Oct. 27, 2015

Four members of the University of South Carolina swimming and diving teams were recognized by the SEC for their performances last Saturday.

Akaram Mahmoud was named the SEC Male Swimmer of the Week. The sophomore from Cairo, Egypt, helped the Gamecocks to a dual meet win over Purdue on Saturday, scoring 27 points on three individual wins. He won the 1,000-yard freestyle in 9:03.03, the 500-yard freestyle in 4:24.15 and the 200-yard butterfly in 1:49.36. Mahmoud also swam the second leg of the 400-yard freestyle relay, which South Carolina won in 3:01.01.

Cody Bekemeyer was honored as the SEC Male Freshman of the Week. Bekemeyer, a Lawrenceville, Ga. native, earned second place finishes in the 100-yard freestyle (9:10.64), in the 500-yard freestyle (4:28.33) and in the 400-yard IM (3:56.74) to pick up 12 points in the Gamecocks’ dual meet win over Purdue.

Jordan Gotro earned Male Diver of the Week accolades. The junior from Sacramento, Calif., captured both the 1-meter and 3-meter events in the Gamecocks’ dual win over Purdue. Gotro, the 2014 SEC Freshman Diver of the Year, scored 336.30 on six dives to win the 1-meter event, then came back with a 418.73 on six dives to take the 3-meter competition.

Julia Vincent gave Carolina a sweep of the diving awards, as she was named the SEC Female Diver of the Week. Vincent, a sophomore from Gauteng, South Africa, got the 2015-16 season off to a fast start with wins in both the 1-meter and 3-meter boards in a dual meet with Clemson on Saturday, helping Carolina to the team win. She scored 316.43 on the 1-meter board and 317.70 on the 3-meter board, tallying 18 points in the 30-8 Gamecock win over their in-state rivals.

The Gamecock men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams will be in action again on Saturday when they host Alabama in a dual meet. The diving competition begins at 9 a.m. and the swimming events will get underway at 10 a.m.