SEC Swimming & Diving Championships Day 4 Quotes

Feb. 17, 2017

Matt Kredich | Tennessee Head Coach

(On his thoughts on today)
"We had another really good morning. The women's 200 fly, I was really impressed with the way we raced. Men's 100 breaststroke, the highlight was definitely Ross Dibblin. He put himself third all-time but really took a step forward in the way he thinks about himself. If his perception catches up to his ability then he can probably score some points at the NCAAs his senior year. Great swim for Colleen Callahan this morning, I think as she gets more experience she can get better and better. We tried something different on the women's relay and I think it was good information for us to see that Meghan Small can swim a lot of different things. It was nice to give Kira Toussaint a break from the backstroke. We will evaluate that as we head into the NCAAs too. Probably the two biggest stories of the day are Emily Pelletier and Ross Dibblin. As a team we are competing really well, it is exciting to see us in a team race with so many different teams. It puts a premium on our performance tomorrow morning so we have to get them ready for that."

Dave Parrington | Tennessee Head Diving Coach

(On the Friday's performances)
"Going back to the prelims today, sometimes the person who you least expect to do something gets up and does something so those moments are special. Sometimes special moments come when you least expect it. Sean Meyers who probably was not expecting to score a point for us earned her letter award for the year by scoring points and qualifying for the NCAA zones. It was an incredible day for her and could not be more proud. Emily Pelletier did some fantastic stuff in dramatic fashion to make the finals. I am very happy with that performance, her hard work and dedication was rewarded today because of that. Rachel Rubadue did fantastic and qualified first for the finals. As for the finals having both Emily and Rachel in there and Emily moving up a spot. She had a lot of energy and adrenaline flowing tonight, she missed one dive but I'm really proud of her for being in that final. I think next year at this time she will have another twist on her dive so she has some exciting things to come. Rachel battled really hard to defend her title which is hard to do in tower. She did some really good stuff after being off of her hands for a month. I am really pleased with what she did."

Olivia Smoliga | Georgia | Women's 100 Backstroke

(On claiming the women's 100 backstroke for the third-straight year as she reached the wall in 50.60)
"Winning the 100 backstroke is a great feeling. It didn't feel good as it was happening, but it feels so good now. The last 25 really shows what you have. I saw Hannah (Stevens of Missouri) flip before me on the third wall, so I closed as fast as I could. That's going to be a fun race at NCAAs. ... As a team, I think we're showing how tough we are, especially at this point in the training. We're going to give it all we have and leave it all in the pool."

Steve Bultman | Texas A&M Head Coach

(On Friday's action at SEC Championships)
"It was another great night. We won three races in the pool and were third on the platform, so the day was definitely a success."

(On Sarah Gibson's win in 200 fly)
"Great, great race with Sarah (Gibson in the 200 fly). She and that girl were just battling and it wasn't real pretty at the end but she just wanted it, fought through it and got her hand to the wall."

"Winning the 100 breaststroke was awesome for Jorie (Caneta). She was fifth last year so to come back this year and win it was nice. Obviously winning the relay was nice. It was really close until the last lap of the fly when Sarah gave us a little room and then Beryl was able to finish it up. Lisa (Bratton) led off with her best time so that was good."

(On Jorie Caneta's win in the 100 breast)

"It was close - there were a bunch of them right there. Jorie just had enough left to get home and win the thing.

(On getting ready for last day)
"The prelims on the last day are so important. Everyone is tired and you have to find a way to get yourself ready and get qualified where you need to get qualified. The prelims set up the finals so that will be the key to the last day."

Sarah Gibson | Texas A&M | Women's 200 Fly

(On winning the 200 fly)
"I was concerned going into the race because I know that Georgia has some very talented girls. I was a little bit worried, but Steve (Bultman) just told me 'I think they are going to bring the best out of you' and he tends to be right. I put my faith in him and the training and tried to push it on that last 25 to get it in there. I think we were both on the 'struggle bus' in that last 50 and I'm glad I was able to get my hand to the wall first."

Jorie Caneta | Texas A&M | Women's 100 Breast

(On winning the 100 breaststroke)
"It's been a long journey, especially after transferring and getting adjusted to a new program. It's great to get stability under Steve (Bultman) and T (Tanica Jamison). Buying into the program and trusting their training has really helped and it's paying off this year. I knew I had to trust my race plan. This morning was really a rough swim. I jammed every single wall so I was just hoping to fix my walls and I knew doing that would give me a shot."

University of Tennessee Athletics