AUBURN vs. GARDNER-WEBB
- Jan. 17, 2020
- Hosted by Auburn
- Short Course Yards
- Full Results
TEAM SCORES
WOMEN
- Auburn 181
- Gardner-Webb 68
MEN
- Auburn 167
- Gardner-Webb 90
Auburn dominated their senior day meet as the men and women swept Gardner-Webb on Friday. Davis Edwards, Christian Ginieczki, and Owen Upchurch got the job done for the men, winning 2 events each. Upchurch took his wins in the 100 free (45.32) and 200 free (1:39.08). Edwards, on the other hand, led the pack in the 500 free (4:34.02) and 400 IM (3:57.43).
Ginieczki earned his wins in the 200 fly and 200 back. Teammate David Crossland got out to the early lead in the 200 back, but Ginieczki came through on the back half to win it 1:51.26 to 1:51.51. In the 200 fly, he was nearly 2 seconds ahead of the field as he won in 1:50.77.
Abbey Webb and McAuley Parker doubled up for the Tiger women. Webb won a close race with teammate Carly Cummings in the 500 free, holding a slight lead throughout the race and surging ahead on the final 50 in 4:59.08 to Cummings’ 5:00.67. She also took a 56.34 win in the 100 back. Parker, on the other hand, swept the breaststroke events (1:03.65/2:18.24).
PRESS RELEASE – AUBURN:
AUBURN, Ala. – Competing in their last dual meet at the James E. Martin Aquatic Center, the 14 members of Auburn’s senior class took home eight individual wins as both the men’s and women’s teams swept Gardner-Webb on Friday afternoon.
“I thought our seniors really stepped up and performed admirably,” Auburn head coach Gary Taylor said. “Our stars performed, and opportunities arose for the other seniors who stepped up in scoring situations and performed as well.
“I’m really proud of this senior class and all that they’ve accomplished, certainly over the last two years that I’ve been here but really over the course of their entire collegiate careers.”
The No. 14 Auburn women picked up wins in all 14 swimming events Friday to earn a 181-68 victory over the Bulldogs. It was their fifth dual meet win of the season.
The Tigers opened the meet with a 1-2-3 sweep in the 200 medley relay and stayed in control from that point on. Senior Jaden Bellina picked up a win in the 100 butterfly, finishing in 55.61, and also placed second in the 400 IM with her fastest time this spring.
Fellow seniors Jessica Merritt (200 free), Julie Meynen (50 free), Claire Fisch (100 free) and Abi Wilder (200 back) also took home individual titles for the Tigers.
The Auburn men, ranked No. 23 nationally, swept the first four events of the meet and captured 12 event titles in all to earn their fifth win in a dual meet this season with a 167-90 victory over Gardner-Webb.
“On the men’s side Davis Edwards is one that stands out,” Taylor said. “He has a really good 400 IM, one of his best this season, and he comes back and wins the 500 free in dominating fashion. Owen Upchurch, another one of our seniors who is always there, gets a couple big wins today in the 200 free and 100 free.”
Edwards and Upchurch were two of five Auburn swimmers to earn multiple individual wins, joining McAuley Parker and Abbey Webb from the women’s side and Christian Ginieczki, who won the 200 butterfly and the 200 backstroke on the men’s side.
The senior men dominated the short distance freestyle events with Upchurch taking first in both the 100 and 200 free and fellow senior Santiago Grassi capturing the 50 free title.
The Auburn divers did not compete in Friday’s meet.
WHAT’S NEXT
The Auburn swimming and diving team will return to the pool next Saturday at Florida for the final dual meet of the season. Both the men’s and women’s teams at Florida are currently ranked in the top 10. The meet is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. CT.
“You’re going up against a rival and you’re going up against a really quality program,” Taylor said. “Both their men’s and women’s team are ranked highly. They’ve got some superstar performers. They’re a program that on both sides is looking to win conference.
“For us, that used to be a great rivalry. It was extremely intense, and our goal and responsibility right now is to get it back to that level.”
PRESS RELEASE – GARDNER-WEBB:
AUBURN, Ala. – The Gardner-Webb men’s and women’s swimming teams both fell to nationally ranked Auburn in dual meet action at the James E. Martin Aquatic Center on Friday afternoon.
The GWU men fell to the No. 23 ranked Tigers, 167-90, while the women’s team dropped a 181-68 decision to the No. 14 Auburn women.
Action got underway with the women’s 200-yard medley relay, in which the team of Kayla Smith, Spencer Lucas, Jessi Snover, and Audrey Robinson finished fourth with a time of 1:49.89.
In the men’s 200-yard medley relay, the quartet of Brady Fields, Jordan Mintz, Tim Bennett, and Zach Dingfield led GWU with a time of 1:31.82.
Spencer Lucas finished third in the women’s 400-yard IM, clocking in at 4:28.90, followed by Mary Traylor in fourth with a time of 4:30.24.
Chase Mattingly paced the ‘Dogs in the men’s 400-yard IM, touching the wall at 4:04.95 to finish fourth. Christian Jann followed in fifth place with a time of 4:05.87.
In the women’s 200-yard freestyle, Alyssa Church led GWU with a fifth-place finish, timing in at 1:57.23. Blake Broullire placed sixth with a time of 2:00.51.
Zach Dingfield took home a fifth-place result in the men’s 200-yard freestyle, clocking in with a time of 1:42.97. Drew Mintz finished sixth overall with a time of 1:45.50.
Kayla Smith earned a fourth-place result in the women’s 100-yard backstroke, timing in at 58.66 seconds. Charity Bennett placed sixth overall with a time of 1:00.50.
Brady Fields finished fourth in the men’s 100-yard backstroke with a time of 51.19 seconds. Tim Bennett followed in fifth with a time of 51.80 seconds.
In the women’s 100-yard breaststroke, Jessi Snover took home a fourth-place finish with a time of 1:06.38. Marguerite Sesti finished sixth overall with a time of 1:13.96.
Jordan Mintz placed first overall in the men’s 100-yard breaststroke, timing in at 56.43 seconds. Jonathan Frye finished in fourth with a time of 57.98 seconds.
Mary Traylor finished in fifth in the women’s 200-yard butterfly, clocking in at 2:06.29.
Chase Mattingly finished third overall in the men’s 200-yard butterfly with a time of 1:53.39. Cullen Fields followed in fourth at 1:53.70 and John O’Connell placed fifth at 1:56.77.
Audrey Robinson finished fifth in the women’s 50-yard freestyle, clocking in at 24.70 seconds. Blake Broullire placed sixth with a time of 25.18 seconds.
In the men’s 50-yard freestyle, Brady Fields finished fourth, timing in at 21.26 seconds, followed by Seggio Bernardina with a time of 21.31 seconds.
Alyssa Church led GWU in the women’s 100-yard freestyle, touching the wall at 53.94 seconds to place fifth. Blake Broullire followed in sixth with a time of 53.96 seconds.
Seggio Bernandina finished fifth in the men’s 100-yard freestyle with a time of 47.01 seconds. Drew Mintz followed in sixth with a time of 48.14 seconds.
Spencer Lucas finished second in the women’s 200-yard backstroke, timing in at 2:06.22. Delaney Willette placed third with a time of 2:09.57, followed by Laura Wakeley with a time of 2:12.58 to place fourth.
Tim Bennett placed second in the men’s 200-yard backstroke with a time of 1:52.90. Michael Robinson finished third with a time of 1:54.57, and Bryan Dunne placed fourth at 1:56.72.
In the women’s 200-yard breaststroke, Marguerite Sesti placed second with a time of 2:34.35.
Jordan Mintz finished second overall in the men’s 200-yard breaststroke, clocking in at 2:03.95. Jonathan Frye placed third with a time of 2:08.04 and Justin Conklin finished fourth with a time of 2:10.56.
Hannah Carter finished second in the women’s 500-yard freestyle, timing in at 5:26.34. Ashley Cesario finished third with a time of 5:42.90.
Drew Mintz finished second in the men’s 500-yard freestyle with a time of 4:52.27. Will Anderson placed third with a time of 5:00.82, followed by Ethan Long in fourth with a time of 5:03.53.
Jessi Snover led GWU in the women’s 100-yard butterfly, timing in at 55.97 seconds. Audrey Robinson timed in at 59.81 seconds to finish third, followed by Kayla Smith in fourth at 59.82 seconds.
In the men’s 100-yard butterfly, Cullen Fields led GWU with a time of 50.39 seconds to place second. Tim Bennett placed third with a time of 50.90 seconds, and Seggio Bernardina finished fourth with a time of 51.57 seconds.
Spencer Lucas paced GWU in the women’s 200-yard IM, clocking in at 2:08.42 to place second overall. Mary Traylor followed in third with a time of 2:09.09, and Laura Wakeley finished fourth with a time of 2:18.65.
Chase Mattingly brought home the men’s 200-yard IM title with a time of 1:53.25. Jordan MIntz finished third at 1:58.21 and Christian Jann placed fourth at 1:58.62.
In the women’s 200-yard freestyle relay, the foursome of Alyssa Church, Audrey Robinson, Blake Broullire, and Jessi Snover finished second with a time of 1:39.78. The grouping of Charity Bennett, Cary Pou, Hannah Carter, and Ashely Cesario finished third with a time of 1:44.80.
The afternoon wrapped up with the men’s 200-yard freestyle relay, in which the quartet of Brady Fields, Seggio Bernardina, Drew Mintz, and John O’Connell timed in at 1:25.10 to place second. The team of Kevin Plewniak, Luke Dingfield, Bryan Dunne, and Nelson Montini finished third with a time of 1:29.22.
Gardner-Webb returns to action on Friday, January 24, hosting North Florida at 2:00 pm in what will be Senior Day for the women’s team.
