Georgia men's swimming clinches bronze medal in 800 yard relay at SEC championships
Kira Doppel
Feb 19, 2025
The Georgia men’s team finished the day in second place after the second day of competition at the 2025 SEC swim and dive championships. The men's team’s 800 yard relay set a school record and secured third place in the event, as well as a pair of Bulldog divers that put up strong scores.
Redshirt senior Luca Urlando, graduate Jake Magahey, senior Reese Branzell, and sophomore Tomas Koski were on the podium with a bronze medal after setting a school record with a time of 6:05.43 in the 800y freestyle relay. The previous school record was set at the 2022 NCAA Championships.
The women's team just missed the podium in the 800y freestyle relay. Senior Duné Coetzee, senior Rachel Stege, junior Ieva Maluka, and freshmen Marie Landreneau finished in fourth place with an A-cut time of 6:57.77.
The women’s team is currently ranked ninth overall with 104.5 points, while the men’s team is currently second with 158 points.
On the diving side, sophomore Matthew Bray and junior Renato Calderaro put up impressive scores of 393.65 and 386.55, respectively. The Bulldog pair battled for a spot on the podium, but ultimately Bray finished fifth and Calderaro sixth.
Both the men’s and women’s teams performed well in the 200 yard relay. Urlando, redshirt sophomore Kristian Pitshugin, fifth-year Wesley Ng and Branzell finished fifth with a season best time of 1:23.21. The women’s team, consisting of senior Eboni McCarty, sophomore Helena Jones and freshmen Charlotte Headland and Katie Belle Sikes finished seventh with a season-best B-cut of 1:36.50
The third day of the SEC swim and dive championships on Wednesday will consist of the 200 yard freestyle relay, 500 yard freestyle, 200 yard IM, 50 yard freestyle and the women’s 3-meter dive. The finals will be at 5:30pm for these events at Bauerle Pool at Gabrielsen Natatorium in Athens.
