2024 Tennessee Invite: Day 2 Prelims Live Recap

2024 Tennessee Invite

• November 19-22, 2024
• Where: Allan Jones Intercollegiate Aquatic Center — Knoxville, Tennessee
• Start Times: 10 am ET prelims/5 pm ET finals
• Psych Sheets
• Results on Meet Mobile: “2024 Tennessee Invitational”
• Live Stream

After things opened up last night with the 800 free relays, the first full day of action at the 2024 Tennessee Invite is upon us with three swimming events on the docket Wednesday morning.

The women’s and men’s 500 free, 200 IM and 50 free will be on the schedule, with Virginia’s Gretchen Walsh and Tennessee’s Jordan Crooks headlining the action.

Walsh is the defending NCAA champion and U.S. Open Record holder in the women’s 50 free, having blasted a time of 20.37 at last season’s NCAAs, while Crooks is the second-fastest swimmer in history in the men’s 50 free and won the 2023 NCAA title.

WOMEN’S 500 FREE – PRELIMS

• NCAA Record: 4:24.06, Katie Ledecky (Stanford) – 2017
• 2025 NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 4:37.89
• 2024 NCAA Cutline: 4:41.19
• PDF Results

1. Ella Jansen (TENN), 4:40.05
2. Aimee Canny (UVA), 4:40.43
3. Julia Mrozinski (TENN), 4:41.03
4. Cavan Gormsen (UVA), 4:41.32
5. Kate McCarville (TENN), 4:44.04
6. Bailey Hartman (UVA), 4:44.78
7. Sophia Knapp (UVA), 4:46.45
8. Emily Brown (TENN), 4:47.67

Tennessee freshman Ella Jansen led the way in the heats of the women’s 500 free, clocking a personal best time of 4:40.05 to improve on the 4:40.67 mark she produced last month during a dual meet with Louisville.

Despite the modest drop, Jansen moves up from 9th into 5th in the NCAA so far this season, including leapfrogging Virginia’s Cavan Gormsen, who was in the field this morning and qualified 4th into the final.

After Jansen won the first heat, Tennessee’s Julia Mrozinski (4:41.03) edged out Gormsen (4:41.32) in Heat 2, with Mrozinksi taking more than two seconds off her season-best time of 4:43.55.

In the final heat, UVA’s Aimee Canny coasted to the top spot in a time of 4:40.43 in what was her first time swimming the event this season. Canny set her best time of 4:36.26 at this meet last year.

MEN’S 500 FREE – PRELIMS

• NCAA Record: 4:02.31, Leon Marchand (ASU) – 2024
• 2025 NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 4:10.74
• 2024 NCAA Cutline: 4:14.90
• PDF Results

1. Carson Hick (UKY), 4:16.64
2. Joaquin Vargas (TENN), 4:18.14
3. David King (UVA), 4:18.91
4. Caue Gluck (UKY), 4:18.99
5. Levi Sandidge (UKY), 4:21.65
6. Dillon Wright (UVA), 4:22.55
7. Gus Rothrock (TENN), 4:23.71
8. Martin Espernberger (TENN), 4:24.87

Kentucky sophomore Carson Hick roared to the fastest time of the prelims in the men’s 500 free, touching in 4:16.64 to lead the field by a second and a half.

The swim for Hick cuts eight seconds off his season-best of 4:24.87 and moves him into 7th in the 2024-25 NCAA rankings, and falls just over a second shy of his lifetime best 4:15.18 set at last season’s SECs.

Tennessee’s Joaquin Vargas paced the third and final heat in a time of 4:18.14, improving on his season-best of 4:21.28 as he won a tight battle with Kentucky’s Caue Gluck (4:18.99), a Brazilian native who chopped more than 11 seconds off his PB to qualify 4th.

Advancing in 3rd was Virginia’s David King, who came within two seconds of his personal best in 4:18.91 from the first heat. At the beginning of November against UNC, King clocked what was his season-best time of 4:21.51.

Tennessee’s Charlie Krone, the #2 seed coming in, had one of the fastest splits through 200 yards (1:43.14) but faded down the stretch, ultimately placing 17th in 4:31.43. He set a best time of 4:21.46 last season.

WOMEN’S 200 IM – PRELIMS

• NCAA Record: 1:48.37, Kate Douglass (Virginia) – 2023
• 2025 NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 1:53.66
• 2024 NCAA Cutline: 1:57.03
• PDF Results

1. Leah Hayes (UVA), 1:54.29
2. Josephine Fuller (TENN), 1:55.57
3. Sara Stotler (TENN), 1:56.75
4. Zoe Skirboll (UVA), 1:57.43
5. Katie Christopherson (UVA), 1:57.57
6. Ella Bathurst (UVA), 1:57.71
7. Ella Jansen (TENN), 1:58.09
8. Emily Brown (TENN), 1:58.66

Virginia freshman Leah Hayes blasted a time of 1:54.29 in the prelims of the women’s 200 IM, overtaking Texas’ Angie Coe (1:54.33) for the fastest time in the NCAA this season.

Hayes’ Splits: 25.17/27.97/33.12/28.03

Hayes, who went 1:56.22 in the event three weeks ago against UNC, was within striking distance of her personal best time, which stands at 1:53.57 from December 2023.

After Hayes posted that time in the third heat, Tennessee’s Josephine Fuller followed with a quick 1:55.57 clocking in the final heat, ranking her 2nd overall heading into tonight’s session.

Fuller, who set a PB of 1:52.04 last season en route to a 3rd-place finish at NCAAs, now ranks 6th in the nation this season.

Sara Stotler came within six-tenths of her best time in 1:56.75 to make it two Lady Vols in the top three, while Zoe Skirboll, Katie Christopherson and Ella Bathurst all posted 1:57s for UVA to qualify 4-5-6.

Claiming the final two spots in the final were Tennessee’s Ella Jansen and Emily Brown, who were just minutes out of racing and qualifying for the final of the 500 free.

MEN’S 200 IM – PRELIMS

• NCAA Record: 1:36.34, Leon Marchand (ASU) – 2023
• 2025 NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 1:41.03
• 2024 NCAA Cutline: 1:43.05
• PDF Results

1. Sebastien Sergile (UVA), 1:43.80
2. Bjoern Kammann (TENN), 1:43.84
3. Noah Nichols (UVA), 1:45.35
4. Aidan Crisci (TENN), 1:45.41
5. Colin Bitz (UVA), 1:45.86
6. Logan Ingerick (UKY), 1:46.11
7. Matt Styczen (UVA) / Tony Laurito (TENN), 1:46.21
8. –

Virginia’s Sebastien Sergile outdueled Tennessee’s Bjoern Kammann in the fourth and final heat of the men’s 200 IM, both clocking 1:43-highs as the only two swimmers in the field sub-1:45.

After Kammann blasted out to an early lead with a 21.88 fly split, Sergile gradually reeled him in, out-splitting him on every other 50 to narrowly out-touch him, 1:43.80 to 1:43.84.

Sergile was just shy of his best time of 1:43.42 set at this meet last year, while Kammann, a German native, raced the event for the first time in yards.

UVA’s Noah Nichols qualified 3rd in 1:45.35 thanks in part to a quick 28.62 breast split, while Tennessee’s Aidan Crisci advanced 4th in 1:45.41, knocking more than a second off his best time (1:46.82).

WOMEN’S 50 FREE – PRELIMS

• NCAA Record: 20.37, Gretchen Walsh (Virginia) – 2024
• 2025 NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 21.63
• 2024 NCAA Cutline: 22.11
• PDF Results

1. Gretchen Walsh (UVA), 20.88
2. Camille Spink (TENN), 21.33
3. Anna Moesch (UVA), 22.02
4. Jillian Crooks (TENN), 22.27
5. Maxine Parker (UVA), 22.36
6. Emily Armen (TENN), 22.66
7. Brooklyn Douthwright (TENN), 22.78
8. Amber Myers (TENN), 22.81

Gretchen Walsh fired off a time of 20.88 in the prelims of the women’s 50 free, falling just four one-hundredths shy of her season-best and nation-leading time of 20.84 set during a dual meet against UNC.

The swim marks Walsh’s 13th under the 21-second barrier, with only 19 having been done in history.

Tennessee’s Camille Spink was the only swimmer within a second of Walsh, posting a sizeable lifetime best of 21.33, lowering her previous PB of 21.74 set at the 2024 SECs to rank 2nd in the nation this season behind Walsh.

The performance moves Spink into #2 in Tennessee school history, only trailing Erika Brown (21.03).

Virginia first-year Anna Moesch rounded out the top three with a season-best time of 22.02, improving on the 22.51 she set three weeks ago against UNC. She holds a best time of 21.73 set in April.

MEN’S 50 FREE – PRELIMS

• NCAA Record: 17.63, Caeleb Dressel (Florida) – 2018
• 2025 NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 18.82
• 2024 NCAA Cutline: 19.13
• PDF Results

1. Jordan Crooks (TENN), 18.29
2. Gui Caribe (TENN), 18.83
3. Lamar Taylor (TENN) / Nikoli Blackman (TENN), 19.15
4. –
5. Micah Chambers (TENN) / Jack Aikins (UVA), 19.37
6. –
7. Connor Boyle (UVA), 19.47
8. Spencer Nicholas (UVA), 19.63

WOMEN’S 3-METER DIVING – PRELIMS

MEN’S 1-METER DIVING – PRELIMS