Nov. 6, 2009
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – South Carolina junior divers Taryn Zack and Courtney Forcucci set the pool records in their respective events in Friday’s meet at the University of Tennessee, winning the 1- and 3-meter boards, respectively, in the Gamecocks’ dual-meet loss to the Volunteers. The Tennessee men took a 184-115 win over the Gamecocks, while the Lady Vols downed Carolina’s women 179-121.
Zack, the 2009 SEC Champion on the 1-meter board, amassed a total of 310.35 in the 1-meter event, soaring past the Lady Vols’ Gabrielle Trudeau by more than 40 points to pick up her second event victory of the season. She broke her own pool record at the two-year-old Allan Jones Intercollegiate Aquatic Center, which she set in March at the NCAA Zone B regional competition.
Forcucci, a transfer from Houston, continued her undefeated streak on the 3-meter board with a score of 330.23, helping Carolina go 1-2 in that event with Zack as the runner-up. The junior from Fort Mill, S.C., also set the new pool’s high-water mark with her score.
Another strong performance on the boards came from sophomore Ryan Kuser, who earned his spot in the NCAA Zone B regionals with a score of 336.23 on the 3-meter board, finishing fourth in the event. Freshman Rylan Ridenour was the runner-up on the 3-meter board with a 357.00.
The Gamecocks also got several strong performances in the pool. Most notably, the Gamecock women earned their first relay victory of the season as Sharntelle McLean, Bridget Halligan, Kristina Delp and Claire Thompson took first in the 200 freestyle relay, touching the wall in 1:36.14. McLean was also impressive in her own right, getting a win in the 100 freestyle (51.94) and finishing second in the 50 free (23.66).
Claire Thompson continued her string of strong performances with a win in the 200 freestyle (1:51.37) and the 500 freestyle (5:00.02) and a runner-up showing in the 1000 free (10:07.15). Christine Thompson was the runner-up in the 500 free (5:04.15) and finished third in both the 200 and 1000 free.
On the men’s side, Carolina kept seeing its underclassmen come up big in the distance events. On their first try swimming the 400 individual medley this season, freshman Michael Flach and sophomore Chris Kelly went 1-2 with Flach touching in 3:59.12 and Kelly in 4:05.63. Flach also won the 200 butterfly (1:51.20) and took second in the 200 free (1:40.16).
Fellow freshman Brooks Ross continued his dominance in the 1000 free, winning by seven seconds over his nearest competitor with a time of 9:24.68. He also took first in the 500 free (4:37.49), earning season-best times in both events.
Sophomore James Crawford won big in the 200 backstroke, touching first in 1:49.57. He would also take second in the 100 back (50.76). Freshman Bobby Cave kept things close against the nation’s top breaststroker, Tennessee’s Brad Craig, but took second in both events with a 57.07 in the 100 breast and a 2:03.69 in the 200.
The Gamecocks men fell to 1-4 on the season, 1-1 in SEC competition. The Carolina women are 0-5 overall, 0-2 in the SEC.
South Carolina will have two weeks off from competition before some of the nation’s best descend on Columbia for the three-day Gamecock Invitational. That meet begins on Thursday, Nov. 19, and runs through Saturday, Nov. 21, at the Carolina Natatorium.
