BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Texas A&M’s Mateo Gonzalez and Madison Hudkins earned Southeastern Conference swimming and diving weekly honors on Tuesday after strong performances last week.
Coming off the men’s win over Incarnate Word and the women’s sweep of UIW and Miami (Fla.) last Friday, Gonzalez won SEC Men’s Freshman of the Week honors, while Hudkins earned SEC Women’s Diver of the Week kudos.
Gonzalez, a freshman from Torreon, Mexico, grabbed individual victories in the 200-yard butterfly in a time of 1:49.32 and the 200-yard IM in a time of 1:50.33. He also swam the butterfly leg on the Aggies’ winning 400-yard medley relay.
Hudkins, a junior from Murrieta, Calif., tallied victories over Miami (Fla.) and UIW in the three-meter dive with a personal-best score of 362.35. In the one-meter dive, Hudkins was victorious over UIW and tied for second against the Hurricanes with a 301.40 point total.
Both Texas A&M squads are in action this week with the men’s team traveling to Florida for duals with Indian River State College (Thursday) and FAU (Saturday), while the women’s team hosts the Texas Longhorns at 6 p.m. on Friday at the Student Recreation Natatorium.
SEC Weekly Honors
Male Swimmer of the Week
Sean Lehane • Tennessee
Senior • Naperville, Ill.
Lehane earned first-place finishes at Tennessee’s dual meet at Louisville and quad meet at Indiana to remain undefeated in both events this season. His time of 1:42.84 at Louisville is currently the fastest 200 backstroke time in the NCAA, and his time of 47.65 in the quad meet ranks him fifth in the NCAA chart for the 100 back. Lehane was also a part of the winning 200 medley relay teams at both meets.
Male Diver of the Week
Mauricio Robles • Tennessee
Redshirt Senior • Monterrey, Mexico
Robles won three of the four events he competed in this past weekend. In Tennessee’s dual meet at Louisville, he took first place in the 1-meter with a final score of 381.45 and second place in the 3-meter with a final score of 384.75. At the quad meet at Indiana, Robles earned first place in both events, scoring 417.40 in the 1-meter and 379.00 in the 3-meter. His score in the 1-meter is just four points shy of his own record of 421.15, which he set last year at the SEC Championships.
Male Freshman of the Week
Mateo Gonzalez • Texas A&M
Freshman • Torreon, Mexico
Gonzalez won two individual events and was part of a winning relay team in Texas A&M’s win over Incarnate Word. He finished first in the 200 fly (1:49.32) and the 200 IM (1:50.33), posting season-best times in both events. Gonzalez also swam the third leg in the first-place 400 medley relay (3:16.46).
Female Swimmer of the Week
Kara Kopcso • LSU
Junior • Mandeville, La.
Kopcso set five pool records in the final meet at NAU’s Wall Aquatic Center as LSU earned wins over Northern Arizona and Wyoming. She contributed 52 points by winning four individual events, including a sweep of all three fly events, and finishing second in the 100 IM. Kopcso was also a part of the winning squads for the 200 and 400 medley relays.
Female Diver of the Week
Madison Hudkins • Texas A&M
Junior • Murrieta, Calif.
In Texas A&M’s duals vs. Incarnate Word and Miami (Fla.), Hudkins posted a career-best score of 362.35 to take first place in the 3-meter. She tied for second place in the 1-meter with a final score of 302.40.
Female Freshman of the Week
Katie Kelsoe • Alabama
Freshman • Memphis, Tenn.
Kelsoe led off the Tide’s Halloween meet against the Gamecocks with a first-place finish as part of the 400 medley relay. She followed that with a pair of individual wins in the 100 and 200 backstroke events, clocking in at 55.93 and 2:01.97, respectively. Kelsoe finished more than a second and a half of the field in the 100 backstroke and more than a half second in the 200 backstroke.
Swimming news courtesy of Texas A&M Swimming and Diving the SEC.
