Georgia Invitational: Luca Urlando Lowers American, NCAA Record in 200 Fly
Luca Urlando isn’t shy about setting best times when you don’t always expect them. Chalk up Friday as another instance.
Urlando went 1:36.41 to win the 200 butterfly at the Georgia Invitational. That’s .02 seconds quicker than he was in winning the NCAA title and setting those records last year.
Florida won both team events, the third straight year that the Gators have swept the men’s and women’s titles in Athens.
Georgia Invitational Men’s Scores
- Florida, 799
- Georgia, 756
- Florida State, 661.5
- LSU, 487.5
- Alabama, 446
- Georgia Tech, 272
Georgia Invitational Women’s Scores
- Florida, 884.5
- Georgia, 680.5
- LSU, 657
- Alabama, 632.5
- Florida State, 359.5
- Georgia Tech, 256
All the action from the final night:
- Meet Information
- Full Results
- SEC Swimming News
- ACC Swimming News
- Night 1 Recap
- Night 2 Recap
- Night 3 Recap
Women’s 200 individual medley
Grace Rabb pulled out a thrilling race over teammate Lainy Kruger with a time of 1:55.29. Kruger was 1:55.62. Both are headed to NCAAs, among four such qualifiers. Ieva Maluka, the 400 IM winner from Georgia, finished third in 1:56.00. Zoe Carlos-Broc of LSU capped a stellar week by going 1:57.85.
Men’s 200 individual medley
Georgia swept the top three places, as it did in the longer IM. This time, it was led by Cale Martter, who pocketed an NCAA time of 143.75. Elliot Woodburn was second in 1:44.20, .07 above the standard. Finn Hammer finished third in 1:44.57.
Fourth place went to Nil Cadevall of Florida in 1:44.57. Georgia’s Sascha Macht delivered the night’s fifth-fastest time from the B final.
Women’s 100 freestyle
Cadence Vincent of Alabama went stroke for stroke with LSU’s Michaela de Villiers coming home, getting to the wall first to cap the sprint double. Vincent went 47.97. She had been 47.85 in prelims.
De Villiers pulled to within 48.03. both are good to go to NCAAs, as was Gabby Van Brunt’s third-place time of 48.25. Beatriz Bezerra of Florida, LSU’s Sabrina Lyn and the Alabama duo of Jada Scott and Charlotte Rosendale also cracked 49 seconds in the A final, as did Katie Belle Sikes of Georgia and Avery Littlefield of LSU in the B final.
Men’s 100 freestyle
It wasn’t 39.99. But Josh Liendo’s 41.11 might install him as the favorite in the 100 free this year. His company in that category, as it has his entire career, will come from within the SEC. Instead of Jordan Crooks, this time it’s LSU sprinter Jere Hribar, who was second in 41.15.
Three swimmers found their way under the NCAA standard. Gustav Olsson of Florida State was the best of them in 42.43. Florida’s Devin Dilger was fourth in 42.45. Fifth was Stephan Goncharov of LSU in 42.50, though he’d been 42.32 in the morning.
Max Wilson of Florida State won the B final in 42.07. That’s an NCAA time, as is Alex Painter’s 42.46.
Women’s 200 butterfly
Sofia Sartori continued a really solid effort all week for LSU with a winning time of 1:53.29. She was 1.5 seconds up on teammate Giulia Zambelli and improved her program record in the process. Addison Reese bested Florida teammate Michaela Mattes by .22 in 1:56.28. Those two and fifth-place Izzy Beu of Georgia hit the NCAA time.
Men’s 200 butterfly
Luca Urlando stroked away from the field Friday, the only question if he was going to beat his own past. He did, by .02 seconds, lowering his NCAA, American and U.S. Open records to 1:36.41. The best time entering the weekend in the NCAA this year belonged to Ilya Kharun in 1:37.94.
Second was Logan Robinson of Florida State in 1:40.40, .06 up on Drew Hitchcock of Georgia. Roman Valdez secured a third Bulldog at NCAAs by going 1:43.21 for fourth.
Women’s 200 backstroke
Florida finished 1-2 in the 200 back, with Catie Choate jumping in front of the field early and holding on to win by eight tenths. Choate finished in 1:51.52, with teammate Jo Jo Ramey placing second in 1:52.35. Alabama’s Emily Jones was third in 1:53.51, with LSU’s Nichole Santuliana (1:54.55) and Georgia Tech’s Phoebe Wright (1:54.77) also beating the NCAA qualifying time.
Men’s 200 backstroke
Florida’s Jonny Marshall is the second-fastest performer ever in the 100 back, and he showed off that speed through the early stages of this 200-yard final. Marshall led by nine tenths at the halfway point, but Alabama’s Tommy Hagar was too good on the back half. Hagar, in sixth place at the halfway point, jumped through the field on the third 50 and then ran down Marshall down the stretch. Hagar finished one hundredth ahead, 1:39.03 to 1:39.04.
Georgia’s Hayden Meyers also went under 1:40 (1:39.45), and the entire A-final field beat the NCAA qualifying time. Florida’s Aiden Norman (1:40.21) and Georgia’s Sam Powe (1:40.31) both went 1:40s.
Women’s 400 freestyle relay
Alabama had no peer in the women’s 400 free relay. Gaby Van Brunt, Cadence Vincent, Jada Scott and Emily Jones swam a time of 3:10.62, with Van Brunt, Vincent and Jones all splitting 47s. LSU’s team finished second in 3:14.46, just ahead of Georgia’s 3:14.93.
Men’s 400 freestyle relay
Josh Liendo capped off the meet with a sizzling anchor split for the Florida Gators, propelling his team to a come-from-behind win over Georgia and LSU. Through three legs of the 400 free relay, Florida was more than two seconds behind the Tigers and eight tenths behind the Bulldogs before Liendo went 40.02, more than a second quicker than his time from the individual event earlier in the session.
Florida’s team, which also included Devin Dilger, Alex Painter and Scotty Buff, finished in 2:47.04. Georgia got second in 2:47.63, with Luca Urlando coming back after his 200 fly American record to go 41.07. LSU had Jere Hribar splitting 40.66 on the second leg, and his team held on for third in 2:47.73, a school record.
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