Georgia Men Prevail as Bulldogs Split at Kentucky

Monday, December 19

Lexington, Ky.

10 a.m.

University of Georgia

185

108

Kentucky

Photo by: NCAA Photos via Getty Images

December 19, 2022 | Men's Swimming & Diving, Women's Swimming & Diving

Results

LEXINGTON, Ky. – In the program's first December dual meet since 1993, the University of Georgia swimming and diving team split its contest with Kentucky Monday morning at the Lancaster Aquatic Center.

In the men's meet, the 10^th-ranked Bulldogs (6-1, 3-0 SEC) bested the Wildcats, 185-108, while the ninth-rated women (5-2, 1-2 SEC) fell to No. 20 Kentucky, 166-134.

Men – No. 10 Georgia 185, Kentucky 108

Senior Zach Hils put on a show for his hometown crowd, winning three events as the Bulldogs claimed 13 overall victories on the afternoon. Hils first prevailed in the 200 freestyle with a time of 1:36.77, followed by a win in the 100 freestyle with a time of 44.10. The Lexington native closed out the day with a winning 1:47.27 in the 200 IM.

Fellow senior Ian Grum was also impressive as he swept the backstroke events, taking the 100 at 48.07 and the 200 at 1:45.06. Graduate Andrew Abruzzo earned a pair of comeback wins, charging late to win the 200 butterfly (1:45.69) and 500 freestyle (4:23.38). Another veteran, senior Dillon Downing, won the 50 freestyle with a time of 20.29. Downing and Grum joined sophomores Arie Voloschin and Peter Sacca to claim the opening 200 medley relay at 1:29.37.

Voloschin earned his first collegiate win in the 100 breaststroke with a time of 56.48, while fellow sophomore Jackson Bates also broke into the win column for the first time at 2:01.20. Junior Zach Franklin picked up his first victory of the season in the 100 butterfly with a time of 49.06.

In diving, the Bulldogs were impressive as graduate Kevin Li finished second on 3-meter with a score of 346.13, followed by sophomore Nolan Lewis in third at 340.58. Li also took second on 1-meter with a score of 304.20, with Lewis in third at 302.25 and sophomore Rhett Hopkins in fourth at 300.83.

Women – No. 20 Kentucky 166, No. 9 Georgia 134

Sophomore Eboni McCarty concluded her impressive fall with a sweep of the sprints, winning the 50 freestyle at 23.03 and the 100 freestyle at 50.29. McCarty also anchored the winning 200 medley relay (1:40.33), finishing the race with a 22.69 split to join teammates Marie Schobel, Zoie Hartman, and Callie Dickinson in victory.

Senior Zoie Hartman also earned a pair of wins, finishing first in the 100 breaststroke with a B-cut of 1:01.26 before earning another provisional cut of 1:58.76 in the 200 IM. Hartman also finished second in the 200 breaststroke with a time of 2:12.62.

The Georgia women earned two additional victories on the day with sophomore Abby McCulloh winning the 1,000 freestyle with a time of 9:52.15 and junior Meghan Wenzel taking the 1-meter at 301.65 for her sixth win of the season. Wenzel also placed fourth on 3-meter with a mark of 289.50.

In second-place finishes, sophomore Duné Coetzee posted a time of 1:49.75 in the 200 freestyle, Marie Schobel went 53.89 in the 100 backstroke, and graduate Callie Dickinson was a runner-up in both butterflies.

Following Monday's meet, the diving team returns in two weeks for the Georgia Diving Invitational, running Tuesday, Jan. 3 through Thursday, Jan. 5 at Gabrielsen Natatorium. The full team will be back in action at South Carolina on Saturday, Jan. 14.

For all news and updates about Georgia swimming and diving, following the Bulldogs on Twitter (@UGASwimDive), Instagram (@ugaswimdive), and Facebook (UGA Swimming and Diving).