University of Tennessee Athletics
Lady Vols Remain in Second at UT Invite
November 19, 2010 | Women's Swimming & Diving
Nov. 19, 2010
By Todd Mounce, Media Relations Graduate Assistant
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - At the conclusion of day two of the Tennessee Invitational, the Lady Vols again find themselves sitting in second place after numerous impressive performances on Friday evening at the Allan Jones Intercollegiate Aquatic Center.
On the day, juniors Jenny Connolly and Gabrielle Trudeau along with sophomore Kelsey Floyd all grabbed victories for the Orange and White. Virginia Tech remains atop the leader board with 731 points, followed by Tennessee (647) and Kentucky (592), with Alabama (520) rounding out the scoring.
"Like yesterday we got a lot of swims in and every time we swim we have an opportunity to learn something, said Lady Vol Head Swimming Coach Matt Kredich. "The attitude of this team has been phenomenal and they have embraced the opportunity to learn from their races."
The Orange and White had a strong showing in the 100y fly as Floyd and Connolly both swam NCAA B-cut times to claim first and third, respectively. Floyd earned the first victory for UT in swimming events after touching in at 53.66, while Connolly swam a time of 54.05.
The success continued for the Big Orange as Connolly notched another first-place finish for the team in the 100y back. The West Lafayette, Ind., native won the event with a season-best and B-cut time of 54.23.
For Trudeau, the second day of the meet was a lot like day one on the boards. Trudeau again won the preliminary round, this time on the 1-meter, and didn't let anyone better her in the finals. The Montreal, Canada, native won the event with a zone score of 277.90, while freshman Julianne Wilson finished with a career-best and seventh-place score of 233.45.
"The success that Gabbi has had with last night's win along with the win today will do her wonders," said UT Head Diving Coach Dave Parrington. "She is competing really well within herself and there is certainly room for improvement, which is good to know."
"I'm really proud of Julianne and excited for what we may see from her," Parrington said. "She made a couple mistakes but kept fighting, and did some really exciting stuff."
The Lady Vol quartet of Connolly, senior Martina Moravcikova, Floyd and freshman Mary Kate McNeilis touched in at a B-cut time of 1:41.92 to claim second in the 200y medley relay. Kentucky won the event in 1:39.92.
Lindsay Gendron, a freshman, was the top finisher in the 200y free and 400y IM for the Lady Vols after taking third in both events. The Bloomington, Ill., native swam a time of 1:48.96 in the 200y free and her clocking of 4:20.45 in the 400y IM ranks eighth on UT's top performers list.
Two more individual AJIAC records fell on Friday as Erika Hajnal and Katarina Filova of Virginia Tech both set new pool marks. Hajnal, who set a pool record in the 500y fly yesterday, shattered another AJIAC pool top time by winning the 400y IM in a 4:10.37. Filova now holds the best pool time in the 200y free after clocking in at 1:47.15.
Moravcikova was the lone Lady Vol in the 100y breast final after junior Kirstyn Colonias was scratched. The Prague, Czech Republic, native didn't disappoint, finishing runner-up with a B-cut time of 1:01.74. Kentucky's Lindsey Graessle grabbed the top spot with a mark of 1:01.38.
The night was capped off by another pool record in the 800y free relay by Virginia Tech, who clocked a time of 7:18.10. The Big Orange also impressed in the event, as freshman Alex Frasier, Floyd, McNeilis and Gendron combined to touch in at a B-cut time of 7:21.97 to nab second.
"We are racing like a very poised team and that came through in a lot of cases tonight, so I'm pleased," Kredich said. "We want to as sharp and focused and well prepared tomorrow as we were on day one."
The meet will conclude on Saturday evening. Prelims will begin at 10 a.m., with the finals getting underway at 4 p.m., which is a change as the finals were originally slated to begin at 6 p.m. Live stats of the Tennessee Invitational can be found at http://jonesaquaticcenter.com/livestats/
