Tennessee Swimming Enjoys Successful Run to Wrap Up 2022

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – While the collegiate schedule for the fall semester ended with the Tennessee Invitational before Thanksgiving, UT swimmers—past, present and even future—put together an impressive stretch of performances to end 2022 on a high note.

Since the invite, the Vols and Lady Vols have competed at the FINA Short Course World Championships and the Toyota U.S. Open Championships. One swimmer threw down the fastest time in the world for the 2022-23 competitive cycle during his nation's summer championships. No matter the level, Tennessee swimming continued to prove it's one of the best programs in the world for training and developing swimmers.

Here's a quick recap from the top moments during the last month.

Tennessee Swimmers Win Seven Medals, Three Golds During Short Course World Championships

The Big Orange was represented well during the 2022 FINA Short Course World Championships in Melbourne, Australia, as the Vols and Lady Vols combined to win seven medals and post multiple national records throughout the week. Jordan Crooks put on a show in the sprint freestyles, while Erika Brown garnered five medals with Team USA.

Crooks was the highlight of the meet for Tennessee, as the sophomore earned the title of World Champion in the 50 free. He became the first swimmer ever from the Cayman Islands to win a World Championship medal, and his semifinals time of 20.31 marked the fourth-best effort ever in the event.

The George Town, Cayman Islands, native became the first Vol since Mel Stewart (200 Fly/Goodwill Games) and Evan Stewart (1-meter Diving/World Championships) in 1994 to win an individual world title. He joins Tripp Schwenk as the only Vols to ever win short course titles. Schwenk was the 1993 World Champion in the 100 back and 200 back as well as the 400 medley relay for Team USA.

Brown won a pair of gold medals during the week, highlighted by the 200 free relay race that saw her and Team USA throw down a 1:33.89 time, which marked a new Short Course World Championship and American record. She was also a part of the 400 free relay that won silver and set another American record with a time of 3:26.29. Earning medals for swimming as part of the prelims lineups, Brown also won medals in the 400 medley relay (gold), 200 medley relay (silver) and 800 free relay (bronze). In her individual events, she advanced to the finals in the 50 free (7th/23.76) and the semifinals in the 50 back (16th/26.56).

Rounding out the medal winners for Tennessee was Kira Toussaint, who took home bronze in the 200 free relay with the Netherlands. In addition to three other top-5 finishes in the relays, she advanced to the finals in the 100 back (7th/56.41) and 200 back (8th/ 2:05.20). She also placed 10th in the 50 back behind a 26.17 mark.

Also representing the Big Orange, Aleksey Tarasenko broke a pair of Uzbekistan national records during the meet in the 50 free (21.59) and 100 free (47.82). His 100 free time made him the first swimmer from Uzbekistan to ever go sub-48 in the event. Class of 2023 signee Emelie Fast was the youngest swimmer to advance to the 100 IM semifinals, finishing 14th with a time of 59.61 for Sweden. Tessa Cieplucha advanced to the finals in the 400 IM for Team Canada, while Peter Johns Stevens moved on to the semifinals in the 50 breast for Slovenia. Joaquin Vargas also competed at Worlds, swimming for Peru and just narrowly missing the semifinal cut in the 400 free (3:45.66).

Caribe Wows at Brazilian Summer Championships

Freshman Gui Caribe dominated during the 2022 Brazilian Summer Championships, shattering two championship records, and earning his right as the fastest swimmer in the world for the 2022-23 competitive season in the 50 free LCM. The Salvador, Brazil, native touched the wall in 21.87, a mark that surpasses both the previous Tennessee and Brazilian Junior Championship record.

During the meet, Caribe also dominated the 100 free, earning a lifetime best in the event with a 47.82 effort and breaking the previous record in UT history. To put into perspective how impressive his performances were, his 100 free time would have tied for fifth overall during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, while his 50 free mark would have ranked 12th.

At the midway point in the collegiate season, Caribe has already established himself as one of the top sprinters in the country, ranking second nationally in the 100 free (41.44) and fourth in the 50 free (18.91). Both of those times rank second in the UT record books. During the Tennessee Invite, the three-time SEC Freshman of the Week honoree also helped the Vols shatter program records in the 200 free relay, 400 free relay and 400 medley relay.

Tennessee Combines for Highest Team Point Total at U.S. Open Championships

Tennessee swimming returned to the pool shortly after its invitational to compete in the U.S. Open Championships, a long-course meet. The squad came away with the highest combined score for the weekend with 335 points and eight medals won.

Tennessee's top performer of the meet, Mona McSharry, competed for her home country, bringing home four medals throughout the week. She brought home gold in the 100 breast, touching the wall in 1:07.06, which was 1.40 seconds faster than second place. She also won gold in the 400 free relay and 400 medley relay—events the Lady Vols came in second in. She capped her impressive week with a silver medal in the 200 breast (2:27.59).

The Lady Vol relays had strong showings, as the lineup of Josephine Fuller, Kailee Morgan, Brooklyn Douthwright and Julia Burroughs won silver in the 400 medley relay (4:09.55). In the 400 free relay, Kate McCarville joined Burroughs, Douthwright and Fuller to take silver thanks to a 3:48.14 mark. The Vols also won a silver medal in the 400 medley relay behind the squad of Landon Driggers, Lyubomir Epitropov, Griffin Hadley and Michael Houlie, touching the wall in 3:43.44.

The top individuals of the meet for Tennessee were Driggers, Epitropov and Fuller—all three of which won medals. Specializing in the breaststroke, Epitropov won silver in the 100 breast behind a 1:00.94 time and took home bronze in the 200 breast (2:11.74). Fuller secured a pair of bronze medals in the 100 back (1:00.00) and the 200 back (2:09.77), while also finishing sixth overall in the 200 IM (2:16.07). All three times marked new personal bests for her in LCM. Driggers narrowly missed medaling in two events, as he won bronze in the 400 IM (4:20.85) and finished fourth in the 200 IM (2:02.27)—both checking in as new career bests for him. He also placed 11th in the 200 back (2:01.68).

Other notable performances included Houlie earning fifth in the 100 breast behind a 1:02.08 effort, and Jake Narvid placing eighth in the 1500 free (15:38.35) and 10th in the 800 free (8:10.99) on the men's side. For the Lady Vols, Douthwright finished seventh in the 200 free (2:01.34), while Alyssa Breslin notched a pair of top-10 finishes in the 1500 free (8th/16:45.42) and 800 free (9th/8:47.72).

Competing for her club team, Camille Spink—the No. 4 overall recruit in the 2023 signing class—had an impressive meet as well, winning two medals and posting USA Olympic Team Trial qualifying times in four different events. The future Lady Vol won bronze in the 50 free (25.36) and 100 free (55.47) in addition to placing ninth in the 200 free (2:00.81). She posted the third-best time in the 200 IM prelims, touching the wall in 2:13.96, but did not swim in the finals.

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