Vols, Lady Vols sweep Georgia on senior day

Saturday, January 26

Knoxville, TN

11:00 AM

University of Tennessee

Georgia

January 26, 2019 | Swimming & Diving

Results Photo Gallery

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee swimming and diving team recorded 19 wins out of 32 events Saturday to win the men's and women's competitions on senior day against Georgia at Allan Jones Aquatic Center.

The 13th-ranked Lady Vols finished out the afternoon with 170 points, as No. 12 Georgia fell with 130 points. No. 9 ranked Tennessee rounded out the meet with 156 points, with the 12th-ranked Bulldogs trailing with 144 points.

VETERAN LEADERSHIP: The duo of junior Erika Brown and senior Kyle DeCoursey came up big for the Vols, as they combined for five individual wins on the day. Brown tallied wins in the 50 freestyle (21.87), 100 free (50.04) and the 100 butterfly (52.22) for the Lady Vols. DeCoursey powered the Tennessee men with wins in the 200 free (1:37.68) and a pivotal 1-2-3 finish in the 50 free (19.91).

The Vols men got off to a hot start, with sophomore Will Hallam logging a win in 1-meter diving (309.23) and a team win in the 200 medley relay (1:26.52). The Tennessee men won five of their first eight events, as Michael Houlie registered the ninth-fastest 100 breaststroke time in Vols history (53.11).

DIVING SWEEP: Hallam swept diving for the men with wins in the 1-meter and 3-meter (361.65), as the group of Nick Rusek, Keegan Richardson and Hallam finished 1-2-3 in both events.

Other winners for the Tennessee men included: Alec Connolly in the 100 free (43.94) and Matthew Garcia in the 200 backstroke (1:45.46).

The Lady Vols kicked off the morning with a personal season-best 1-meter performance from Ana Celaya Hernandez (271.80). The Tennessee women then followed up with a 1-2 finish in the 200 medley relay, with the group of Small, Popov, Banic and Grinter leading the pack for a winning time of 1:39.11. After dropping back-to-back races, junior Stanzi Moseley notched a crucial win for Tennessee in the 100 back (53.97) to swing the momentum. Meghan Small capped off the Lady Vols solo events with a win in the 200 individual medley (1:58.71).

Other victors for the Tennessee women included: Small in the 200 back (1:56.71) and Alexis Yager in the 200 breast (2:12.88).

FINISHING STRONG: Both the men and women rounded out the day with team victories in the final event of the meet, the 400 free relay. The Vols finished with a 2:56.25 time, while the Lady Vols notched a time of 3:18.31.

UP NEXT: The Tennessee swimming and diving team hit the road to Gainesville next Saturday, Feb. 2 to take on the Florida Gators. This will be the Vols final meet of the spring season, as the SEC Championships begin on Feb. 19 in Athens, Ga.

QUOTES:
Dave Parrington, Diving Coach
"From the diving end of things, I was pretty pleased. We went in with our top two men divers and our top Lady Vol diver not able to go for different reasons. That was on some of the younger guys to get the job done, particularly on the men's side in what is an incredible rivalry. At the time it was a close event, and they went 1-2-3 on both boards. Those were really crucial points to the meet, so kudos to the guys who stepped up and got it done. I was really proud of them, and Will Hallam getting two victories today, the first two wins of his career, really well done. The other guys also did some really good stuff. On the women's side, we had a fantastic win on the 1-meter but came up a little shy on the 3-meter. I was very pleased with their performance, and Lily Schneider is continuing to show improvement. This was a really big step in our preparations for the SEC Championships and the NCAA zones after that. I am happy to see how it went today."

Ashley Jahn, Associate Head Coach (Women)
"I thought the meet was great today, both teams competed really well and both our Vols and Lady Vols competed really well. Georgia is a really tough team, they are always really competitive. That is why I love swimming them at this time of the year. It was just a great competition and we were led by a great group of seniors. It was a really good meet today. The seniors felt a little bit of extra excitement because it is their last dual meet contribution of the year. It is a great rivalry with Georgia, so they wanted to compete really well. In terms of the Lady Vols, we have not beaten Georgia many times, so it was a great competition."

Lance Asti, Associate Head Coach (Men)
"We competed really well, and Georgia threw everything they had at us, but our guys responded really well under the leadership of our seniors and captains. I am really proud of their performance and the way they competed. We had a challenge with from our alumni this week about the mentality that we bring to every meet, especially this one. The idea that we expect to win, and our guys definitely competed as though they expected to win this meet with fire and the way they finished the races. I am proud of them and their senior leadership. We went after this meet and everyone tried to give their very best performance and a thank you performance to the seniors. We talked about digging a little bit deeper to honor the guys that have given four years of sacrifice. You could see it in the way we competed today."

Georgia Meet
Women
1-meter: Ana Celaya Hernandez (271.80)
200 medley relay: Tennessee (1:39.11)
100 backstroke: Stanzi Moseley (53.97)
50 freestyle: Erika Brown (21.87)
100 freestyle: Erika Brown (25.52)
200 backstroke: Meghan Small (1:56.71)
200 breaststroke: Alexis Yager (2:12.88)
100 butterfly: Erika Brown (52.22)
200 individual medley: Meghan Small (1:58.71)
400 free relay: Tennessee (3:18.31)

Men
1-meter: Will Hallam (309.23)
200 medley relay: Tennessee (1:26.52)
200 freestyle: Kyle DeCoursey (1:37.68)
100 breaststroke: Michael Houlie (53.11)
50 freestyle: Kyle DeCoursey (19.91)
100 freestyle: Alec Connolly (43.94)
200 backstroke: Matthew Garcia (1:45.46)
3-meter: Will Hallam (361.65)
400 free relay: Tennessee (2:56.25)