Auburn, Ala. – LSU swimmer Brooks Curry swam a 41.81 in the 100-Yard Free ‘A’ Final to earn the gold medal on the final night of the 2020 SEC Swimming and Diving Championships. Along with more personal best and school record times, the Tigers closed out the championships with a lot of momentum.
Curry’s time of 41.81 surpassed his prelim time of 42.02 to set another LSU record and sit as the second fastest time in the nation overall and the fastest by a freshman. This is the first gold medal a Tiger swimmer has earned since the 2004 SEC Championships when Evan Martinec won the 100-Yard Breaststroke.
“Winning events at the SEC Championships is a huge accomplishment, but winning as a freshman is amazing. ” said LSU head swim coach Dave Geyer. “Brooks did not have a perfect race but he kept his composure and fought all the way to the wall to win. That was his goal tonight; to win.”
The night began with two Tigers swimming in the ‘C’ Final of the 200-Yard Backstroke. Cassie Kalisz swam a 1:59.22 to finish in 24th place on the women’s side. For the men, Matt Klotz finished in 24th place after touching the wall in 1:46.77. In the women’s 100-Yard Free, Katarina Milutinovich swam the fifth fastest time in LSU history, a 48.84, to finish in 17th place and win the ‘C’ Final.
In the Women’s 200-Yard Breast, Niamh Robinson set a new school record with a time of 2:08.37 to finish in fifth place. On the men’s side, Luca Pfyffer swam a 1:55.31, which moves him up to No. 2 in LSU history, to finish in 10th place. Cameron Karkoska moved up to third all-time with a time of 1:55.85 to finish in 17th place.
“I think Katarina lit a fuse for our team by winning her heat, leading to Brooks’ swim and him igniting the team for swims to follow,” continued Coach Geyer. “Niamh, Luca, and Cameron all attacked their swims after that.”
In the women’s 1650-Yard Freestyle, Lexi Daniels finished in 25th place with a time of 16:42.23. On the men’s side, Isak Vikstrom finished in 27th place with a time of 15:36.31 and Keagan Finley finished in 29th place with a time of 15:43.39.
To close out the championships, the women’s team of Milutinovich, Olivia Taylor, Natalie Kucsan, and Grace Horton finished the 400-Yard Freestyle Relay in 11th place with a time of 3:19.40. The men’s team of Curry, Lewis Clough, Michael Petro, and Ben Hooper finished in ninth place with a time of 2:53.27, setting a new school record.
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