Editor’s Note: The following is an official press release from LSU’s athletic department.
BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Tx. – LSU swimmer Maggie MacNeil continued her dominance in the NCAA season by adding the fastest 50-yard back split to her resume Tuesday on day one of the 2023 SEC Championships inside the Rec Center Natatorium.
LSU diver Chiara Pellacani finished the three-meter springboard finals in third place, earning a bronze medal – the first medal for the Tigers at the SEC meet. Pellacani closed the final session with a score of 341.85. In the prelim session, she finished in the top eight alongside Helle Tuxen and Montserrat Gutierrez Lavenant.
Tuxen and Gutierrez Lavenant closed the finals with respective scores of 294.05 and 276.10.
After one day, the LSU women lead the way in first place with 178 points. Following behind in second and third going into day two are Florida (150) and Kentucky (149).
To begin the prelim session, the diving team competed in prelims for the men’s one-meter and women’s three-meter. On the men’s side, Adrian Abadia and Zayne Danielewicz finished in 15th and 17th place, respectively, which earned the Tigers its initial points of the meet. On three-meter, Maggie Buckley claimed 17th place and Hayley Montague placed 34th.
In the 200-yard medley, LSU claimed eighth, which was led off by MacNeil’s record-breaking performance. In addition to her individual record, the school record fell too. Held since 2009, the relay team of MacNeil, Hannah Womer, Hannah Bellina and Michaela de Villiers broke the longstanding record with a time of 1:36.59.
For the 800-yard freestyle relay, the LSU women placed fourth with a time of 7:02.12. The relay team of Katarina Milutinovich, Megan Barnes, Reagan Osborne and Chloe Cheng broke the second school record of the session. The previous record had been standing since 2016.
On the men’s side, the Tigers finished in eighth place with a time of 6:22.46.
The 2023 SEC Championships are available to stream on the ESPN app with each prelim and final session being housed on SECN+. Live stats for the meet’s entirety can be found on MeetMobile. Live results on the diving side can be accessed at divemeets.com, which updates after each individual dive.
ORDER OF EVENTS (All Times Central)
Wednesday, February 15
9:30 a.m.: Swimming Prelims
12:30 p.m.: Diving Prelims
5:30 p.m.: S&D Finals
Thursday, February 16
9:30 a.m.: Swimming Prelims
12:30 p.m.: Diving Prelims
5:30 p.m.: S&D Finals
Friday, February 17
9:30 a.m.: Swimming Prelims
12:30 p.m.: Diving Prelims
5:30 p.m.: S&D Finals
Saturday, February 18
9:30 a.m.: Swimming Prelims
12:30 p.m.: Diving Prelims
5:30 p.m.: S&D Finals