University of Tennessee Athletics
Swimming and Diving In Second at Georgial Invitational
December 04, 1999 | Men's Swimming & Diving
The Tennessee swimming and diving squad stands in second place at the Georgia Invitational in Athens, Ga., after the first of three days of competition. The Vols totaled 294 points and trail host Georgia with 320 points. Clemson is in third place with 187 points.
Leading the Vols on Friday was Michael Gilliam, who won the 50-meter freestyle in a time of 22.80. The junior from Nashville also competed on UT's victorious 400-meter medley relay squad and on the second-place 200-meter freestyle relay team.
Gilliam led a strong Tennessee 50-meter freestyle contingent as the Vols claimed five of top seven positions in the finals. Following Gilliam in the sprint were Raphael Thuin in fourth (23.14), Brent Owen (23.15) and Jeremy McDonnell (23.15) in fifth, Ross Powells in seventh (23.16) and Chris Johnson in 11th (23.20).
Tennessee got off to a good start by taking second and third-place in the opening 200-meter freestyle relay. Gilliam, McDonnell, Thuin, Owen reached the wall in a time of 1:30.99 to take the runner-up spot.
The Volunteers also claimed second and third-place in the 400-meter freestyle as Brett Tannhauser finished in a second-place time of 3:56.21. Tannhauser was followed by freshman Greg Simpson (3:57.23) in third, while Steve Cromer made it a trio of scorers for the Vols with a 11th-place time of 4:00.53.
Following the 50-meter freestyle, Gabi Chereches took third in the three-meter diving event with a score of 577.20. Freshman Jake Dorsey turned in a solid performance with a score of 388.90, good for ninth place.
The Vols closed out the competition with an impressive victory in the 400-meter medley relay as Gilliam, Chris Stewart, Joel Shapiro, and Owen finished with a time of 3:39.46. Tennessee also placed fifth in the event as well. The Georgia Invitational continues on Saturday and Sunday with finals on Saturday at 6 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m.
