Feb. 10, 2007
Lexington, Ky. – The SEC swimming championships concluded today in Lexington, Ky., with Junior Christy Williams medaling in the 200 butterfly and 11 other Gamecocks earning points for the team. After four days of competition and 42 events, the South Carolina men earned 261.5 points and finished seventh; the women earned 190 points and finished eighth. Auburn took home both the men’s and women’s SEC Swimming and Diving Championships.
“Overall, we did real well. The last couple of weeks we had problems with our pool, and were out of the pool for ten days, so we were a little uncertain what to expect,” Head Coach Don Gibb said. “Overall, top to bottom, we were pretty solid. We broke some team records and got some kids qualified for NCAAs. The disqualifications kind of tripped us up a little bit, but all and all; I think that it was a good effort by everybody.”
Williams was the only Gamecock to medal at the meet. She finished third in the 200 butterfly with a time of 1:58.10. Senior Meredith Ruka and junior Heather Roffey also competed in the 200 fly finals. Ruka finished fifteenth with a time of 2:05.46. It was Ruka’s first time scoring points in the SEC Championships. Roffey finished sixteenth with a time of 2:07.95. Three Gamecock women also competed in the 200 breaststroke. Sophomore Amanda Dunnigan was the consolation champion, finishing ninth with a time of 2.16.55. Seniors Lindsey Tiberio and Carly Hensel finished eleventh and thirteenth with times of 2:17.91 and 2:20.05, respectively.
South Carolina had two men score points in the 1650 freestyle. Junior Dan White finished eleventh with a time of 15.56.66. Freshman Trey Tharpe finished sixteenth with a time of 16.17.15. Georgia’s Sebastien Rouault won the event, claiming his third consecutive SEC mile title. Freshman Dominique Lendjel, sophomore Steven Luckie and juniors Leopoldo Andara and Kyle Cormier also scored points for South Carolina. Lendjel finished eighth in the 200 backstroke with a time of 1.46.88. Cormier finished fourteenth in the 100 freestyle, with a time of 44.70. Luckie and Andara both competed in the 200 butterfly. Luckie finished fifteenth with a time of 1:51.70, and Andara finished eighth with a time of 1:49.38.
The men’s 400 relay team of Cormier, White, senior Colby Mack and junior Kurt Muller finished fourth with a time of 2:56.96, a new school record. The women’s team of Williams, sophomore Sharntelle McLean, senior Aunya Nance and junior Diana Lopez finished seventh with a time of 3:24.84.
The swimming powerhouse of Auburn claimed both the men’s and women’s 2006-2007 SEC Titles. On the men’s side, Auburn earned 899 points, and Georgia and Florida finished second and third. Auburn also topped the women’s leader board with 934 points. Florida and Georgia finished second and third. The Gamecocks will next compete at the NCAA Championships in Minneapolis, Minnesota in early March.
