Acevedo Splits 18.8 as Georgia Men Annihilate 200 Free Relay School Record

GEORGIA FALL INVITATIONAL

• November 18 – 20, 2020
• Athens, GA
• Live results

200 FREE RELAY

WOMEN

1. Georgia ‘A’ – 1:29.15
2. Florida State ‘A’ – 1:29.54
3. Florida State ‘B’ – 1:32.30

Georgia took advantage of freshman Maxine Parker‘s 22.37 lead-off, the only sub-23 lead-off in the field, and built up a second-plus lead with Gabi Fa’Amausili‘s 21.87 second leg. They won in 1:29.15 over Florida State’s ‘A’ relay, which was second in 1:29.54.

The Seminoles closed the gap on the back-half of the relay; Rebecca Moynihan was 22.26 on the third leg and Kertu Alnek dropped a 21.96 anchor.

MEN

1. Georgia ‘A’ – 1:16.35
2. Georgia Tech ‘A’ – 1:18.23
3. Florida State ‘A’ – 1:18.84

This is the best Georgia’s male sprinters have ever looked. No, really; they broke the 200 free relay school record by over a second and a half, destroying the old one (1:17.96 in 2015) by an absurd margin.

This 200 free relay tonight is more than two seconds faster than they were when they finished dead-last at the 2020 SEC Championships in this event. Dillon Downing was strong on the lead-off (19.41), but Downing isn’t the only person to look to here; Javi Acevedo slammed down an 18.80 second-leg, followed by a 19.06 from Camden Murphy and a 19.08 from freshman star Luca Urlando. At SECs, they had two splits over 20 seconds, with relay starts. Their time tonight would’ve been just .35 off of Alabama’s SEC title-winning relay.

This swim is a triumphant sign that UGA sprinting is now a force to be reckoned with after years of struggling with their sprints (since 2009, they only broke the 200 free relay school record once, in 2015, and were never really a national force in free relays).

Georgia Tech was second in 1:18.23, getting 19.2’s from Kyle Barone and Caio Pumputis, and Florida State was third with a 1:18.84, getting a 19.88 lead-off from Peter Varjasi.

500 FREE

WOMEN

1. Courtney Harnish (Georgia) – 4:36.86
2. Olivia Anderson (Georgia) – 4:42.03
3. Maddie Homovich (Georgia) – 4:42.94

It was a Georgia sweep in the women’s 500, led by star senior Courtney Harnish at 4:36.86, the only sub-4:40 performer. Senior Olivia Anderson chopped almost two seconds off of her old best to take second at 4:42.03, and after junior Maddie Homovich (4:42.94) was another Bulldog, sophomore Jillian Barczyk (4:44.10).

MEN

1. Jake Magahey (Georgia) – 4:10.48
2. Aziz Ghaffari (Florida State) – 4:16.59
3. Greg Reed (Georgia) – 4:17.02

Georgia freshman Jake Magahey ruled the 500 tonight, going 4:10.48 for a two-second drop. That marks the #2 time in UGA program history behind only Sebastien Rouault in 2008 (4:09.48). Florida State’s Aziz Ghaffari was 4:16.59 for second, a best time by almost two seconds for the sophomore, while UGA senior Greg Reed just missed a best for third (4:17.02).

UGA junior Andrew Abruzzo was fourth in 4:18.43, but his 4:13.54 was a PR this morning by about a second and a half.

Georgia Tech finished fifth and sixth in the race with junior Clark Wakeland (4:18.81) and freshman Batur Unlu (4:19.19). Wakeland had never broken 4:25 until this morning’s prelims session, when he went 4:18.90.

200 IM

WOMEN

1. Zoie Hartman (Georgia) – 1:54.35
2. Danielle Dellatorre (Georgia) – 1:55.84
3. Callie Dickinson (Georgia) – 1:57.74

Georgia sophomore Zoie Hartman took this one easily, clocking a 1:54.35 for the win, short of her 1:53.05 lifetime best. Senior Danielle Dellatorre, meanwhile, sped under the 1:56 barrier for the first time ever, going 1:55.84 for second.

MEN

1. Javier Acevedo (Georgia) – 1:41.75
2. Caio Pumputis (Georgia Tech) – 1:41.90
3. Luca Urlando (Georgia) – 1:42.84

Javier Acevedo is on fire tonight, and he won the 200 IM with a quick 1:41.75. That makes him the third-best Bulldog in history, behind only Gunnar Bentz (1:40.90) and Chase Kalisz (1:41.19). Georgia Tech’s Caio Pumputis was close behind for second in 1:41.90, within a second of his lifetime best.

UGA freshman Luca Urlando just got under his PR by .15 for third.

50 FREE

WOMEN

1. Gabi Fa’Amausili (Georgia) – 22.08
2. Maxine Parker (Georgia) – 22.24
3. Jenny Halden (Florida State) – 22.56

Gabi Fa’Amausili nearly cracked the 22-second barrier with a win here in 22.08, edging out freshman teammate Maxine Parker. At 22.24, Parker was just .04 off of her lifetime best of 22.20, but she knocks Olympian Amanda Weir out of UGA’s top 10 all-time list to take the #10 slot.

Jenny Halden of FSU posted a 22.56 for third.

MEN

1. Dillon Downing (Georgia) – 19.44
2. Camden Murphy (Georgia) – 19.67
3. Peter Varjasi (Florida State) – 19.75

After making relay magic on the 200 free relay, Georgia’s Dillon Downing and Camden Murphy went 1-2 at 19.44 and 19.67, respectively.

FSU’s Peter Varjasi was 19.75 to take third.

400 MEDLEY RELAY

WOMEN

1. Georgia ‘A’ – 3:31.56
2. Georgia ‘B’ – 3:37.72
3. Florida State ‘A’ – 3:37.97

Georgia’s ‘A’ relay won handily, going 3:31.56 and getting a lights-out 57.70 breaststroke split from sophomore Zoie Hartman. The program record-holder in the 100 breast at 58.21 from last season, Hartman was the only sub-1:00 breast split here, and she beats her previous relay split best of 57.84 from the 2019 Tennessee Invitational (last season’s mid-year invite).

MEN

1. Georgia Tech ‘A’ – 3:05.89
2. Georgia ‘A’ – 3:06.40
3. Georgia ‘B’ – 3:09.58

The Yellow Jackets pulled off a big upset here on the red-hot Bulldogs, as Georgia Tech hit the wall first at 3:05.89 in the 400 medley relay.

Kyle Barone was 45.30 leading off for Georgia Tech, a huge swim for the junior and a best by four-tenths, followed by Caio Pumputis at 52.00. Javier Acevedo and Ian Grum were matching 46.48’s on UGA’s ‘A’ and ‘B’ back legs, respectively, while Jack Dalmolin was 52.52 on the ‘A’ breast leg.

Camden Murphy was 45.15 on Georgia’s ‘A’ fly leg, but Yellow Jacket Christian Ferraro was quicker (45.01). Dillon Downing threw down a 42.25 anchor for UGA, but it wasn’t enough to catch GT’s Darren Lim (43.58) as Tech won in 3:05.89 to UGA’s 3:06.40.

Barone is now just .04 off of Georgia Tech’s school record in the 100 back, while the GT relay sets the program mark as the first Yellow Jacket relay under 3:06.

On UGA’s ‘B’ relay, Luca Urlando put up a 45.30 fly leg. Florida State’s ‘A’ relay was DQ’d.