2024 SEC Championships: Day 4 Finals Live Recap

2024 SEC SWIMMING & DIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS

• February 19 – February 24, 2024
• James E. Martin Aquatic Center — Auburn, AL
• Defending Champions: Women: Florida (1x) Men: Florida (11x)
• Start Times (CT): 9:30 am prelims/5:30 pm finals
• Championship Central
• 2023 SEC Championships Box Score
• Major Conference Roster Limits and Scoring Rules
• Psych Sheets
• Live Results
• Live Video (SEC+ Network)
• Day 1 Diving Recap
• Day 1 Finals Live Recap
• Day 2 Prelims Live Recap | Day 2 Finals Live Recap
• Day 3 Prelims Live Recap | Day 3 Finals Live Recap
• Day 4 Prelims Live Recap

Day 4 Finals Heat Sheet

We’re back for the penultimate night of the 2024 SEC Championships in Auburn, AL. This session, we’ve got finals of the 200 butterfly, 100 backstroke, 100 breaststroke, 400 medley relay, and men’s platform diving.

After a day off on Day 3, Bella Sims is back in action in the first event of the session: the women’s 200 fly. Sims leads the field by 1.48 seconds after posting a season-best 1:52.93 in prelims. She set herself up well to make a run at another SEC record, which stands at 1:51.51. Missouri’s Jan Zubik had a great swim in prelims, logging a huge personal best of 1:40.95 for the fastest qualifying time. Martin Espernberger, the newly minted World bronze medalist in the 200-meter edition of this race, sits 2nd (1:41.88) while Jake Magahey is 3rd (1:42.08).

Freshman Miranda Grana continued her excellent championships by swimming the fastest 100 back time out of prelims. Grana hit a personal best 50.99, breaking 51 seconds for the first time in her career. This should be a great race between her, last year’s silver medalist Josephine Fuller, Eboni McCarty, and Isabel Ivey. The three of them are seeded 2nd through 4th after qualifying within .26 seconds of each other.

Jonny Marshall dropped a 44.36 in the men’s 100 back prelims to become the fastest freshman ever in the event. Marshall had a big breakthrough in the backstrokes during midseason invites and he’s found another gear here. Joining him under 45 seconds this morning was Auburn’s Nate Stoffle (44.99). His brother Aidan Stoffle qualified 3rd in 45.12 and defending champion Adam Chaney is also lurking after a 45.27 in prelims.

Mona McSharry, another swimmer fresh off the plane from Doha Worlds, made her presence known in the 100 breaststroke. She’s the defending champion and took down the SEC record at the Tennessee Invite with a blazing 56.87. In prelims, she set a new meet record of 57.06, bettering her gold medal-winning time from last year.

Aleksas Savickas kept the records falling in the men’s 100 breast as he reset Auburn’s pool record. The 2023 200 breast champion clocked 51.05. He’s sitting more than a second ahead of the field as Texas A&M’s Alex Sanchez is 2nd (51.19). In the 200 IM earlier this meet, Sanchez swam one of the fastest 50 breast splits we’ve seen, firing off a 27.41.

WOMEN’S 200 BUTTERFLY – Final

• NCAA Record: 1:49.16 – Alex Walsh, Virginia (2024)
• SEC Record: 1:51.51 – Riley Gaines, Kentucky (2022)
• SEC Championship Record: 1:51.51 – Riley Gaines, Kentucky (2022)
• Pool Record: 1:51.32 – Katinka Hosszu, USC (2012)
• 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 1:52.86
• 2023 NCAA Invited Time: 1:59.23

Top 8:

1. Bella Sims (FLOR) — 1:51.45
2. Greta Pelzek (SCAR) — 1:53.43
3. Sara Stotler (TENN) — 1:54.87
4. Zoe Dixon (FLOR) — 1:54.99
5. Olivia Theall (TAMU) — 1:55.01
6. Meghan Lee (AUB) — 1:55.96
7. Lainy Kruger (FLOR) — 1:56.09
8. Sofia Sartori (LSU) — 1:57.00

Make that two SEC records and two SEC individual titles for Bella Sims. Earlier in the meet, she reset the 200 free SEC record leading off the 800 free relay, then followed up with her first individual title in the 200 IM. Now she claims the 200 fly title, setting a new SEC record of 1:51.45.

She broke the previous record by six-hundredths of a second, and was about four-tenths off her personal best 1:51.06. Sims left little doubt that the title would be hers, opening the race in 24.53 and turning at the halfway point in 52.81. She split 58.46 over her final 100-yards, winning the race by almost two seconds.

Greta Pelzek had a big swim to improve on her 7th place finish in 2023 with a silver medal. Pelzek got under 1:54 for the first time in her career, taking another .89 seconds off the personal best she swam in prelims. Sara Stotler held off a charging Zoe Dixon–last night’s 400 IM silver medalist–for bronze in 1:54.87. Stotler finished 3rd in this race last year too, in a time just a hundredth slower than she went in this championship final.

MEN’S 200 BUTTERFLY – Final

• NCAA Record: 1:37.35 – Jack Conger, Texas (2017)
• SEC Record: 1:38.69 – Shaine Casas, Texas A&M (2021)
• SEC Championship Record: 1:39.00, Luca Urlando, Georgia (2022)
• Pool Record: 1:40.93 – Camden Murphy, Georgia (2020)
• 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 1:40.16
• 2023 NCAA Invited Time: 1:45.89

Top 8:

1. Martin Espernberger (TENN) — 1:40.86
2. Jan Zubik (UMIZ) — 1:41.20
3. Jake Magahey (UGA) — 1:41.28
4. Joaquín González Piñero (FLOR) — 1:41.33
5. Ryan Merani (UKY) — 1:42.10
6. Mason Laur (FLOR) — 1:42.32
7. Clayton Conklin (TAMU) — 1:42.57
8. Danny Schmidt (AUB) — 1:43.12

With 75-yards to go, the championship final of the men’s 200 butterfly was still anyone’s race. Texas A&M’s Clayton Conklin led through the first 100-yards, turning in 48.26 out in lane 1. Most of the field was separated by about three-tenths. On the other side of the pool in lane 8, Joaquín González Piñero made his move on the third 50, inching a little ahead of the rest of the field.

They swallowed him up quickly though, as Martin Espernberger and Jake Magahey charged. On the last 25 yards, top qualifier Jan Zubik surged and was able to get his hands on the wall in between Espernberger and Magahey. But it was Espernberger who claimed the SEC crown, about a week removed from earning bronze at 2024 Worlds.

Espernberger set a new personal best and pool record of 1:40.86. That marks his first sub-1:41 swim, as his previous best stood at 1:41.39 from 2023 NCAAs. Zubik added .25 seconds from his prelims personal best but came away with the silver medal in 1:41.20, just eight-hundredths ahead of Magahey.

Magahey has really shifted his attention to this event this season. He’s reset his personal best multiple times and he did so again here in the final, dropping another .53 seconds with a 1:41.28. Piñero was just behind with a best time of his own: 1:41.33.

WOMEN’S 100 BACKSTROKE – Final

• NCAA Record: 48.26 – Gretchen Walsh, Virginia (2023)
• SEC Record: 50.02 – Ryan White, Alabama (2020)
• SEC Championship Record: 50.02 – Ryan White, Alabama (2020)
• Pool Record: 50.02 – Ryan White, Alabama (2020)
• 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 50.88
• 2023 NCAA Invited Time: 53.82

Top 8:

1. Isabel Ivey (FLOR) — 50.40
2. Josephine Fuller (TENN) — 50.59
3. Miranda Grana (TAMU) — 50.65
4. Eboni McCarty (UGA) — 51.28
5. Aris Runnels (FLOR) — 51.71
6. Ellie Waldrep (AUB) — 52.07
7. Carly Meeting (FLOR) — 52.54
8. Kensley Merritt (AUB) — 52.68

Miranda Grana had an astonishing final turn, but she ran out of room to run down Isabel Ivey and Josephine Fuller. Ivey turned first at the halfway point in 24.30. She still had the lead at the final turn, just .01 seconds ahead of Tennessee’s Fuller. Ivey was able to distance herself from the Volunteer on the last 25-yards to earn her second individual SEC title of these championships.

Her winning time of 50.40 is a new Florida record, .04 seconds ahead of Sims’ time from earlier this season. It’s also a new PB for Ivey, clipping .02 seconds off her previous best that she set at five years ago at 2019 NCAAs.

Fuller defended her silver medal from 2023 in a personal best. She was one of the big breakout stars for Tennessee last season and she’s continued to improve in her sophomore campaign. This was her first swim under 51 seconds, blowing past her previous best time of 51.00 with a 50.59.

Grana earned her second bronze of the week a tenth behind Fuller in 50.65. That’s her second best time of the day and another .34 second drop for her.

The top three were all sub-51 as Eboni McCarty finished 4th in 51.28.

MEN’S 100 BACKSTROKE – Final

• NCAA Record: 43.35 – Luca Urlando, Georgia (2022)
• SEC Record: 43.35 – Luca Urlando, Georgia (2022)
• SEC Championship Record: 44.10 – Zane Waddell, Alabama (2020)
• Pool Record: 44.10 – Zane Waddell, Alabama (2020)
• 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 44.71
• 2023 NCAA Invited Time: 47.47

Top 8:

1. Jonny Marshall (FLOR) — 44.12
2. Adam Chaney (FLOR) — 44.87
3. Bradley Dunham (UGA) — 44.91
4. Grant Bochenski (UMIZ) — 44.96
5. Nate Stoffle (AUB) — 45.02
6. Ruard van Renen (UGA) — 45.14
7. Aidan Stoffle (AUB) — 45.34
8. Sohib Khaled (AUB) — 47.72

In prelims, Jonny Marshall put up the fastest 100 backstroke swum by a freshman in NCAA history with a 44.36. He blew past that mark tonight, dropping a 44.12 ending his teammate Adam Chaney‘s streak at two.

Marshall led this race from start to finish, flipping at halfway in 21.12 with Missouri’s Grant Bochenski running second (21.30). Chaney was 3rd and put together a 23.38 second 50 to move ahead of Bochenski into second. But this race was all Marshall’s and his winning time of 44.12 takes another .34 seconds off his freshman record.

Top Freshman 100 Backstroke Performances

1. Jonny Marshall, Florida – 44.12
2T. Destin Lasco, Cal – 44.49
2T. Will Modglin, Texas – 44.49
4. Ryan Murphy, Cal – 44.63
5. Ruard van Renen, Southern Illinois – 44.67

Marshall won the race by .75 seconds as the Gators grabbed another 1-2 finish thanks to Chaney’s season-best 44.87. Out of lane 1, Georgia fifth-year Bradley Dunham earned the final spot on the podium in 44.91, his first sub-45 performance of his career. He out-touched Bochenski by five-hundredths.

WOMEN’S 100 BREASTSTROKE – Final

• NCAA Record: 55.73 – Lilly King, Indiana (2019)
• SEC Record: 56.87 – Mona McSharry, Tennessee (2024)
• SEC Championship Record: 57.06 – Mona McSharry, Tennessee (2024)
• Pool Record: 57.06 – Mona McSharry, Tennessee (2024)
• 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 58.02
• 2023 NCAA Invited Time: 1:01.46

Top 8:

1. Mona McSharry (TENN) — 57.00
2. Avery Wiseman (BAMA) — 58.08
3. Emelie Fast (TENN) — 58.49
4. Zoie Hartman (UGA) — 58.68
5. Stasya Makarova (AUB) — 59.09
6. Alessia Ferraguti (UARK) — 59.19
7. Bobbi Kennett (TAMU) — 59.49
8. Molly Mayne (FLOR) — 59.83

DQ: Avery Wiseman (Alabama) 

These are the current results of the 100 breaststroke, where Mona McSharry appeared to win her 3rd straight SEC title. But after the race, the officials and all the coaches were pulled into a meeting that according to the broadcast was about re-swimming the event.

There was noise just before the starter went off that on replay, appeared to be from one of the divers’ shammys hitting the pool deck. On the replay, you can see multiple swimmers flinch. Avery Wiseman was disqualified at the end of the race but it was unclear the reason for her DQ. On the broadcast, Elizabeth Beisel reported that Wiseman was originally disqualified for a false start.

After the meeting, it was decided that there would be no disqualification and no re-swim. That reinstates Wiseman as the silver medalist in the event with a 58.08.

No re-swim means that McSharry’s new SEC Championship record of 57.00 stands. That takes .06 seconds off the record she set this morning. Like her teammate Espernberger, McSharry was also competing at 2024 Worlds last week and is now an SEC champion.

McSharry’s freshman teammate Emelie Fast earned bronze, continuing the stellar performance by Tennessee’s freshman women. She clocked 58.49, adding five-hundredths from the PB she swam this morning. Until today, she had never been sub-59.

MEN’S 100 BREASTSTROKE – Final

• NCAA Record: 49.69 – Ian Finnerty, Indiana (2018)
• SEC Record: 50.03 – Caeleb Dressel, Florida (2018)
• SEC Championship Record: 50.03 – Caeleb Dressel, Florida (2018)
• Pool Record: 51.05 — Aleksas Savickas, Florida (2024)
• 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 51.10
• 2023 NCAA Invited Time: 53.63

Top 8:

1. Aleksas Savickas (FLOR) — 51.01
2. Julian Smith (FLOR) / Alex Sanchez (TAMU) — 51.26
3. (tie)
4. Henry Bethel (AUB) — 51.67
5. Mitch Mason (LSU) — 51.82
6. Flynn Crisci (TENN) — 51.90
7. Alejandro Flores (AUB) — 52.76
8. Trey Sheils (BAMA) — 53.10

After about a 20 minute delay because of the drama of the women’s 100 breaststroke, sophomore Aleksas Savickas reset his pool record by four-hundredths en route to gold in the men’s 100 breaststroke.

Auburn’s Henry Bethel got to the 50-yard mark first in 23.62. Savickas made his move on the third 50, taking the lead with just 25 yards to go. Savickas held off both Alex Sanchez and his teammate Julian Smith for his second career SEC title in 51.01.

Smith and Sanchez tied for silver .25 seconds behind Savickas with a pair of 51.26s. They both came into the meet with 51.3s as best times. Sanchez added .07 seconds from his new personal best of 51.19 that he swam in prelims. This does stand as a new best time for Smith, getting under the 51.34 he swam at 2023 NCAAs.

After turning first at the 50, Bethel took 4th in 51.67, adding .16 seconds from his 51.51 prelims PB.

MEN’S PLATFORM – Final

• SEC Record: 507.15 – Zhipeng Zeng, Tennessee (2018)
• SEC Meet Record: 496.55 – Juan Celaya Hernandez, LSU (496.55)
• 2023 Champion: Bryden Hattie, Tennessee (457.10)

Top 8:

1. Bryden Hattie (TENN) — 475.20
2. Collier Dyer (UMIZ) — 397.00
3. Carson Paul (LSU) — 395.35
4. Rhett Hensley (TAMU) — 367.20
5. Nick Stone (TENN) — 332.10
6. Jacob Reasor (TENN) — 323.30
7. Conor Gesing (FLOR) — 321.90
8. Hunter Kebler (AUB) — 268.55

Bryden Hattie earned his third SEC platform diving title and his fourth career SEC title by taking the win on the 10-meter tonight. Hattie moved into the lead after the 3rd round and never trailed again, leaving the rest of the divers to fight it out for silver and bronze. He sealed his title with the highest scoring dive of the night (86.40) in the 6th round.

Collier Dyer got ahead of Carson Paul in the last round for the silver medal.

This was a huge ‘A’ flight for the Volunteers, who had three divers up. In addition to Hattie’s win, Nick Stone took 5th (332.10) and Jacob Reasor was just behind him in 6th place (323.30).

WOMEN’S 400 MEDLEY RELAY — Final

• NCAA Record: 3:21.80, Virginia (G. Walsh, A. Walsh, K. Douglass, A. Canny) — 2023 ACC Championships
• SEC Record: 3:26.64, Alabama (White, Wiseman, Scott, Dupre) — 2022 SEC Championships
• SEC Championship Record: 3:26.64, Alabama (White, Wiseman, Scott, Dupre) — 2022 SEC Championships
• 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 3:31.38
• 2024 NCAA ‘B’ Standard: 3:33.48

Top 8:

1. Tennessee (Fuller, McSharry, Douthwright, Spink) — 3:24.92 (NCAA ‘A’ Standard)
2. Florida (Sims, Mayne, Peoples, Ivey) — 3:25.16 (NCAA ‘A’ Standard)
3. Texas A&M (Grane, Kemmett, Theall, Stepanek) — 3:28.61 (NCAA ‘A’ Standard)
4. Alabama — 3:31.14 (NCAA ‘A’ Standard)
5. Georgia — 3:32.13
6. Auburn — 3:32.32
7. South Carolina — 3:33.77
8. Missouri — 3:34.57

The Tennessee team of Josephine Fuller, Mona McSharry, Brooklyn Douthwright, and Camille Spink smashed Alabama’s SEC record with a 3:24.92 to win the women’s 400 medley relay.

Florida got off to a fast start thanks to Sims. She won the 200 butterfly in SEC record time to open the meet, and she just missed setting another one with her 50.07 100 back-lead off. The SEC record stands at 50.02, held by Rhyan White. Sims’ time obliterates her previous personal best (50.44) with a time that would have won the 100 back ‘A’ final and reclaims her program record from Ivey.

McSharry shone on the breaststroke leg. Fuller put them in a strong postion with a 50.95 lead-off, then McSharry blazed a 55.94 100 breaststroke split. That makes her the first woman in the NCAA besides Lilly King to put up a 55-split (King holds the fastest breast split at 55.68).

Her leg gave Tennessee almost a two body length lead. Next it was Douthwright in the water for the Volunteers, she put up a 51.70 split. The Gators gained ground though, as 100 fly champ Olivia Peoples outsplit her with a 50.12. Freshman Camille Spink, winner of the 50 free, brought them home in 46.33, holding off Ivey (46.09).

Florida also got under the old SEC record, finishing 2nd in 3:25.16. Texas A&M took 3rd with a 3:28.61 courtesy of Grana, Bobbi Kennett, Olivia Theall, and Chloe Stepanek.

MEN’S 400 MEDLEY RELAY — Final

• NCAA Record: 2:58.32, Florida (A. Chaney, D. Hillis, J. Liendo, M. McDuff) — 2023 NCAA Championships
• SEC Record: 2:58.32, Florida (A. Chaney, D. Hillis, J. Liendo, M. McDuff) — 2023 NCAA Championships
• SEC Championship Record: 2:59.48, Florida (A. Chaney, D. Hillis, J. Liendo, M. McDuff) — 2023
• 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 3:04.96
• 2024 NCAA ‘B’ Standard: 3:06.84

Top 8:

1. Florida (Marshall, Savickas, Liendo, McDuff) — 3:00.49
2. Tennessee (Lierz, F. Crisci, Crooks, Caribe) — 3:01.27
3. Auburn (N. Stoffle, Bethel, Khaled, Makinen) — 3:03.96
4. Georgia / Texas A&M — 3:04.72
5. (tie)
6. LSU — 3:06.51
7. Missouri — 3:06.84
8. Alabama — 3:07.49

Ruard van Renen gave Georgia the slight lead after the backstroke leg, putting up the fastest lead-off with a 44.95. During the breaststroke leg Florida, Tennessee, and Auburn asserted themselves. Like in the individual event it was Bethel who took the first 50 of the breaststroke leg out first, but Savickas gained on him through the back half and it was the Gators who led at the halfway mark.

Savickas turned things over to Josh Liendo. Liendo went straight to work and put up a mind-boggling 42.77 100 fly split. That’s the fastest 100 fly split in history, improving on the 42.91 he split at 2023 NCAAs. McDuff anchored the Gators in 41.42, bringing them home for an overall time of 3:00.49–fastest in the NCAA this year.

Tennessee’s squad of Harrison Lierz, Flynn Crisci, Jordan Crooks, and Gui Caribe grabbed silver in 3:01.27, the #2 time in the NCAA. Crooks’ 44.22 100 fly split helped separate the Vols from Auburn, and Caribe anchored in a speedy 40.71. They finished more than two seconds ahead of the bronze medal-winning Auburn squad (3:03.96).

The top four teams all got under the NCAA ‘A’ standard.

Team Scores Thru Day 4

Women:

1. Florida — 1051.5
2. Tennessee — 837
3. Texas A&M — 664.5
4. Auburn — 625.5
5. Georgia — 617
6. Alabama — 473
7. South Carolina — 459
8. LSU — 392
9. Kentucky — 307
10. Missouri — 281.5
11. Arkansas — 260
12. Vanderbilt — 162

Men:

1. Florida — 1198.5
2. Auburn — 837
3. Tennessee — 822
4. Georgia — 791
5. Texas A&M — 757.5
6. LSU — 431
7. Missouri — 415
8. Alabama — 366
9. South Carolina — 324
10. Kentucky — 319