Florida Commit Andrew Taylor Clocks 8:50.64 1000 Free, Moves Up to 13th in 17-18 NAG

by Riley Overend 20

March 10th, 2023 Club, News

2023 Florida Swimming Spring Senior Championships

  • March 8-12, 2023
  • Rosen Aquatic and Fitness Center
    • Orlando, Florida
  • SCY (25 yards)
  • Results on MeetMobile: “2023 Florida Swimming Spring Senior Champs”

Countryside High School senior Andrew Taylor clocked a new lifetime best in the 1000-yard freestyle during the Florida Spring Senior Championships on Thursday night.

After winning the event in 8:50.64, shaving nearly seconds off his previous best from last March, Taylor now sits just outside the top 10 for boys’ 17-18 national age group (NAG) performers. The 18-year-old Tampa Bay Aquatic Club standout moved up from No. 37 to No. 13 in the NAG rankings, listed below. Check out those times from the 1980s that still remain on the books.

Top 1000 Free Performers, Boys’ 17-18 NAG Rankings

  1. Luke Hobson – 8:43.66 (2022)
  2. David Johnston – 8:45.38 (2020)
  3. Bobby Finke – 8:45.50 (2018)
  4. PJ Ransford – 8:46.40 (2015)
  5. Michael Brinegar – 8:47.53 (2018)
  6. Grant Shoults – 8:48.03 (2015)
  7. Jeff Kostoff – 8:48.57 (1983)
  8. Dan Jorgensen – 8:48.68 (1985)
  9. Levi Sandidge – 8:48.68 (2023)
  10. Ross Dant – 8:50.29 (2019)
  11. Ethan Heasley – 8:50.51 (2019)
  12. Alec Enyeart – 8:50.62 (2022)
  13. Andrew Taylor – 8:50.64 (2023)

Taylor’s time would also rank eighth in the NCAA this season if he were swimming collegiately. The top distance swimmer in the high school class of 2023, Taylor is committed to the University of Florida for this upcoming fall. His new personal best would rank first on the Gators this season ahead of Tyler Watson (8:53.12).

Last November, Taylor capped off his high school career with a Florida 3A state title in the 500 free (4:22.30) along with a runner-up finish in the 200 IM (1:48.40). As a junior in 2021, he captured both the 500 free (4:19.17) and 200 IM (1:48.88) crowns. His best 1650 free time is a 15:08.83 from last March and his best 500 free time is a 4:19.17 from 2021.

At Winter Juniors in December, Taylor placed fifth in the 500 free (4:22.47) and seventh in the 400 IM (3:50.97).

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robert kravutske
1 year ago

let dem gators beef him up a little…..get him a six pack and look out sec’s and ncaa’s……..

applesandoranges
Reply to  robert kravutske
1 year ago

Maybe, just maybe, he swims as quickly as he does because of the way he’s built.

MCH
1 year ago

Pay attention to the Orlando mile on Sunday, on the women’s side.

chickenlamp
Reply to  MCH
1 year ago

Katie Ledecky swimming a 1650! Is 2018 NCAAs the last time she swam this?

dscott
1 year ago

Florida have 42 recruiting commits?

Swimfan
Reply to  dscott
1 year ago

They over recruit and have a lot of transfers/cuts after freshman years.

YourLocalD3Swimmer
1 year ago

Missing Levi Sandidge’s 8:48.68 from the front end of his mile at SECs on this list

Demarrit Steenbergen
Reply to  YourLocalD3Swimmer
1 year ago

I think they might not have requested the split so it would not have counted

Wanna Sprite?
1 year ago

Why are there randomly two insane times from the 80s

dscott
Reply to  Wanna Sprite?
1 year ago

Not too random. They were both eventually US Olympians.

Michael Andrew Wilson
Reply to  dscott
1 year ago

If I remember correctly, each of those guys won an event at NCAAs as a freshman – Kostoff the mile and Jorgensen the 500 (and maybe more).

captain undeez
Reply to  Wanna Sprite?
1 year ago

Jeff Kostoff was the Stanford head coach for like 30 years lol. he’s not a nobody💀

Admin
Reply to  captain undeez
1 year ago

Jeff Kostoff was never the Stanford head coach, or to my knowledge, the head coach of anywhere. There are no head coaching positions listed on any of his bios.

You’re thinking of Skip Kenney.

Swammer
Reply to  Braden Keith
1 year ago

Jeff was briefly there as an assistant in the past few years if I recall.

Bignowhere
Reply to  Swammer
1 year ago

Yes he was an assistant. Never the head coach. But he was a legendary distance swimmer in the 80s. I once read about him doing a set of 3×5000 on a 50 minute interval.

T Hill
Reply to  Swammer
1 year ago

Correct !

robert kravutske
Reply to  Braden Keith
1 year ago

he was the distance coach…..now at minnasota……saw him at big 10’s…….got a few extra lbs. but anyone who holds records for 30 years is my hero…..

Scotty B
1 year ago

Hey mom, I know that guy! He’s famous!

Swammer
1 year ago

8:48 in 1983. Holy cwap

dscott
Reply to  Swammer
1 year ago

Jeff made the US Olympic team in both 1984 and 1988 as a 400 IMer and has been the Associate Head Coach for both Men’s and Women’s swimming at Univeristy of Minnesota since August, 2019.

I always thought his most memorable performance was his high school 500 free of 4:16.39, in 1983, which went untouched as the National High School record for 30 years.

It was finally broken by Jack Conger in 2013 at 4:13.87. Kostoff’s swim lasted as a CIF record in Southern California until surpassed by Matthew Chai in May, 2022.

Kostoff also held the Stanford 1650 record for 21 years (1986-2007)

About Riley Overend

Riley is an associate editor interested in the stories taking place outside of the pool just as much as the drama between the lane lines. A 2019 graduate of Boston College, he arrived at SwimSwam in April of 2022 after three years as a sports reporter and sports editor at newspapers …

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