The No. 14 University of Kentucky women’s swimming and diving team upset No. 7 Tennessee, the defending Southeastern Conference Champions, in a 152-148 finish that came down to the last race on Thursday evening inside the Lancaster Aquatic Center. It marked the first time the Wildcats have defeated the Volunteers in a dual meet since November 13, 1999 (124-121).
The triumph comes just one year after the Kentucky women’s swimming and diving team defeated Indiana, another powerhouse program, in a dual meet for the first time since 2007.
Kentucky Women’s Swimming & Diving Press Release
“That was a great win for the team,” said head coach Lars Jorgensen. “Tennessee has an excellent program, and they are the defending SEC Champions, so it was a lot of fun to see our group earn that win together. I think this team has been itching to race for a long time since last season got cancelled, and they ended up stepping up to the plate against the conference champs. There was a lot of people involved in that win, it was a team effort for sure, and that’s what makes coaching so fun.”
The Wildcats put the pedal to the metal in the first race, earning a first- and third-place finish in the 200 medley relay to earn a quick advantage, and didn’t let off the gas until the last race. Touching the wall in that event first was a unique lineup of Caitlin Brooks, Bailey Bonnett, Riley Gaines and Kaitlynn Wheeler, earning a top time of 1:39.67.
Kentucky collected 10 first-place finishes in 16 events total during the meet, including 13 individual races, one relay event and both diving events. Furthermore, five swimmers are responsible for recording nine NCAA “B” cut times, while diver Kyndal Knight earned Zone “C” qualifying scores in each of the springboard events.
Per usual, Knight, a junior diver from Stanley, North Carolina, blew her competition out of the water. The defending conference champion swept the springboard events, both on scores more than 14 points ahead of second place. Knight logged 291.08 points on the 1-meter springboard and 302.5 points on the 3-meter springboard, which are both well above the NCAA Zone “C” Diving Championship qualifying standards.
The Wildcats held a lead for over 90 percent of the meet, but the scores tightened as the last race approached. Sophie Sorenson, a junior from Ames, Iowa, competed in the last individual race of the dual meet, putting together a notable win in the 200 IM on a NCAA “B” cut time of 1:59.89 to help UK stretch its lead ahead of the last event. Sorenson also logged a NCAA “B” standard of 53.61 in the 100 backstroke to finish in second place.
Gaines, a junior from Nashville, Tennessee, added to the success she found in the season opener, recording a pair of NCAA “B” cuts in the 100 freestyle (49.26) and the 200 freestyle (1:46.35), earning top times in each of those events.
Leading the team with NCAA “B” standards during the meet was Caitlin Brooks, a sophomore from Gainesville, Florida. She scored top times and NCAA “B” cut times in both the 100 backstroke (52.32) and the 200 backstroke (1:54.71), while she also secured second place and another NCAA “B” cut time in the 100 butterfly (53.37).
Junior Izzy Gati logged a top time in her traditional event, touching the wall in 1:57.70 in the 200 butterfly, another NCAA “B” standard. Meanwhile, sophomore Gillian Davey got her share of 2021 NCAA Championship considerations, earning a “B” standard in the 200 breaststroke on a top time of 2:11.51.
In the program’s next outing, the RV Kentucky men’s swimming and diving team will host No. 12 Tennessee tomorrow, Friday, October 30, at 4 p.m. ET inside the Lancaster Aquatic Center.
Tennessee Press Release
“There’s a lot to take away from the competition today,” associate head coach Ashley Jahn said after the meet. “Kentucky did a great job off the start and underwater in their races today. We competed really well against another very competitive SEC program. We’re very excited to be back competing and look forward to our next competition with them.”
The Big Orange won six events in Lexington, led by Amanda Nunan with two individual victories. The senior from Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey, dominated the distance events with first-place finishes in the 1,000 freestyle (9:56.73) and 500 freestyle (4:50.99).
“Amanda loves racing and was a fierce competitor today,” Jahn said. “She did everything that was available to her to get better over the prolonged break. It wasn’t always possible to swim but she utilized every other avenue when swimming wasn’t possible. Since we’ve been back to regular training, she has been thoughtful and controlling what she can control like she always does. She and the rest of the senior class are leading this team really well.”
Making her collegiate swimming debut at Kentucky, true freshman Mona McSharry had a hand in two wins for the Lady Vols Thursday night. The Dublin, Ireland, native was the first to touch the wall in the 100 breaststroke with a time of 1:00.88, then capped the night with a win in the 400 freestyle relay as she swam the opening leg in 50.59 and the Lady Vols turned in a collective time of 3:20.08.
“Mona is a great competitor,” Jahn said. “We are so proud of her and her class. The freshmen as a group were impressive today from their preparation to their races. They make our team better and each other better everyday at practice. They continued that important process today.”
Lady Vol senior Bailey Grinter (50 free, 22.76) and junior Mallory Beil (100 fly, 53.34) also claimed event titles Thursday to round out UT’s individual first-place finishes. Grinter won comfortably by a half-second margin, while Beil’s victory came by a mere three hundredths of a second over Wildcat sophomore Caitlin Brooks.
Trude Rothrock, Abby Samansky and Tjasa Pintar teamed up with McSharry to win the 400 free relay, as Pintar anchored the Big Orange with the fastest split of the night at 48.90.
On the springboards, Tennessee junior Grace Cable earned a pair of second-place finishes for the Lady Vols at Kentucky. The diver from Winter Park, Florida, tallied scores of 267.00 on the one-meter and 281.70 on the three-meter.
Tennessee notably asserted its dominance in the 1,000 freestyle and 50 freestyle Thursday, placing 1-2-3 in both events against the Wildcats. Nunan (9:56.73), Kristen Stege (9:57.91) and Claire Nguyen (10:00.46) claimed the long-distance sweep, while Grinter (22.76), Natalie Ungaretti (23.25) and Samansky (23.36) took care of business in the 50-yard sprint.
The Lady Vols showcased their depth in the 100 free, 200 free and 200 fly, scoring nine points with second, third and fourth place finishers in each of those events. Grinter was the 100 free runner-up at 49.89, Rothrock took second in the 200 free at 1:48.30, and Beil tabbed second place in the 200 fly at 1:58.74.
This is the biggest upset this past week next to the Indiana Hoosiers beating Penn State in football!
Lady Vols are no longer the team they were the past couple years! Go Dawgs!!! ❤️?❤️?