After an 11-day layoff from competition, the Florida men's and women's teams are looking to make a jump in the NCAA rankings at the Georgia Tech Invitational from Thursday to Saturday.
The Gators men's squad, which currently sits at No. 9 in the country, and the UF women, ranked 16th overall, enter the three-day meet with the opportunity to knock off several highly rated teams in Atlanta. Also competing this weekend at the McAuley Aquatic Center will be No. 8 Alabama and No. 24 Georgia Tech on the men's side and 11th-ranked Auburn for the women.
Florida is returning to the pool for the first time since splitting an SEC dual meet against Texas A&M in College Station, TX, on Nov. 5. The Gators men's team held off the host Aggies for a 159-141 win, while the UF women's team fell to 10th-ranked Texas A&M in a 171-124 loss.
Andrea D'arrigo leads the distance group with teammate Ben Lawless. This season, D'arrigo has posted a 1,000 time of 9:08.90 and Lawless has added a 9:14.46. These two continue a long line of Florida distance swimming talent and will bring a good amount of points the Gators' way this weekend.
Jan Switkowski is also a major contributor to the team with a quick 1:45.63 200 Fly and 1:47.20 200 IM. He should be top three in multiple events and a threat to bring home some gold as well.
Other UF swimmers to watch:
Blake Manganiello - Distance Freestyle
Mark Szaranek - IM/Fly
Bayley Main - Backstroke
Alyssa Yambor-Maul is going to take the reigns for the butterfly group and assist in backstroke events as well. She's gone 55.10 in the 100 and 1:59.43 in the 200 fly distances this season.
Georgia Darwent is the distance champion for Florida with a 9:51.90 1,000 free and a 16:52.53 in the 1,650.
Other UF swimmers to watch:
Emma Ball - Backstroke
Mollie Pulte - Sprint Freestyle
Autumn Fink - Mid Distance Freestyle
Live results from Georgia Tech Invitational can be found here.
The Gators men's squad, which currently sits at No. 9 in the country, and the UF women, ranked 16th overall, enter the three-day meet with the opportunity to knock off several highly rated teams in Atlanta. Also competing this weekend at the McAuley Aquatic Center will be No. 8 Alabama and No. 24 Georgia Tech on the men's side and 11th-ranked Auburn for the women.
Florida is returning to the pool for the first time since splitting an SEC dual meet against Texas A&M in College Station, TX, on Nov. 5. The Gators men's team held off the host Aggies for a 159-141 win, while the UF women's team fell to 10th-ranked Texas A&M in a 171-124 loss.
Men:
Sprinter sensation Caeleb Dressel is having a solid dual meet season, putting up a 19.56 50 free, 47.32 100 fly, and 1:35.99 200 free. He's followed in the 200 freestyle by teammates Jan Switkowski at 1:36.24 and Maxime Rooney with a 1:37.55. Expect Rooney to go a lot faster.Andrea D'arrigo leads the distance group with teammate Ben Lawless. This season, D'arrigo has posted a 1,000 time of 9:08.90 and Lawless has added a 9:14.46. These two continue a long line of Florida distance swimming talent and will bring a good amount of points the Gators' way this weekend.
Jan Switkowski is also a major contributor to the team with a quick 1:45.63 200 Fly and 1:47.20 200 IM. He should be top three in multiple events and a threat to bring home some gold as well.
Other UF swimmers to watch:
Blake Manganiello - Distance Freestyle
Mark Szaranek - IM/Fly
Bayley Main - Backstroke
Women:
Sherridon Dressel has the season's top time in the 50 (23.34) and 100 free (50.84) for the Gators. She leads a solid sprint crew with Kelsey Dambacher and Amelia Maughan right behind her in both events.Alyssa Yambor-Maul is going to take the reigns for the butterfly group and assist in backstroke events as well. She's gone 55.10 in the 100 and 1:59.43 in the 200 fly distances this season.
Georgia Darwent is the distance champion for Florida with a 9:51.90 1,000 free and a 16:52.53 in the 1,650.
Other UF swimmers to watch:
Emma Ball - Backstroke
Mollie Pulte - Sprint Freestyle
Autumn Fink - Mid Distance Freestyle
Live results from Georgia Tech Invitational can be found here.