Gamecock Invite Day 3 Recap: South Carolina Ends Invite In Dominant Fashion – SwimSwam

2022 GAMECOCK INVITE

• November 16-18, 2022
• University of South Carolina Natatorium, Columbia, S.C.
• SCY (25 yards)
• Results on Meet Mobile: “2022 Gamecock Swimming Invitational”
• 2022 NCAA Qualifying Times
• Day 2 Recap

South Carolina put on yet another dominating performance tonight, winning all but one event in the final session of the meet.

Hayley Mason opened the night opened winning the 1650 by nearly eight seconds over UNCW’s Brooke Knisely for a time of 16:28.92. On the men’s side, Rafael Davila dominated the field, going a 15:11.77, nearly 24 seconds faster than teammate Jose Castro.

The 200 back final was deep, with the top six swimmers breaking 2:00.00. Tatiana Salcutan won for South Carolina in a 1:54.84, while Bella Pantano was second at 1:55.22, followed by Megan Maholic at 1:57.52. Salcutan’s time marked the third-best in program history, while Pantano moves to fourth-fastest and Maholic takes tenth-fastest.

Janie Smith and Dylan Scholes broke 50.0 in the 100 free, with Smith winning in 48.98 and Scholes taking second with a 49.12. The swim marked Scholes’ first time breaking the 50.0 barrier.

The only event South Carolina did not win was the men’s 100 free, where UNCW’s Jacob Duracinsky clocked a 44.42. He beat second-place Michael Laitarovsky (44.57) by 0.15 hundredths.

South Carolina’s Liam Kerns beat UNCW’s Aiden Duffy to be the only swimmer to dip below 2:00.0 tonight in the 200 breaststroke with a time of 1:59.41.

South Carolina took the top five spots in the women’s 200 fly, led by Greta Pelzek (1:57.45). All five of their swimmers broke 2:00.0. Pelzek’s time was just off her personal best, but teammate Nicholle Toh tied hers at 1:58.32.

South Carolina’s A and B relays went 1-2 in the final relay of the night for the women. The A team of Janie Smith, Aubrey Chandler, Amy Riordan, and Dylan Scholes combined to win in 3:16.43. The swim marked the second-fastest in program history.

The men’s race was slightly closer, with South Carolina’s team of Guy Gropper, Mark Shperkin, Erge Gezmis, and Michael Laitarovsky winning in 2:57.23, beating UNCW by just over a second.

Final Team Scores:

Women: 

1. South Carolina – 1818.50
2. UNCW – 1107.50
3. Vanderbilt – 629
4. FGCU – 611
5. Georgia Southern – 322
6. North Florida – 278
7. Gardner-Webb – 264

Men:

1. South Carolina – 1105
2. UNCW – 853
3. Gardner-Webb – 676