SEC Championships, Night 3: Emma Weyant, Baylor Nelson Repeat in 400 IM; Josh Liendo Shines
SEC Championships, Night 3: Emma Weyant, Baylor Nelson Repeat in 400 IM
Emma Weyant is now a two-time SEC champion in the 400 individual medley. She got a run for her money Thursday night at Auburn University.
Weyant trailed teammate Zoe Dixon for the first 150 meters before surging to the lead, then pulling away for a 1-2 finish. More important for Florida was taking three of the top four spots in taking a stranglehold on the team standings.
Baylor Nelson also repeated as 400 IM champ, doing the IM double for the second straight year.
The results give Florida healthy leads in both team competitions. The men, seeking a 12th straight title, are up by more than 300 points and in commanding position, while the Florida women jumped to the lead by more than 100 points over Tennessee.
All the action on Night 3:
- Live Results
- Night 1 FULL RESULTS
- Night 2 FULL RESULTS
- Night 3 FULL RESULTS
- Night 1 Finals Recap
- Day 2 Prelims Recap
- Night 2 Finals Recap
- Day 3 Prelims Recap
- SEC Championships Schedule and Livestream
- SEC Championships Home
- Day 4 Heat Sheets
Team Scores
Women - Team Rankings - Through Event 24 1. University of Florida 765.5 2. University of Tennessee 623 3. Georgia, University of 498 4. Auburn University 477.5 5. Texas A&M University 453 6. Louisiana State University 337 7. University of Alabama 324.5 8. South Carolina, University of, 309 9. University of Kentucky 211 10. Missouri 204.5 11. University of Arkansas 181 12. Vanderbilt University 110
Men - Team Rankings - Through Event 23 1. University of Florida 893 2. University of Tennessee 569 2. Georgia, University of 569 4. Texas A&M University 554 5. Auburn University 536 6. Louisiana State University 293 7. University of Alabama 254 8. University of Kentucky 243 9. South Carolina, University of, 212 10. Missouri 202
Women’s 400 individual medley
Emma Weyant threw down an NCAA A cut 4:01.20 to win. It’s the second fastest time in the nation this season. Ultimately it put her 2.13 seconds ahead of teammate Zoe Dixon. But Dixon was only .17 back at the midpoint, hitting the front half hard.
Dixon was ninth last year. Her teammate Anna Auld was 10th, but jumped to fourth this season in 4:09.30. That 86 points in just those three for Florida, helping the Gators go from 35 points behind Tennessee to more than 100 ahead when all was tallied up.
Weyant and Dixon booked NCAA A cuts. Texas A&M’s Giulia Georigk medaled in third in 4:06.79. She was third last year. Hannah Ownbey of Auburn went from seventh last year to fifth in 4:10.03. Freshmen Sydney Sanders and Julia Podkoscielny were sixth and seventh.
Event 18 Women 400 Yard IM ========================================================================= NCAA: N 3:54.60 3/16/2018 Ella Eastin, Stanford SEC: S 3:58.23 3/22/2022 Sydney Pickrem, Texas A&M SEC Meet: M 3:58.35 2012 Elizabeth Beisel, Florida Pool: P 3:56.54 3/16/2012 Katinka Hosszu, Southern Cal Name Year School Prelims Finals Points ========================================================================= === Championship Final === 1 Weyant, Emma J JR FLOR-FL 4:04.62 4:01.20 32 r:+0.76 26.49 56.02 (29.53) 1:26.46 (30.44) 1:56.64 (30.18) 2:31.03 (34.39) 3:06.08 (35.05) 3:33.78 (27.70) 4:01.20 (27.42) 2 Dixon, Zoe A SO FLOR-FL 4:08.07 4:03.33 28 r:+0.65 25.84 55.59 (29.75) 1:26.26 (30.67) 1:56.43 (30.17) 2:31.25 (34.82) 3:06.25 (35.00) 3:35.23 (28.98) 4:03.33 (28.10) 3 Goerigk, Giulia SO Texas A&M-GU 4:10.18 4:06.79 27 r:+0.71 26.39 57.16 (30.77) 1:29.38 (32.22) 2:00.85 (31.47) 2:35.20 (34.35) 3:10.05 (34.85) 3:38.65 (28.60) 4:06.79 (28.14) 4 Auld, Anna R JR FLOR-FL 4:11.65 4:09.39 26 r:+0.65 27.00 57.47 (30.47) 1:29.88 (32.41) 2:01.45 (31.57) 2:36.60 (35.15) 3:11.68 (35.08) 3:41.27 (29.59) 4:09.39 (28.12) 5 Ownbey, Hannah C SR Auburn-SE 4:09.79 4:10.03 25 r:+0.64 26.55 57.17 (30.62) 1:29.60 (32.43) 2:01.40 (31.80) 2:36.77 (35.37) 3:12.29 (35.52) 3:41.60 (29.31) 4:10.03 (28.43) 6 Sanders, Sydney M FR BAMA-SE 4:12.93 4:12.66 24 r:+0.75 27.43 58.10 (30.67) 1:30.81 (32.71) 2:02.89 (32.08) 2:37.96 (35.07) 3:13.69 (35.73) 3:43.99 (30.30) 4:12.66 (28.67) 7 Podkoscielny, Julia P FR FLOR-FL 4:14.34 4:17.78 23 r:+0.66 26.74 58.58 (31.84) 1:31.27 (32.69) 2:03.08 (31.81) 2:39.36 (36.28) 3:16.54 (37.18) 3:47.79 (31.25) 4:17.78 (29.99) -- Rice, Anna Havens SR UK Wildcats-KY 4:14.44 DQ Shoulders past vertical toward breast - back r:+0.69 26.30 56.41 (30.11) 1:28.94 (32.53) 2:01.59 (32.65) 2:36.85 (35.26) 3:13.55 (36.70) 3:43.73 (30.18) DQ (28.60)
Men’s 400 individual medley
Baylor Nelson is the double IM champ for the second time, going 3:38.05 for an NCAA A cut and the title. Nelson made the move on backstroke with a pair of 30-points (30.40, 30.68) to launch ahead of Ian Grum and into the lead. The Georgia grad student, who was third last year, got the silver medal in 3:39.48.
Third was Giovanni Lindscheer of Florida in 3:39.61. He edged out Florida teammate Mason Laur by .04 and Georgia’s Jake Magahey by .06. Linscheer was fourth last year, Laur sixth.
Event 19 Men 400 Yard IM ========================================================================= NCAA: N 3:28.82 3/24/2023 Leon Marchand, Arizona State SEC: S 3:33.42 3/24/2017 Chase Kalisz, Georgia SEC Meet: M 3:35.76 2018 Hugo Gonzalez, Auburn Pool: P 3:37.31 2/20/2020 Kieran Smith, Florida Name Year School Prelims Finals Points ========================================================================= === Championship Final === 1 Nelson, Baylor M SO Texas A&M-GU 3:41.65 3:38.05 32 r:+0.66 23.35 50.00 (26.65) 1:18.04 (28.04) 1:45.21 (27.17) 2:15.61 (30.40) 2:46.29 (30.68) 3:12.39 (26.10) 3:38.05 (25.66) 2 Grum, Ian P GS UGA-GA 3:40.48 3:39.48 28 r:+0.67 22.29 48.21 (25.92) 1:15.60 (27.39) 1:42.46 (26.86) 2:14.32 (31.86) 2:47.53 (33.21) 3:13.59 (26.06) 3:39.48 (25.89) 3 Linscheer, Giovanni R SO FLOR-FL 3:40.63 3:39.61 27 r:+0.71 24.07 50.87 (26.80) 1:19.58 (28.71) 1:47.11 (27.53) 2:17.96 (30.85) 2:48.85 (30.89) 3:14.71 (25.86) 3:39.61 (24.90) 4 Laur, Mason A JR FLOR-FL 3:42.07 3:39.65 26 r:+0.65 23.06 49.69 (26.63) 1:18.11 (28.42) 1:45.77 (27.66) 2:16.60 (30.83) 2:48.42 (31.82) 3:14.47 (26.05) 3:39.65 (25.18) 5 Magahey, Jake M SR UGA-GA 3:41.59 3:39.67 25 r:+0.66 23.08 49.53 (26.45) 1:18.06 (28.53) 1:45.86 (27.80) 2:16.86 (31.00) 2:48.84 (31.98) 3:14.67 (25.83) 3:39.67 (25.00) 6 Rathle, Jacques L JR Auburn-SE 3:42.30 3:41.52 24 r:+0.62 23.25 50.01 (26.76) 1:18.85 (28.84) 1:47.21 (28.36) 2:17.80 (30.59) 2:49.33 (31.53) 3:15.76 (26.43) 3:41.52 (25.76) 7 Driggers, Landon SO Tennessee-SE 3:42.03 3:42.68 23 r:+0.71 24.19 51.71 (27.52) 1:19.75 (28.04) 1:47.20 (27.45) 2:18.79 (31.59) 2:50.64 (31.85) 3:17.18 (26.54) 3:42.68 (25.50) 8 Schmidt, Danny SO Auburn-SE 3:44.12 3:48.57 22 r:+0.66 23.50 50.61 (27.11) 1:19.09 (28.48) 1:47.09 (28.00) 2:19.41 (32.32) 2:53.22 (33.81) 3:21.17 (27.95) 3:48.57 (27.40)
Women’s 100 butterfly
Olivia Peoples made it two wins in two for Florida, riding a strong front half to hold off Auburn’s Meghan Lee for the win in 50.47 seconds. Both Peoples and Lee, who went 50.66, notched A cuts.
Lee was second last year when Maggie MacNeil set the meet record. Peoples finished sixth.
Texas A&M freshman Miranda Grana grabbed a silver medal in 51.32 seconds with a strong second half of the race. She edged fellow rookie Gaby Van Brunt of Alabama. South Carolina’s Greta Pelzek finished fifth in 51.77.
Event 20 Women 100 Yard Butterfly ========================================================================= NCAA: N 48.46 3/14/2023 Kate Douglass, Virginia SEC: S 48.51 3/18/2023 Maggie MacNeil, LSU SEC Meet: M 48.99 2023 Maggie MacNeil, LSU Pool: P 49.38 2/20/2020 Erika Brown, Tennessee Name Year School Prelims Finals Points ========================================================================= === Championship Final === 1 Peoples, Olivia G JR FLOR-FL 51.38 50.47 32 r:+0.61 10.65 23.74 (13.09) 36.73 (12.99) 50.47 (13.74) 2 Lee, Meghan R SR Auburn-SE 51.24 50.66 28 r:+0.63 10.99 23.94 (12.95) 37.04 (13.10) 50.66 (13.62) 3 Grana, Miranda P FR Texas A&M-GU 52.21 51.32 27 r:+0.67 11.16 24.30 (13.14) 37.60 (13.30) 51.32 (13.72) 4 Van Brunt, Gaby M FR BAMA-SE 52.06 51.68 26 r:+0.72 10.91 23.98 (13.07) 37.59 (13.61) 51.68 (14.09) 5 Pelzek, Greta J JR South Carolina-S 51.93 51.77 25 r:+0.52 11.29 24.44 (13.15) 37.95 (13.51) 51.77 (13.82) 6 Stotler, Sara B SO Tennessee-SE 52.35 52.21 24 r:+0.65 11.01 24.29 (13.28) 37.85 (13.56) 52.21 (14.36) 7 Toh, Nicholle SR South Carolina-S 52.24 52.34 23 r:+0.62 11.16 24.48 (13.32) 38.12 (13.64) 52.34 (14.22) 8 Waldrep, Ellie G JR Auburn-SE 52.29 53.13 22 r:+0.58 11.26 24.59 (13.33) 38.60 (14.01) 53.13 (14.53)
Men’s 100 butterfly
Two male swimmers have been under 44 seconds this season in the NCAA. Both are named Josh Liendo.
After a meet record 43.89 in the morning, Liendo reversed those last two digits to go 43.98 at night, winning gold for the second straight year. He got a push from teammate Scotty Buff, who delivered a sensational swim in 44.38 to get an NCAA A cut. Buff was right on Liendo’s tail, but the Canadian swam away from his teammate as the final wall approached.
Texas A&M sophomore Connor Foote grabbed the bronze medal in 44.76. Harrison Lierz of Tennessee was fourth in 45.40. Both finaled last year, Foote sixth and Lierz eighth. Sohib Khaled of Auburn was fifth, .01 upon Tennessee’s Bjorn Kammann.
Event 21 Men 100 Yard Butterfly ========================================================================= NCAA: N 42.80 3/23/2018 Caeleb Dressel, Florida SEC: S 42.80 3/23/2018 Caeleb Dressel, Florida SEC Meet: M 43.89 2024 Josh Liendo, Florida Pool: P 43.89 2/22/2024 Josh Liendo, Florida Name Year School Prelims Finals Points ========================================================================= === Championship Final === 1 Liendo, Josh SO FLOR-FL 43.89 43.98 32 r:+0.62 9.24 20.38 (11.14) 32.05 (11.67) 43.98 (11.93) 2 Buff, Scotty FR FLOR-FL 45.00 44.38 28 r:+0.64 9.39 20.65 (11.26) 32.13 (11.48) 44.38 (12.25) 3 Foote, Connor SO Texas A&M-GU 45.12 44.76 27 r:+0.63 9.54 20.66 (11.12) 32.32 (11.66) 44.76 (12.44) 4 Lierz, Harrison M JR Tennessee-SE 45.63 45.40 26 r:+0.65 9.70 21.29 (11.59) 33.14 (11.85) 45.40 (12.26) 5 Khaled, Sohib SO Auburn-SE 45.38 45.41 25 r:+0.61 9.42 21.09 (11.67) 33.06 (11.97) 45.41 (12.35) 6 Kammann, Bjoern SO Tennessee-SE 45.72 45.52 24 r:+0.68 9.38 20.92 (11.54) 33.06 (12.14) 45.52 (12.46) 7 Stoffle, Nathaniel L JR Auburn-SE 46.00 45.98 23 r:+0.60 9.52 21.06 (11.54) 33.33 (12.27) 45.98 (12.65) 8 Van Renen, Ruard SO UGA-GA 45.84 46.20 22 r:+0.63 9.49 21.18 (11.69) 33.35 (12.17) 46.20 (12.85)
Women’s 200 freestyle
Isabel Ivey navigated a daunting 200 free final to win in 1:41.85. Her final margin was a half-second over a trio of swimmers who also notched A cuts, but it was much faster in the moment. She was second after 150 yards and didn’t lead at any wall until the final touch.
Camille Spink ended up second for Tennessee, in 1:42.37. She was .04 ahead of Chloe Stepanek, last year’s runner-up. Reigning champion Brooklyn Douthwright led after 150 yards but slipped to fourth in 1:42.61.
Florida gained more points with Micalya Cronk fifth in 1:43.83. South Carolina picked up another scorer with Amy Riordan sixth.
Event 22 Women 200 Yard Freestyle ========================================================================= NCAA: N 1:39.10 3/20/2015 Missy Franklin, California SEC: S 1:40.90 2/20/2024 Bella Sims, Florida SEC Meet: M 1:40.90 2024 Bella Sims, Florida Pool: P 1:40.90 2/20/2024 Bella Sims, Florida Name Year School Prelims Finals Points ========================================================================= === Championship Final === 1 Ivey, Isabel C 5Y FLOR-FL 1:42.85 1:41.85 32 r:+0.68 23.71 49.40 (25.69) 1:15.57 (26.17) 1:41.85 (26.28) 2 Spink, Camille Tennessee-SE 1:43.53 1:42.37 28 r:+0.69 23.75 49.70 (25.95) 1:15.96 (26.26) 1:42.37 (26.41) 3 Stepanek, Chloe M SR Texas A&M-GU 1:43.25 1:42.41 27 r:+0.67 23.74 49.59 (25.85) 1:15.80 (26.21) 1:42.41 (26.61) 4 Douthwright, Brooklyn Tennessee-SE 1:43.47 1:42.61 26 r:+0.63 23.99 49.28 (25.29) 1:15.23 (25.95) 1:42.61 (27.38) 5 Cronk, Micayla M JR FLOR-FL 1:44.72 1:43.83 25 r:+0.66 23.70 49.62 (25.92) 1:16.32 (26.70) 1:43.83 (27.51) 6 Riordan, Amy L SO South Carolina-S 1:44.13 1:44.08 24 r:+0.65 24.38 50.91 (26.53) 1:17.48 (26.57) 1:44.08 (26.60) 7 Furse, Shea T SO UGA-GA 1:45.02 1:44.23 23 r:+0.65 24.39 50.54 (26.15) 1:17.32 (26.78) 1:44.23 (26.91) 8 Mrozinski, Julia M SO Tennessee-SE 1:44.94 1:47.37 22 r:+0.65 24.41 51.59 (27.18) 1:19.61 (28.02) 1:47.37 (27.76)
Men’s 200 freestyle
The boys from Florida, they are buzzing. Macguire McDuff came back in 23.08 seconds to unseat reigning champ Charlie Hawke with a time of 1:30.64. That’s one of three NCAA A cuts in the race and improves the junior from the bronze medal last year.
Hawke appeared to have the measure of him through 150 yards, but the junior from Alabama couldn’t keep pace coming home and secured silver in 1:31.03. Jordan Crooks bagged bronze in 1:31.17.
Fourth was Jake Mitchell of Florida in 1:31.84, just a tenth off the A cut but with massive points for the Gators. Tomas Koski’s 1:31.93 led a trio of Georgia swimmers.
Event 23 Men 200 Yard Freestyle ========================================================================= NCAA: N 1:29.15 3/27/2019 Dean Farris, Harvard SEC: S 1:29.48 2/23/2021 Kieran Smith, Florida SEC Meet: M 1:29.48 2021 Kieran Smith, Florida Pool: P 1:30.11 2/18/2020 Kieren Smith, Florida Name Year School Prelims Finals Points ========================================================================= === Championship Final === 1 McDuff, Macguire V JR FLOR-FL 1:31.40 1:30.64 32 r:+0.63 20.94 44.01 (23.07) 1:07.56 (23.55) 1:30.64 (23.08) 2 Hawke, Charlie J JR BAMA-SE 1:31.47 1:31.03 28 r:+0.69 20.91 43.95 (23.04) 1:07.40 (23.45) 1:31.03 (23.63) 3 Crooks, Jordan J SO Tennessee-SE 1:31.45 1:31.17 27 r:+0.60 20.91 44.19 (23.28) 1:07.92 (23.73) 1:31.17 (23.25) 4 Mitchell, Jake R SR FLOR-FL 1:32.23 1:31.84 26 r:+0.69 21.30 44.41 (23.11) 1:08.00 (23.59) 1:31.84 (23.84) 5 Koski, Tomas S FR UGA-GA 1:32.80 1:31.93 25 r:+0.64 21.31 44.53 (23.22) 1:08.22 (23.69) 1:31.93 (23.71) 6 Branzell, Reese JR UGA-GA 1:32.43 1:32.26 24 r:+0.62 21.24 44.65 (23.41) 1:08.61 (23.96) 1:32.26 (23.65) 7 Dunham, Bradley GS UGA-GA 1:32.77 1:32.79 23 r:+0.69 21.71 44.95 (23.24) 1:08.84 (23.89) 1:32.79 (23.95) 8 Alves, Kaique JR BAMA-SE 1:32.77 1:33.14 22 r:+0.64 21.47 45.05 (23.58) 1:08.94 (23.89) 1:33.14 (24.20)
Women’s 1-meter diving
Joslyn Oakley picked up a gold medal to wrap up Thursday, but Florida probably felt like the big winners. Oakley scored 325.65 points to claim gold. The sophomore was just third in prelims.
Camyla Monroy of Florida picked up her second medal of the meet, scoring 316.35. Montserrat Gutierrez Lavenant of LSU, the 3-meter champ and top scorer in prelims, earned a silver medal with 310.55 points.
Florida bolstered its point total with two A finalists, Carina Lumia securing eighth place. LSU had a second scorer, with Helle Tuxen fifth. Tuxen (304.50) and Georgia’s Meghan Wenzel (307.00) both topped 300 points.
Event 24 Women 1 mtr Diving ========================================================================= SEC: S 375.53 1/18/2019 Brooke Schulz, Arkansas SEC Meet: M 364.30 2017 Lauren Reedy, Missouri Name Year School Prelims Finals Points ========================================================================= === Championship Final === 1 Oakley, Joslyn R SO Texas A&M-GU 300.65 325.65 32 2 Monroy, Camyla FR FLOR-FL 308.35 316.35 28 3 Lavenant, Montserrat GR LSU-LA 314.35 310.55 27 4 Wenzel, Meghan E SR UGA-GA 291.15 307.00 26 5 Tuxen, Helle GR LSU-LA 271.95 304.50 25 6 Lucoe, Tanesha SR Tennessee-SE 269.80 279.15 24 7 Martinez, Malea M SO Arkansas-AR 270.00 275.90 23 8 Lumia, Carina SO FLOR-FL 270.10 270.45 22 === Consolation Final === 9 Sullivan, Ashlynn GS Auburn-SE 255.90 292.90 20 10 Richards, Mayson SR Texas A&M-GU 267.85 283.20 17 11 Buckley, Maggie L GR LSU-LA 249.20 268.10 16 12 Stumpf, Hannah SO UGA-GA 262.40 267.60 15 13 Zuechner, Aislinn FR South Carolina-S 265.90 265.05 14 14 Kidd, Kyleigh SO Auburn-SE 257.35 258.20 13 15 Rogers, Ryleigh SO BAMA-SE 252.25 247.30 12 16 Sanchez, Bryze E FR Arkansas-AR 244.75 219.25 11