Jake Magahey, Ian Grum, Dune Coetzee Star in Georgia Sweep of Georgia Tech
After opening their competition season with a west-coast trip to race Arizona State, the Georgia Bulldogs got the better of in-state competitor Georgia Tech in a Wednesday afternoon dual meet, with the Bulldog women coming out on top by a 189-109 margin while the men won 198-100.
The two programs are common rivals that race at least once and often twice per season, and they have even seen coaches move between their respective pool decks. Georgia men’s head coach Neil Versfeld and associate head coach Mike Norment are both former UGA swimmers who have spent time coaching the Yellow Jackets in Atlanta.
Georgia won every event in the men’s meet except for diving, with Jake Magahey pacing the distance events as usual, topping the 1000 freestyle in 9:00.79 and then winning the 500 free in 4:25.09. Magahey was the NCAA champion in the 20-lap race as a freshman during the 2021 season. Ian Grum also had a pair of wins, touching first in the 200 butterfly (1:45.90) and 200 backstroke (1:43.04). Dillon Downing won the 50 free in 20.16 and supplied a 19.45 200 medley relay anchor split. The GT wins came courtesy of Max Fowler in 1-meter (343.95) and 3-meter (413.55) diving.
Dune Coetzee was the women’s star as she won the 200 free (1:47.06) and 500 free (4:42.29) while Meghan Wenzel won 1-meter (295.46) and 3-meter (299.70) diving. Just like the Bulldog men, UGA’s women occupied at least the top two spots in both relays contested, with Eboni McCarty and Helena Jones part of wins in the 200 medley and 400 free. Jones also dominated the 100 free in 49.25. Meanwhile, Georgia Tech freshman breaststroker Sabyne Brisson was a standout with wins in the 100 breast (1:02.31) and 200 breast (2:15.35).
Full results are available here, and read the full Georgia press release below:
Another dazzling display from Bulldog distance powered the University of Georgia swimming and diving teams to a sweep of in-state rival Georgia Tech Wednesday evening at Bauerle Pool at Gabrielsen Natatorium.
The Georgia women (3-0) remained unbeaten on the season with a 189-109 win over Georgia Tech, while the Bulldog men (1-2) picked up their first victory of the season, topping the Yellow Jackets, 198-100.
Prior to the meet, former Georgia All-American Melissa Bateman Price was honored as the team’s honorary captain for its annual Pink Out meet, recognizing October as Breast Cancer Awareness Month. In honor of the month, the Georgia women wore pink swimsuits, while both teams wore pink swim caps.
Women | Georgia 189, Georgia Tech 109
The Georgia women earned 12 wins on their way to a third-consecutive victory, led by an outstanding performance from the Bulldogs’ distance group. Junior Duné Coetzee picked up wins in the 200 (1:47.06) and 500 (4:42.29) freestyle, posting the second-fastest time in nation in the 500 behind teammate Rachel Stege. Fellow teammate Abby McCulloh dominated the 1000 freestyle with a time of 9:44.80. Senior Sloane Reinstein (50 freestyle – 23.19) and freshman Helena Jones (100 freestyle – 49.25) finished off a freestyle sweep, with Jones notching a B-cut in the process.
At the diving well, senior Meghan Wenzel remained unbeaten on the season with a springboard sweep, posting Zone cuts on both 1-meter (295.46) and 3-meter (299.70). Sophomore Hannah Stumpf also qualified for Zones on 1-meter with a mark of 275.40. In other victories, the Bulldogs swept the backstroke as graduate Millie Sansome won the 100 at 54.72, while fifth-year Zoie Hartman took the 200 with a time of 1:57.70. Finally, in the 100 butterfly, sophomore Olivia Della Torre was victorious with a time of 55.73.
“I thought we did a really great job at the meet today,” Tom Cousins Women’s Swimming & Diving Head Coach Stefanie Williams Moreno said following the meet. “In particular, just having it be a Pink Out and one of my former teammates, Melissa Bateman Price, as our honorary captain for the day was fantastic.”
Men | Georgia 198, Georgia Tech 100
On the men’s side, Georgia tallied 13 wins, led by two apiece from fifth-year Ian Grum and senior Jake Magahey. In his final dual meet before traveling to the Pan American Games, Grum won the 200 butterfly with a time of 1:45.90, missing a B-cut by one-hundredth of a second, before picking up the provisional cut with a winning 1:43.04 in the 200 backstroke. Magahey was strong in the distance events, winning the 1000 freestyle at 9:00.79, before pulling out a victorious 4:25.09 in the 500 free.
In other freestyle events, Georgia remained on top, with graduate Dillon Downing (50 freestyle), sophomore Ruard van Renen (100 freestyle), and freshman Tomas Koski (200 freestyle) all touching first. Koski joined teammates Steven Insixiengmay (100 breaststroke) and Jackson Bates (200 breaststroke) in earning their first career victories. Elsewhere, graduate Bradley Dunham won the 100 backstroke with a time of 47.30, while senior Wesley Ng took the 100 butterfly in his season debut and fifth-year Zach Hils prevailed in the 200 IM.
In diving, all four Bulldogs secured their spots at Zones with terrific outings on the springboards. On 1-meter, junior Rhett Hopkins qualified with a second-place score of 329.25, while fellow junior Nolan Lewis picked up a Zone cut at 315.08. Later, on 3-meter, freshman Matthew Bray reached his goal with a third-place mark of 347.70, with junior Allen Mann joining Hopkins and Lewis in notching cuts.
“It was an exceptional meet for middle of October,” Men’s Swimming & Diving Head Coach Neil Versfeld said. “Where we are in our training right now and how broken down, I know these guys are, I had my doubts yesterday. There was some rough swimming going on after the work we’ve done the past couple of weeks. But for them to bounce back and throw down some exceptional swims like they did today, I couldn’t be prouder.”