Seniors Lead the Way In Sweep of Houston, FGCU

CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The Miami Hurricanes swimming & diving team won their final meet of the regular season Friday afternoon, topping both the University of Houston and Florida Gulf Coast University on Senior Day at the Whitten Center Pool.

The Hurricanes bested Houston by a score of 187-108 and toppled FGCU, 225-70 to secure wins against both visiting teams.

The Hurricanes opened the event by honoring their senior class in a pre-meet ceremony: swimmers Zorry Mason, Aino Otava, Nicole Sowell and Isabel Traba along with divers Max Flory, Brodie Scapens and Mia Vallée.

“Today’s meet was a great representation by our seniors. It was a great representation of our team, honoring the seniors and honoring the U,” head swim coach Andy Kershaw said. “So much credit to our seniors for leading the team throughout this season. As well, a thank you to one of our captains Zorry Mason, who we honored last year on Senior Day, but today was her final full meet here.”

The Canes captured an eye-popping 14 of 16 possible first place finishes during the meet.

The top entry for the Hurricanes in the 200-yard medley relay comprised of Celina Kuehne, Tara Vovk, Zorry Mason, and Jacey Hinton set the tone of the meet, with a first-place time of 1:43.02.

Veteran swimmer Adrianna Cera took the top spot in both the 1000-yard freestyle (10:13.89) and the 500-yard freestyle (4:59.30). Savannah Barr won the 200-yard freestyle (1:53.48).

Mason placed first in the 100-yard backstroke (57.00), while sophomore Giulia Carvalho took home first place in both the 50-yard freestyle (23.95) and the 100-yard butterfly (56.31). Jane Fitzgerald won the 100-yard freestyle (52.03) and Kate Sommerstad placed first in the 200-yard backstroke (2:05.03). Emma Sundstrand placed first in the 200-yard IM (2:05.55).

In the 400-yard freestyle relay, the top entry comprised of Fitzgerald, Hinton, Vovk, and Carvalho placed first, with a time of 3:29.32, to conclude the meet. In addition to placing first in the medley relays, Vovk placed first individually in both the 100-yard breaststroke (1:03.77) and the 200-yard breaststroke (2:18.61).

Vallée placed first in the 3-meter dive, with a final score of 360.15.

“We certainly did some great things from an execution standpoint. From a times on the board standpoint, we must make sure we have faster swims,” Kershaw said. “Overall, there was great racing and great execution from the team.”

The Miami Hurricanes will resume action in a dual meet on January 27 at Florida Tech in Melbourne, Fla.