The 13th-ranked Vols won five of their last eight events, but the rally wasn’t enough, as the No. 1 Gators 3 won the match, 171.5-128.5. The seventh-ranked Lady Vols fell to No. 11 Florida, 204-96.
Jarel Dillard breaststroke with times of 53.44 (100 breast) and 1:56.31 (200 breast). Michael Houlie took third place (54.06) in the 100 breast, while Lyubomir Epitropov placed third in the 200 breast (1:59.00).
Gui Caribbean won the 100 free after a time of 43.00. Jordan Crooks placed second in the 50 free, touching the wall in 19.58. Crooks won the 100 fly, posting a time of 46.82. Martin Espernberger tied for third in the 200 fly with 1:47.85.
Joaquin Vargas took second in the 500 free with a 4:24.52 mark and touched the wall in 1:37.16 to finish third in the 200 free.
In the 200s, Nick Simmons dominated the race, winning by nearly three seconds in a season-best 1:44.79. Harrison Lierz took second in the 100 back (47.99), while Simons finished third (48.05).
The Vols opened the meet with a win in the 200 medley relay behind a 1:25.95 from the lineup of Lierz, Houlie, Crooks and Caribe. UT also finished third in the event in 1:28.64. Tennessee took second in the 400 free relay as Caribe’s lineup, Crooks, Björn Kammann AND Alexey Tarasenko posted a time of 2:54.43. Crooks posted an impressive 42.14 split in the race.
“We had a strong second half of the match,” the associate coach Rich Murphy said. “We were two points behind in the second half of the meet, which reflected our competitiveness and fight. The first half reflected our continued ability to compete under pressure. Overall, the men competed as a unit and strengthened their sense of team. mission. I’m excited to see where that growing team identity takes us.”
In diving, Bryden Hattie won the 3rd meter with a score of 396.90. Matthew Wade took second place in the event with a score of 389.33. Wade led the way in the men’s 1-meter, placing third after scoring 333.37.
Tanesha Lucoe was the best finisher in the 3-meter, scoring 288.23 to take third place. Grace Cable placed fourth with a score of 282.75 and was the top finisher in the 1-meter with a score of 287.70.
On the women’s side, Mona McSharry swept the breast events, winning the 100 breast in a time of 1:00.88 and the 200 breast in 2:15.07. She also took third in the 50 free (23.38).
Josephine Fuller swept the backstroke, posting a season-best 1:55.13 in the 200 back and winning the 100 back in 53.84. Her 200 backstroke marks seventh in the nation this season. She finished the day with a second-place finish in the 200 IM, touching the wall in 2:01.69.
Brooklyn Douthwright (1:48.47) and Julia Burroughs (1:49.33) took third and fourth, respectively, in the 200 free. Douthwright was the top finisher for UT in the 100 free with a mark of 50.85.
In a race that included three of the top seven swimmers nationally, Kristen Stege finished third in the 1,000 free, touching the wall in 9:53.13.
In the relays, the Lady Vols took second in the 200 medley relay (1:39.37) as well as the 400 free relay (3:25.28).
“We competed against a very strong Florida women’s team,” the associate head coach Ashley Jahn said. “Our Lady Vol swimming and diving team fell short of our competitive standard today. On the swimming side, we fell behind early in the meet and let that take away from our strengths. I’m proud of the way our managers have evaluated their competition and vision for the rest of the season”.
UT then returns home to host the Tennessee Invitational Nov. 17-19 at the Allan Jones Intercollegiate Aquatic Center. The meeting will feature some of the country’s top programs.
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