2000-01 Swimming and Diving Outlook

Coach Trembley Previews 2000-01 Season

The 2000-2001 season brings with it high expectations. A senior-laden roster that possesses equal meaures of talent and experience has Volunteer fans conjuring visions of grandeur for the championship season.

Nine seniors will lead the Vols into the water this fall, an unusually large class that has seen the usual success during their time on the Hill. With three top 10 national finishes under their belts, these battle-hardened veterans are aiming to top their previous acheivments and finish their collegiate days with a bang.

Two-time Southeastern Conference individual champions Michael Gilliam and Zane DeWitz give the Vols a powerful senior duo in the pool while classmates Gabi Chereches and Shannon Roy should be the top diving duo in the conference and one of the best pairs in the country. The talent runs deep for the Volunteers this season. Rounding out the powerhouse senior class are All-Americas Lance Asti, Chris Hussey, Brent Owen, Joel Shapiro and former Atlantic 10 Conference champion Steve Cromer.

Supporting the seniors are six juniors that include Jeremy McDonnell, who finished third in the nation in the 100 breaststroke, SEC champion Brett Tannhauser, and All-Americas Justin Hoggatt and Chris Stewart.

To prepare his squad for the task, Tennessee head coach John Trembley has laid out a daunting schedule for his charges that should thouroughly equip them for the championship season. All of the Vols' 11 dual-meet opponents finished among the top 21 at the 2000 NCAAs. The Vols kick off the season in grand style by playing host to the Southeastern Conference Dual-Meet Extravaganza Oct. 27. The five teams of the SEC East, all of whom finished in the top 20 at the NCAA meet, will gather in Knoxville for a wild and intense competition.

The Vols take a trip to Lexington to do battle border-rival Kentucky and then play host to the Virginia Cavaliers in November. Tennessee competes at the Princeton Invitational Dec. 1-3 and visits the University of Hawaii in mid-December. The Vols will then ring in the New Year with back-to-back home dual-meets with Arizona State and Texas. The Volunteers next challenge is the prestigious Dallas Morning News Classic Jan. 19-20. The Vols will close out the dual-meet portion of their schedule by hosting North Carolina State Jan. 27 and then traveling to Florida to renew their rivalry with the Gators Feb. 3.

Following the grueling schedule that includes 11 dual-meets and a pair of invitational meets, the Vols will turn their attention to the championship season. The Southeastern Conference Championships will be held in Tuscaloosa, Ala., as the members of the nation's top swimming and diving conference will shoot it out in a fast and furious weekend. The NCAA Championships await at the end of March in College Station, Texas.

Sprint Freestyle

Seniors Chris Hussey and Michael Gilliam will lead a talented group of sprinters for the Volunteers that boasts five athletes who have recorded times under 20 seconds in the 50 freestyle. Hussey was the top Vol in both events in 2000 with a time of 19.79 in the 50 free that ranks second in UT history and a time of 43.74 in the 100 free that ranks sixth all-time.

Gilliam surprised observers with his significant improvement in the 50 and 100 freestyle. Gilliam posted the squad's second-best times in both events, establishing career-bests. His time of 19.81 in the 50 free ranks fourth-best in the program's history while his time of 43.93 in the 100 ranks 10th.

Jeremy McDonnell, a junior, will lend his talent in both events as well after posting a career-best 19.94 at the SEC Championships. Knoxville native Brent Owen, a battle-tested senior, returns to finish a solid career after scoring in both events at the 2000 SEC meet and serving on both the 200 and 400 medley relays that won conference titles.

Senior Lance Asti will look to bounce back from an off-season and return to the form of his sophomore season. Renato Gueraldi, a freshman who will join the squad in January, will add some strength to sprints as well.

Distance Freestyle

The biggest improvement for the Vols in 2000 came in the distance freestyle events. The charge was led by Brett Tannhauser who claimed the conference title in the 500 freestyle, finished fourth in the 1650 free and 10th in the 200 free. Tannhauser, a junior, ranks third in UT history in the 500 free with his time of 4:20.42 that was good enough to win the SEC title and sixth in the mile with a time of 15:19.42.

Sophomore Greg Simpson showed a great deal of promise in his first campaign and returns with the Vols' best 200 freestyle performance of the season. Simpson already ranks ninth on the all-time list with a time of 4:23.84 in the 500 free and 10th in the 200 free with a time of 1:37.59. Steve Cromer adds depth and experience to the trio that will compete in the 500, 1000 and 1650-yard events.

Other Vols who will see action in the 200 freestyle include the versatile Zane DeWitz and Michael Gross, who returns from an injury-plagued sophomore season after a solid rookie season.

Chris Hussey and freshman Evan Nylander could also contribute this season.

Butterfly

Joel Shapiro and Zane DeWitz return for their senior campaigns as a strong duo in the butterfly events. Both can compete for top conference honors in the 100 and 200-yard event. At the 2000 SEC Championships, Shapiro finished third in the 100 and fourth in the 200 while DeWitz was fourth and fifth, respectively, in both events. Shapiro enters the season ranked second all-time in the 100 fly while DeWitz is second in the 200.

Junior Justin Hoggatt was a pleasant surprise for the Vols as he qualified for the NCAAs at the last meet of the season and continued his impressive performance with a strong showing at the NCAAs. Hoggatt, who swam on the Vols' NCAA runnerup 200 medley relay squad, ranks seventh in the 100 butterfly on the all-time list. Matt Parrish will also contribute in the butterfly events while freshmen Jason Baxter, Jamie Graves and Landon Owen will compete as well.

Breaststroke

Junior Jeremy McDonnell enters the season as one of the top breaststroke swimmers in the country after finishing fourth in the NCAAs and second in the SEC last season. McDonnell's time of 53.37 in the 100 breaststroke ranks second in UT history while his 200 time of 1:58.51 ranks third.

Chris Stewart, also a junior, brings significant international experience with him. The South African native ranks fourth in UT history in the 100 with a time of 54.75 and ninth in the 200 with a time of 2:01.12. Sophomore Ben Brink will look to move up from his understudy role and take on more responsibility in scoring. Brink could prove to be the top Vol in the 200 breaststroke after an impressive summer.

Freshmen Andrew Bree and Evan Fischer will serve as understudies.

Backstroke

Backstroke competitors around the conference should be wary in the 2001 season as Michael Gilliam returns for his senior season. After capturing the conference and national gold medals as a sophomore, Gilliam set school and conference records as a junior, but fell short of the national title. The 2001 season will see Gilliam as a man on a mission to recapture his crown as the top backstroker in the nation.

Greg Simpson holds the top returning time in the 200 after finishing 10th at the SECs with a time of 1:47.26 that ranks eighth all-time for the Vols. Matt Parrish provides depth at both distances while the return of Michael Gross will help fill the void left by the departed Ross Powells.

Lance Asti and Brent Owen will also provide depth in the 100-yard event and freshmen Paulo Machado and Landon Owen will aid the effort as well.

Individual Medley

Zane DeWitz returns with a pair of SEC titles in the 200 I.M. under his belt as well as the school record with a time of 1:45.16. This season, DeWitz should have plenty of help.

Sophomore Ben Brink returns with the top 400 I.M. time from last season after finishing 11th in the SEC last season. Brink also scored in the 200 I.M. at the conference meet. Sophomore Jason Baxter was 12th in the conference in the 400 I.M. last year and saw action in the 200-yard event as well.

Steve Cromer will add depth to the 400 while the return of Michael Gross will pay dividends as well. Freshmen Andrew Bree, Evan Fischer and Paulo Machado will contribute here also.

Diving

Over the past decade, the Tennessee diving program has proven itself to be among the top in the country. The 2000 season was no different, as the Vols claimed top conference honors and translated that to a strong showing on the national level. In 2001, the Vol divers will look to once again provide consistent scoring in dual-meets and championship meets as a pair of highly decorated seniors return for their final campaign.

Gabi Chereches doubled up at the SEC Championships by winning the three-meter and platform titles for the second consecutive season and was rewarded as the SEC Diver of the Year and given the Commissioner's Trophy as the meet's top scorer for the second year. Shannon Roy, an SEC champion at three-meters in 1998, finished second to Chereches in the 2000 three-meter event and was sixth in the one-meter event. Roy went on to give an impressive performance at the NCAA Championships. Roy finished as the national runnerup off the one-meter board and was fourth in the nation off the three-meter board. Chereches finished sevent the the three-meter competition and fifth in the platform competition at the NCAA Championships.

Sophomore Jake Dorsey showed promise as a rookie in the Vol diving program and returns to his understudy role.

The Vol tankmen open the 2000-01 season with the annual Orange and White meet Oct. 20 at the Student Aquatic Center on the Tennessee campus.