Feb. 19, 2010
| Coach Moody |
ATHENS, Ga. – Highlighted by strong swims from Bobby Cave and Claire Thompson, South Carolina concluded its third day at the 2010 SEC Swimming & Diving Championships on Friday at the University of Georgia’s Gabrielsen Natatorium.
Cave, a freshman from England, took a second-place finish in the consolation final of the men’s 100-yard breaststroke to earn seven points for the Gamecocks’ team effort. His time of 55.04, while slower than his preliminary time of 54.88, outpaced all but one competitor in the field.
Thompson scored in the 200-yard freestyle for the third straight year, placing 14th with a time of 1:48.92 to earn three points for South Carolina. The junior from Largo, Fla., lowered her NCAA provisional qualifying time from Friday morning and gave South Carolina its fifth individual scoring event in these championships.
In the relays, the Gamecock men’s team of Dominique Lendjel, Bobby Cave, Isaac Badillo and David Livsey posted a time of 3:17.71, finishing eighth and barely missing an NCAA `B’ cut (3:17.63). It was, however, the ninth-fastest time in school history. For the women, it was Megan Sparks, Aileen Atzhorn, Meghan Brockington and Sharntelle McLean finishing ninth with a time of 3:47.31, lowering their season-best by five seconds.
South Carolina currently stands eighth in the men’s competition with 140 points while the Gamecock women are ninth at 128 points. Auburn is still in command of its quest for its 14th straight SEC men’s title, but holds a relatively slim 557-544 lead over Florida heading into the final day of competition. On the women’s side, host Georgia is pulling away with 555.5 points while Florida is second at 466.
The final session of preliminaries begins Saturday morning with the 200 butterfly, 100 freestyle, 200 backstroke, 200 breaststroke and women’s platform diving. Prelims begin at 10 a.m., with diving set for a 12:30 p.m. start and the slower heats of the 1650 freestyle slated to begin around 4:00. Live video and results are available through GeorgiaDogs.com, and fans can receive race-by-race updates via Twitter by following @GamecockSwim.
