Florida earns pair of titles on final day of Phillips 66 National Championships

Florida swimming wrapped up the Phillips 66 National Championships on a high note on Saturday claiming a pair of titles on the final day.

Florida swimming wrapped up the Phillips 66 National Championships on a high note on Saturday claiming a pair of titles on the final day of competition. Former Olympians [autotag]Bobby Finke[/autotag] and [autotag]Katie Ledecky[/autotag] swept the 800-meter free and 1500-meter free, respectively, to earn national championships in both events to close things out.

For Finke, it was the second time he gold-medaled during the course of the five-day meet, swimming a 7:40.34 — both a US Open record and the fastest time in the world this year — after claiming the national title in the men’s 800-meter free on Saturday night. He also claimed two other medals in the competition.

Ledeki one-upped him, earning her third national title of the week with a time of 15:29.64 — also the fastest time in the world this year.

Other members of the team who brought in a haul of hardware are Kieran Smith, who finished fifth in the A-Final of the men’s 200-meter individual medley, shaving over a second off his prelim time from Saturday morning. Incoming freshman Bella Sims recorded another strong showing in the 200-meter IM A-Final as well, also finishing fifth with a time of 2:12.15.

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Four Gators medaled on Day 4 of Phillips 66 National Championships

Four members of the Florida swimming team earned medals on the fourth day of the Phillips 66 National Championships on Friday.

Four members of the Florida swimming team earned medals on the fourth day of the Phillips 66 National Championships held in Indianapolis, Indiana, on Friday. Men’s swimmers [autotag]Kieran Smith[/autotag] and [autotag]Jake Mitchell[/autotag] as well as women’s team members [autotag]Katie Ledecky[/autotag] and [autotag]Bella Sims[/autotag], all reached the podium on the penultimate day of competition as the quartet dominated in the 400-meter freestyle event.

Smith and Mitchell secured second and third-place finishes with times of 3:46.11 and 3:46.87, respectively, in the A-finals. Ledecky and Sims one-upped their male counterparts, finishing first and second with times of 4:00.45 and 4:03.25, respectively in the A-finals.

The women’s pair have already earned a bid in the 2023 World Aquatics Championships in Japan while their male counterparts earned a trip to Land of the Rising Sun with their performances on Thursday.

Adam Chaney placed fifth in the 100-meter backstroke, shaving off more than half a second from his prelim time for a finals swim of 53.34, while assistant Coach Annie Lazor posted a sixth-place finish in the 100-meter breaststroke on Friday night in the A-finals, touching the wall in 1:07.77.

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This Florida swimmer medaled for 3rd-straight day at Phillips 66 Championships

The Gators continue to bring home the hardware from this year’s Phillips 66 Championships.

Florida swimmer [autotag]Bobby Finke[/autotag] earned a medal for the third-straight day at the Phillips 66 Championships held in Indianapolis, Indiana, on Thursday with a third-place finish in the 400-meter individual medley — the only podium finish for the Orange and Blue that day. Finke’s 4:09.55 was five seconds shorter than his preliminary time and enough to bring home the bronze.

Also of note was Caleb Dressel, who is in the midst of a comeback attempt as he tries to regain his once-held Olympic glory. He posted a 51.95 in the 100-meter men’s butterfly, which was .29 seconds less than his morning time and good enough for a tie for fifth place in the event.

The other Gator who reached the A-final in her respective event was Zoe Dixon — the 2023 SEC Female Freshman Swimmer of the Year for 2023 — who notched a 4:44.86 in the 400-meter IM, finishing fourth in the nation.

The 2023 Phillips 66 National Championships continue Friday, with prelims starting at 10 a.m. EDT and finals at 7 p.m. EDT. The prelims are streamed on the USA Swimming Youtube page while the finals are available on Peacock.

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Five Florida swimmers earned medals at Phillips 66 Championships Wednesday

Five Florida swimmers earned medals at the Phillips 66 Championships on Wednesday night as the Gators continue to dominate the water.

Five Florida swimmers earned medals at the Phillips 66 Championships on Wednesday night as the Gators continue to dominate the water at this summer’s latest competition. Caeleb Dressel, Annie Lazor, Katie Ledecky, Bella Sims and Kieran Smith all took home some hardware after putting up superb performances in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Volunteer coach Ledecky earned a silver medal for her 1:55.28 in the women’s 200m freestyle — just .02 away from first — while incoming freshman Sims took home the bronze in the same event with a personal-best 1:56.08 — almost a second better than her previous top mark.

In the men’s 200m free, Smith notched a 1:45.63 time — dropping .47 seconds off his prelim time — to earn silver. The other member of the men’s team to earn a medal was Dressel, who dropped an event-best .44 seconds off his prelim time to swim a 23.35 as he continues his work his way back into Olympian form.

Finally, assistant coach Lazor added to the Gators’ haul with a 2:25.86 finish to earn the bronze in the women’s 200m breaststroke.

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Florida finishes fifth in 2022-23 Learfield Directors’ Cup

Two national championships over the last calendar year led Florida to a fifth place finish in the 2022-23 Learfield Directors’ Cup.

The Florida Gators finished in fifth place for the 2022-23 Learfield Directors’ Cup, according to a press release published on Wednesday by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA).

Florida finished behind Stanford, Texas, Ohio State and Virginia, in that order. The Gators’ national championships in men’s golf and men’s outdoor track and field. Florida’s recent runner-up finish at the Men’s College World Series also added to a total of 1,091.5 points. Virginia finished with just 14 more points than UF, while Stanford’s 1,412-point showing paced the all athletic programs.

The Southeastern Conference features the most programs in this year’s top 25. Florida leads all schools at No. 5 but is followed closely by No. 6 Tennessee, No. 7 Georgia, No. 9 LSU, No. 12 Alabama, No. 13 Arkansas, No. 18 Kentucky and No. 24 Texas A&M.

Nineteen sports are counted in the final D1 standings, with women’s volleyball and basketball and men’s basketball baseball serving as four constants. The remaining fifteen sports are the highest score for each institution, regardless of gender.

“The LEARFIELD Directors’ Cup was developed as a joint effort between the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) and USA Today. Points are awarded based on each institution’s finish in NCAA Championships.”

This is Florida’s 14th season in a row finishing in the top five. Despite several second-place finishes, the Gators have never ended the season at No 1 overall.

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Southeastern Conference approves future scheduling formats for seven sports

The presidents and chancellors of the Southeastern Conference approved future regular season schedules and post-season championship formats for seven SEC sports during a meeting in Nashville last week. The future formats were approved in preparation …

The presidents and chancellors of the Southeastern Conference approved future regular season schedules and post-season championship formats for seven SEC sports during a meeting in Nashville last week. The future formats were approved in preparation for the addition of the Oklahoma Sooners and Texas Longhorns to the conference beginning with the 2024-25 athletic year.

Regular season schedule formats were approved for baseball, gymnastics, and men’s and women’s swimming and diving while championship formats were approved for gymnastics, swimming and diving, indoor track and field, and the return of the SEC Volleyball Tournament — which has not been held since the 2005 season.

Take a look below at the seven sports — including a pair with both men’s and women’s teams — that had schedules and championship formats approved, while regular-season formats in football and volleyball and the post-season tournament format in baseball are still yet to be determined.

Gators swim coach Katie Ledecky wins AP Female Athlete of the Year award

It’s safe to say Katie Ledecky’s move to Florida has paid off as she claims her second AP Female Athlete of the Year award.

Swimming star [autotag]Katie Ledecky[/autotag], who trained and coached at the University of Florida this year, was named the Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year on Wednesday.

Ledecky joined Florida’s swim staff as a volunteer coach in September 2021 after spending time at Stanford, where she competed and earned a psychology degree. Although the move across the country was big, Ledecky has little to no regrets regarding it.

“It’s been a lot of fun every day,” Ledecky said. “This is the right place for me to be at this point in my career. I’m training really well and learning a lot along the way.”

Since moving to Gainesville, Ledecky has done plenty of winning. She finished first in the 800-meter freestyle by more than 10 seconds at this year’s world aquatics championship, won the 1,500 free by more than 15 seconds, earned gold in the 400 free and won the 4×200 free relay with the U.S. team. She also claimed two more world records in the short-course 800 and 1,500 before the year ended.

The move to Florida has also brought out some competitiveness in Ledecky, not that she lacked any motor before. Practicing with the men’s team has opened her up to the world of trash talk, and she’s finally found her footing in her new environment.

“Guys are guys,” she said. “They love to trash-talk with each other. “I’ll poke a little fun at some of the guys, give them a little push here and there. I’m definitely pretty comfortable in this environment now.”

Ledecky doesn’t plan on slowing down, either. She’s currently focused on the 2024 Olympic games in Paris and expects to compete in the 2028 games in Los Angeles. By then, she’ll be 31, and learning how to keep her body fresh as she gets older is one of her major lessons from Florida coach Anthony Nesty.

There’s plenty left to be written in the book of Ledecky, and her time at the University of Florida could play a major part in keeping her on top of the swimming world. This is the second time she has received the AP honor, but no one should count on it being the last.

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Florida Gators announces 2022 UF Athletic Hall of Fame Class

The University of Florida announced its 2022 UF Athletic Hall of Fame class on Thursday.

The Florida Gators announced that it will induct nine athletes, coaches and administrators to its UF Athletic Hall of Fame in 2022. The inductees are chosen by the F Club Committee based on three categories: Gator Greats, Distinguished Letterwinners and Honorary Letterwinners.

This year former Gators running back and track star [autotag]Jeff Demps[/autotag], cornerback [autotag]Joe Haden[/autotag] and forward [autotag]Chandler Parsons[/autotag] headline the class. Former Florida swimmer Conor Dwyer, softball outfielder Michelle Moultrie, track star Christian Taylor, baseball catcher [autotag]Mike Zunino[/autotag], tennis player and coach Steve Beeland and former athletic director Jeremy Foley round out the class.

Demps played for the Gators from 2008 to 2012 and finished his Gators career 10th in total rushing yards at 3,592 and 11th in total touchdowns with 23. On the track, Demps won three consecutive NCAA Indoor Titles 2010-2012 in the 60-meter dash and was a two-time NCAA Outdoor National Champion in the 100m and the 4x100m relay.

Hayden was a star cornerback for the Gators from 2007 to 2009, starting all 40 games he played in. In addition to helping Florida to a national championship in 2008, he racked up 218 total tackles, eight interceptions, 3.5 sacks and 34 pass breakups that rank fifth all-time. He was drafted by the Cleveland Browns with the seventh overall pick in the 2010 NFL draft.

Parsons played for Florida on the hardwood from 2007 to 2011. He became the first men’s basketball player in program history to be named SEC Player of the Year in 2011. Parsons finished his Gators career 12th on the program’s all-time scoring with 1,452 points.

The Hall of Fame banquet will occur on Friday, Oct. 7, 2022, prior to the football team’s home game versus Missouri.

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Former Florida star Caeleb Dressel wins first gold medal of Tokyo Olympics

Caeleb Dressel was named the heir to Michael Phelps after his retirement. He won his first gold of the Tokyo Olympics Sunday.

Former Florida men’s swimming star Caeleb Dressel won his first gold medal and the Gators’ third medal overall in the Tokyo Olympics on Sunday. He helped the United States defend its gold medal in the men’s 4×100 meter freestyle relay.

He started the relay for the Red, White and Blue where he grabbed the lead in the first 15 meters of his opening leg. Dressel finished his swim in 47.29 seconds then his teammates Blake Pieroni, Bowe Becker and Zach Apple sealed the win for the U.S with a time of 3:08.97 and a 1.14-second margin of victory over Italy and Australia.

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“It feels great, we knew there was a huge target on our backs,” he said in an interview after the race, according to The Alligator. “We’re never going to doubt ourselves, that’s how Team USA works.”

Dressel also won two gold medals in the 2016 Rio Olympics in the men’s 4×100 meter freestyle relay and in the men’s 4×100 meter medley relay.

On Saturday, fellow Gators Kieran Smith and Natalie Hinds earned bronze medals in the men’s 400-meter freestyle and in the women’s 4×100 meter freestyle relay, respectively.

Dressel returns to the pool again for the men’s 100-meter freestyle prelims Monday. Then he will team up again for the men’s 4×200 meter freestyle relay, men’s 100-meter butterfly, men’s 50-meter freestyle and the new men’s 4×100 meter mixed medley relay later in the games.

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Former Florida star Caeleb Dressel wins first gold medal of Tokyo Olympics

Caeleb Dressel was named the heir to Michael Phelps after his retirement. He won his first gold of the Tokyo Olympics Sunday.

Former Florida men’s swimming star Caeleb Dressel won his first gold medal and the Gators’ third medal overall in the Tokyo Olympics on Sunday. He helped the United States defend its gold medal in the men’s 4×100 meter freestyle relay.

He started the relay for the Red, White and Blue where he grabbed the lead in the first 15 meters of his opening leg. Dressel finished his swim in 47.29 seconds then his teammates Blake Pieroni, Bowe Becker and Zach Apple sealed the win for the U.S with a time of 3:08.97 and a 1.14-second margin of victory over Italy and Australia.

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“It feels great, we knew there was a huge target on our backs,” he said in an interview after the race, according to The Alligator. “We’re never going to doubt ourselves, that’s how Team USA works.”

Dressel also won two gold medals in the 2016 Rio Olympics in the men’s 4×100 meter freestyle relay and in the men’s 4×100 meter medley relay.

On Saturday, fellow Gators Kieran Smith and Natalie Hinds earned bronze medals in the men’s 400-meter freestyle and in the women’s 4×100 meter freestyle relay, respectively.

Dressel returns to the pool again for the men’s 100-meter freestyle prelims Monday. Then he will team up again for the men’s 4×200 meter freestyle relay, men’s 100-meter butterfly, men’s 50-meter freestyle and the new men’s 4×100 meter mixed medley relay later in the games.

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