Hill, Earley Lead Virginia on Day Two of UGA Fall Invite

Friday’s Prelims | Friday’s Finals

Athens, Ga.- The Virginia men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams finished the second day of competition at the Georgia Fall Invite on Friday (Nov. 30) at the Gabrielsen Natatorium.

Thirteen Virginia swimmers advanced to the A-Finals of an event with junior Morgan Hill (Olney, Md.) and sophomore Erin Earley (Orange, Conn.) each recorded a pair of top-five finishes.

Hill captured the fourth-fastest time in school history in the 100-yard butterfly, finishing with a time of 52.16, which placed her fourth in the meet. She followed with a third-place finish in the 200-yard freestyle, recording a time of 1:44.47. Earley placed fourth in the 100-yard backstroke, finishing with a time of 53.13, in addition to placing fourth in the 400-yard individual medley with a time of 4:14.53.

Virginia had two additionally Cavaliers finish in the top heat of the women’s 100-yard backstroke. Sophomore Marcella Maguire (Ridgefield, Conn.) placed third with a time of 52.90, while sophomore Emma Seiberlich (Audubon, Pa.) placed sixth with a time of 53.47.

Freshman Kaki Christensen (Darien, Conn.) placed fifth in the A-Finals of the women’s 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 1:00.47. Christensen captured the UVA’s third-fastest time in school history during the preliminary races, recording a time of 1:00.00. Freshman Alexis Wenger (Detroit, Mich.) finished seventh with a time of 1:01.05. Her time ranks seventh in school history.

Senior Rachel Politi (Bexley, Ohio) finished sixth in the women’s 400-yard individual medley. She swam a time of 4:16.51. Sophomore Paige Madden (Mobile, Ala.) swam a time of 1:46.40 in the 200-yard freestyle, finishing eighth in the event.

Sophomore Cooper Wozencraft (Houston, Texas) led the men’s team with the second-fastest time of the night in the 100-yard backstroke. He recorded a time of 47.45.

Senior Zach Fong (Moorestown, N.J.) and senior Bryce Keblish (Fairfield, Conn.) placed sixth and seventh, respectively, in the 100-yard butterfly. Fong recorded a time of 46.67 as Keblish finished with a time of 46.72. Sophomore Samuel Schilling (Excelsior, Minn.) placed fourth in the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 1:35.87, while sophomore Keefer Barnum (Louisville, Ky.) finished sixth in the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 53.29.

Virginia recorded a third-place finish in the 200-yard medley relay as sophomore Caroline Gmelich (Rumson, N.J.), Wenger, freshman Jessica Nava (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) and Hill captured a time of 1:37.66.

The men’s 200-yard medley relay team of Wozencraft, sophomore Keefer Barnum (Louisville, Ky.), Fong and junior Ryan Baker (Arlington, Va.) placed fifth with a time of 1:26.42.

“It was a great second day as the squad started picking up steam over yesterday,” head coach Todd DeSorbo said. “We had a host of lifetime and season bests. We are beginning to show great depth and some new faces are beginning to contribute more and more. The team has worked harder to this point this year than last (year), our coaching staff has increased the intensity and expectation, and they (swimmers) are responding well. I’m looking forward to finishing even stronger tomorrow.”

Virginia finished the day in fourth place in the team standings with the No. 4 Cavalier women’s team recording 405 points and the No. 15 men’s team recording 322 points. No. 2 Michigan leads the women’s competition with 678 points, followed by No. 5 California with 578.5 points and No. 15 Georgia with 554 points. On the men’s side, No. 1 California leads with 791 points. No. 4 Michigan is in second place with 715 points and No. 14 Georgia is in third place with 555 points.

The Georgia Fall Invitational will conclude tomorrow with preliminary races beginning at 9:30 a.m. and finals beginning at 3 p.m.