GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The University of Florida men’s and women’s swimming teams qualified a combined 17 swimmers Saturday morning for the finals of day four of the 2011 SEC Swimming Championships at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center.
The morning started out with the Orange and Blue sweeping the 200-yard backstroke. Redshirt sophomore Marco Loughran (London, England), who won the gold medal Friday in the men’s 100 back, captured the 200 back with a NCAA “B” cut time of 1:41.82, the second-fastest time in the NCAA this season. In the women’s event, freshman Elizabeth Beisel (North Kingstown, R.I.) picked up another NCAA automatic qualifying time with a first-place finish of 1:53.20. The Olympian’s time was good for fourth in school history and currently ranks fifth nationally in 2010-11.
Up next was the men’s 100-yard freestyle that saw senior Brett Fraser (George Town, Cayman Islands) finish second (42.72) and freshman Brad deBorde (Longwood, Fla.) take fourth (43.09) to qualify for the evening finals. Fraser’s NCAA “B” cut time is the fourth-fastest time in the NCAA this year, while deBorde’s mark ranks seventh in school history and is sixth-fastest in the nation this season.
The women’s 100 free also saw two Gators qualify, with juniors Shara Stafford (Topeka, Kan.) and Sarah Bateman (Orlando, Fla.) taking seventh and eighth, respectively. Stafford finished with a NCAA provisional time of 48.91, while Bateman’s personal-best 48.96 mark ranks ninth in school history. In addition to Florida’s fast times, Auburn’s Arianna Vanderpool-Wallace broke the U.S. Open, NCAA, SEC and pool record with a 46.81 mark in the women’s 100 free.
In the men’s 200-yard breaststroke, three Gator men swam personal best NCAA “B” cut times to finished six through eight and advance to tonight’s finals. Junior Robby Kennedy (Rochester Hills, Mich.) took seventh with a personal-best 1:57.54, the sixth-fastest time in school history. Freshman Eric Solis (Holland, Mich.) clocked in at a personal-best 1:58.41, the 10th-fastest time in school history and senior Michael Joyce (Voorhees, N.J.) touched the wall in a career-best 1:58.45 to take the final spot in the finals.
Swimming the second-fastest time in school history in the women’s 200 breast was sophomore Sarra Lajnef (Tunis, Tunisia), who clocked in at a fourth-place personal-best NCAA provisional time of 2:11.54.
The next event was the men’s 200-yard butterfly, where three of the top four times belonged to the Orange and Blue. Finishing second in a NCAA “B” cut time of 1:43.03 was sophomore Sebastien Rousseau (Cape Town, South Africa). Right behind Rousseau in third place was freshman Marcin Cieslak (Warsaw, Poland), who clocked in at a NCAA provisional mark of 1:44.55. Also recording a NCAA “B” cut was sophomore Cameron Martin (Clearwater, Fla.), who took fourth with a personal-best 1:44.80.
In the last event of the morning prelims, junior Teresa Crippen (Conshohocken, Pa.) qualified for the finals with a second-place NCAA qualifying time of 1:56.88. Also qualifying for the finals of the event was 2010 SEC Community Service Team member Anna-Liisa Pold (San Diego, Calif.). The junior placed seventh in the prelims with a personal-best 1:58.36.
Florida Swimmers Advancing to Saturday Night’s Finals (17 – 9 Men, 8 Women)
Men’s 200 Back
| Place | Name | Time |
| 1 | Marco Loughran | 1:41.82 |
Women’s 200 Back
| Place | Name | Time |
| 1 | Elizabeth Beisel | 1:53.20 |
| 3 | Teresa Crippen | 1:54.12 |
| 6 | Trish Regan | 1:55.45 |
Men’s 100 Free
| Place | Name | Time |
| 2 | Brett Fraser | 42.72 |
| 4 | Teresa Crippen | 43.09 |
Women’s 100 Free
| Place | Name | Time |
| 7 | Shara Stafford | 48.91 |
| 8 | Sarah Bateman | 48.96 |
Men’s 200 Breast
| Place | Name | Time |
| 6 | Robby Kennedy | 1:57.54 |
| 7 | Eric Solis | 1:58.41 |
| 8 | Michael Joyce | 1:58.45 |
Women’s 200 Breast
| Place | Name | Prelims |
| 4. | Sarra Lajnef | 2:11.54 |
Men’s 200 Fly
| Place | Name | Time |
| 2 | Sebastien Rousseau | 1:43.03 |
| 3 | Marcin Cieslak | 1:44.55 |
| 4 | Cameron Martin | 1:44.80 |
Women’s 200 Fly
| Place | Name | Time |
| 2 | Teresa Crippen | 1:56.88 |
| 7 | Anna-Liisa Pold | 1:58.36 |
U.S. Open Records Set at Day Four Prelims (1)
| Event | Name | School | Time |
| Women’s 100-Yard Freestyle | Arianna Vanderpool-Wallace | Auburn | 46.81 |
NCAA Records Set at Day Four Prelims (1)
| Event | Name | School | Time |
| Women’s 100-Yard Freestyle | Arianna Vanderpool-Wallace | Auburn | 46.81 |
SEC Records Set at Day Four Prelims (1)
| Event | Name | School | Time |
| Women’s 100-Yard Freestyle | Arianna Vanderpool-Wallace | Auburn | 46.81 |
Stephen C. O’Connell Center Pool Records Set at Day Three Prelims (3)
| Event | Name | School | Time |
| Men’s 100-Yard Freestyle | Adam Brown | Auburn | 42.26 |
| Women’s 100-Yard Freestyle | Arianna Vanderpool-Wallace | Auburn | 46.81 |
| Women’s 200-Yard Breaststroke | Amanda Rutqvist | South Carolina | 2:09.87 |
2011 NCAA Automatic Qualifying Times by Florida (1)
| Event | Name | Time |
| Women’s 200-Yard Backstroke | Elizabeth Beisel | 1:53.20 |
