SUNSHINE STATE CONFERENCE (SSC) – MEN AND WOMEN
- Dates: Thursday-Sunday, February 13-16th
- Location: Long Center, Clearwater, Florida
- Defending Champions: Nova Southeastern men (3x); Tampa women (1x)
- Live Video
- Championships Central
Courtesy: Sunshine State Conference
CLEARWATER, Fla. – The first day of the 2020 Sunshine State Conference Swimming Championships ended with the Tampa Spartans in front and Nova Southeastern in second separated by 24 points (211-187), with the UT men claiming three gold medals. On the women’s side, Nova Southeastern leads the way with 230.5 points with Tampa in second with 186.5 points, each team picking up two gold medals.
Top Performances:
Nova Southeastern junior Emma Sundstedt started the meet by winning the 1,000-freestyle for the third year in a row with an NCAA A-qualifying time of 9:54.10, becoming the first SSC women’s swimmer to win that event in three-consecutive seasons. The Sharks finished the meet with a win in the 200 medley relay, pushing them further ahead in the team standings.
On the men’s side, Vincent Lijoi of Nova Southeastern defended his SSC title in the men’s 1000 freestyle, posting a personal best time and NCAA of 9:07.12. Tampa’s Aaron James also earned the gold for the second-straight year in the 50 freestyle, taking .02 seconds off his winning time last season with a time of 20.10. The night ended with the Spartans holding onto their lead after winning the 200-medley relay by 0.37 seconds over Nova Southeastern, setting a new SSC Championship Meet record by 0.2 seconds.
Day 1 Medalists (*indicate SSC Championship Meet Records)
Women’s 1,000 Freestyle Medalists:
1. Emma Sundstedt JR Nova Southeastern 9:54.10
2. Jessie Tobin JR Tampa 10:05.40
3. Savannah Brennan JR Florida Tech 10:10.85
Men’s 1,000 Freestyle Medalists:
1. Vincent Lijoi JR Nova Southeastern 9:07.12
2. Matthew Daniel SO Saint Leo 9:16.70
3. Cole Smith SO Florida Southern 9:18.85
Women’s 200 Individual Medley Medalists:
1. Courtney Sherwood SO Tampa 2:01.48
2. Sasha Maslova SO Nova Southeastern 2:01.60
3. Ewa Osiniak FR Lynn 2:02.10
Men’s 200 Individual Medley Medalists:
1. Brett Saunders SR Tampa 1:45.54
2. Samuel Brettman JR Nova Southeastern 1:46.67
3. Gabe Parnell SO Tampa 1:47.07
Women’s 50 Freestyle Medalists:
1. Elizaveta Bazarova SO Tampa 23.00
2. Jenna Johns SO Nova Southeastern 23.18
3. Hana Van Loock JR Tampa 23.36
Men’s 50 Freestyle Medalists:
1. Aaron James SR Tampa 20.10
2. Alec Dawson JR Nova Southeastern 20.11
3. Jonathan Yanello JR Nova Southeastern 20.35
Women’s 200 Medley Relay Medalists:
1. Nova Southeastern 1:40.39
2. Tampa 1:41.11
3. Lynn 1:43.65
Men’s 200 Medley Relay Medalists:
1. Tampa 1:27.62*
2. Nova Southeastern 1:27.99
3. Saint Leo 1:29.66