Prelim Session in Auburn
Photo By: Courtney Culbreath
Courtesy of University Athletic Association
BY RYAN SOSIC
Friday evening’s championship heats will conclude swimming for Florida this fall
Florida men’s swimming and diving completed the final prelim session of the Auburn Fall Invitation on Friday morning. The Gators will jump back into competition at 5:00 p.m. with the top 1,650 free heat, followed by championship and consolation heats of the events in the morning session. Platform diving’s single round is set to begin at 2:00 p.m.
Overall, UF posted the top time in three prelims, highlighted by Eric Friese’s new 100 free lifetime-best and B-cut effort of 42.95.
Kevin Vargas also claimed a morning heat, touching first in the 200 breast with a B-cut swim of 1:57.76, just one second off his lifetime best set at last year’s SEC Championships in Auburn.
Overall, Florida notched the top four efforts in the 200 fly, led by the fastest time of 1:46.56 by Kieran Smith. Dillon Hillis finished behind Smith to claim second place with an effort of 1:47.01. Jace Crawford (1:47.13) and Miguel Cancel (1:47.63) rounded out the top four and will join Smith and Hillis in the final.
Florida will have an additional six competitors join Friese in the 100 free tonight after a handful of top-eight efforts. Adam Chaney secured the runner-up spot with a swim of 44.17, with Trey Freeman coming behind him in third, just .23 seconds off the freshman’s finish.
Isaac Davis, Jorge Depassier, and Will Davis all finished within a quarter of a second of each other, claiming spots four through six. Alfonso Mestre notched a spot in the championship final with his eighth-place effort of 44.90. Mitchell Meyer placed 16th in the event with a swim of 45.61.
In the opening event of the morning, Robert Finke and Cancel finished .45 second apart to post the second- and third-fastest times of the heat. Trevor McGovern and Ethan McCloud also finished next to each other in sixth and seventh and will also hit the water in the championship final.
The third-fastest effort in the 200 breast was Mateusz Dubas, who tallied an effort of 1:59.10. Amro Al-Wir and Dylan Brisco finished behind Vargas and Dubas in fourth and fifth to earn a spot in the final.