GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Led by 2010 American Swimming Coaches Association Coach of the Year Gregg Troy, the University of Florida men’s and women’s swimming and diving programs each earned a No. 4 national ranking in the first poll of the 2010-11 season, released Wednesday by the College Swimming Coaches’ Association of America (CSCAA).
“While we’re appreciative of the rankings, we realize that there is much more work to be done to justify them,” Troy said. “We’re more focused on where we are at the end of the season than where we’re at in the middle of November.”
The Florida men are off to an impressive 2-1 start (2-0 SEC). The men opened up the season by winning the first-ever All-Florida Invitational Oct. 1-3 in Gainesville, which included rival No. 20 Florida State. Missing four All-Americans, the Gators suffered a 153-145 loss to No. 11 Virginia at home on Oct. 11, before rebounding with a 170-130 victory at rival Georgia on Oct. 29. On Nov. 4, the Orange and Blue improved to a perfect 2-0 in SEC play with a 160-136 triumph on the road at LSU, extending their SEC dual-meet consecutive winning streak to seven.
The Gator men currently hold the fastest SEC times in four of the six freestyle events, both backstroke events, 200-yard breaststroke and 400-yard freestyle relay. Florida’s times in the 500 free (4:25.46), 1,000 free (9:00.48) and 1,650 free (15:31.48) are also the fastest times in the country. The men are led by senior captain and reigning 2010 NCAA and SEC Male Swimmer of the Year Conor Dwyer (Winnetka, Ill.), who has twice been named SEC Male Swimmer of the Week (Oct. 12 & Nov. 2) this season, while taking home CollegeSwimming.com’s Counsilman-Hunsaker National Collegiate Male Swimmer of the Week honors on Nov. 3.
The Florida women own a 2-2 record (0-1 SEC) with one of the toughest early-season schedules in the country. After winning the inaugural All-Florida Invitational at home Oct. 1-3, the Lady Gators defeated No. 9 Virginia by a 150-148 margin, the closest finish on the women’s side since Florida squeaked by UCLA for a 150-149 victory during the 1997-98 season. Two weeks later on Oct. 29, the women suffered a 180-120 setback to No. 2 Georgia in Athens, Ga. This past weekend, the Lady Gators traveled to Palo Alto, Calif., to compete against No. 1 Stanford and No. 13 Michigan. In the Nov. 5-6 double-dual meet, the Gators fell to the No. 1 Cardinal, 227-175, while defeating the No. 13 Wolverines, 286-124. The Gator women are the only team in the country to have competed against the top two teams in the CSCAA rankings.
The Lady Gators presently own the fastest SEC times in the 50, 500 and 1,650 free, 200 back, 400-yard individual medley and 800 free relay. The women are anchored by freshman swimmer Elizabeth Beisel (North Kingstown, R.I.), who on Nov. 10 was named CollegeSwimming.com’s Counsilman-Hunsaker National Collegiate Female Swimmer of the Week for the first time in her career. Earlier this week, Beisel, who owns the nation’s fastest times in the 200 back (1:54.57) and the 400 IM (4:08.52), became the first freshman in SEC history to be named SEC Swimmer of the Week twice in the same season (Oct. 12 and Nov. 9).
The rankings were voted on by members of the CSCAA, with the next poll released Dec. 15, 2010.
The Gator swimming and diving program is in the midst of a two-week break from competition before returning to the pool, Nov. 19-21, as part of the annual Georgia Tech Invitational in Atlanta, Ga. Fans are encouraged to follow the swimming and diving program on Twitter or Facebook.
Nov. 10, 2010 CSCAA College Swimming & Diving Poll
| WOMEN | MEN | ||||
| 1. | Stanford | 734 | 1. | Texas | 510 |
| 2. | Georgia | 713 | 2. | California | 445 |
| 3. | Texas | 703 | 3. | Stanford | 445 |
| 4. | Florida | 680 | 4. | Florida | 418 |
| 5. | California | 660 | 5. | Arizona | 375 |
| 6. | Southern Cal | 546 | 6. | Michigan | 352 |
| 7 | Arizona | 531 | 7 | Auburn | 348 |
| 8. | Texas A&M | 510 | 8. | Ohio State | 347 |
| 9. | Virginia | 472 | 9. | North Carolina | 312 |
| 10. | Auburn | 445 | 10. | Indiana | 302 |
| 11. | Tennessee | 367 | 11. | Virginia | 285 |
| 12. | North Carolina | 334 | 12. | Georgia | 275 |
| 13. | Michigan | 301 | 13. | Minnesota | 275 |
| 14. | Minnesota | 277 | 14. | Southern California | 244 |
| 15. | Indiana | 264 | 15. | Tennessee | 212 |
| 16. | Wisconsin | 208 | 16. | Alabama | 164 |
| 17. | Arkansas | 144 | 17. | Texas A&M | 163 |
| 18. | Southern Methodist | 143 | 18. | UNLV | 117 |
| 19. | Purdue | 128 | 19. | Louisville | 114 |
| 20. | Louisville | 119 | 20. | Florida State | 109 |
| 21. | Ohio State | 98 | 21. | Purdue | 98 |
| 22. | Louisiana State | 96 | 22. | Louisiana State | 93 |
| 23. | San Diego State | 90 | 23. | Virginia Tech | 53 |
| 24. | UCLA | 85 | 24. | South Carolina | 42 |
| 25. | Missouri | 67 | 25. | Princeton | 41 |
