Feb. 18, 2014
Vanderbilt Swim Notes
| Schedule of Events
ATHENS, Ga. – The Vanderbilt swim team opened the 2014 SEC Swimming and Diving Championships with much of the same flare as it did a year ago. The Commodores set school records in both the 200 medley relay and the 800 freestyle relay and finished the first day with 64 points.
The Commodores opened the evening with the 200-yard medley relay. The team of Chrissy Oberg, Kathryn Coughlin, Kayla Moran and Caroline Thomas was in the first heat alongside LSU, South Carolina and Kentucky.
Oberg got off to a good start, swimming at 25.58 in her 50 backstroke split, touching third in the heat ahead of South Carolina. Coughlin swam a 29.00 50 breast split but was surpassed by USC senior Amanda Rutqvist who swam her 50 breast in 27.84.
From there on it was team effort by both Moran and Thomas to surpass the Gamecocks. Moran, in her first SEC Championship swim, swam a 24.12 50 fly split making up a whole second on South Carolina. Thomas took it home in the final 50 for the Commodores, swimming an all-time best 50 free at a time of 23.37.
The group finished with a time of 1:42.07, surpassing the school record set last year of 1:42.98.
Vanderbilt continued its fast swimming into the 800 free relay, its second and final event of the first night.
Freshman Carrie Bencic made her SEC Championship debut swimming the opening leg for the Commodores. Bencic swam the opening 200-yards in a time of 1:50.38, a season best time at that distance.
Elly Faulkner swam the next 200 in 1:48.88, a time that if on its own would stand as the school record in the 200 free. Faulkner was followed by Lauren Torres (1:51.96) and anchor Hannah Martin (1:50.72) who finished off a school record time of 7:21.94.
The Commodores finished the first day with 64 points, 13 behind South Carolina. The Gamecocks scored 11 points on the women’s 1-meter springboard.
Wednesday’s action will begin with prelims at 10 a.m., with finals beginning at 6 p.m. Wednesday will feature the 500-yard freestyle, 200-yard I.M., 50-yard freestyle, Men’s 1-meter diving and the 200-yard freestyle relay.
