Red-hot Eagles dominate Lions
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Senior Day is always a special occasion, but for Carson-Newman Swimming,
Video: Jordan Taylor Interview
Video: Brandon Meier Interview
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Senior Day is always a special occasion, but for Carson-Newman Swimming, it also marked another successful home win and a perfect 3-0 record from inside the MSAC this season.
The Eagles saw action against Mars Hill to end the home portion Saturday as the team now focuses on another dual meet next weekend against Tennessee before heading to Conference in the coming weeks.
The Eagles pull out the team victory 403-75 over the Lions of Mars Hill; men were victors 196-39 while the women gather another top-notch win 207-36. Overall, Carson-Newman won 27 of the 28 total events swam on Saturday.
"Today was so special for us as we would honor the group of seniors and have a full team on deck. Yes, last week was special but today meant so much more to have the families here and for our teams to send the seniors off with a resounding win," head coach Jordan Taylor said. "I know it won't be emotional right now for them, but for these athletes to go out and compete one last time in this pool, it truly means a lot for them to take a chance on us as coaches and themselves."
Eagles started off the afternoon with a victory in the women's 200-yard medley relay with a time of 1:48.05 by the quartet of CJ Jensen (Copenhagen, Denmark), Kailee Morgan (Greenville, S.C.), Lily Parr (Knoxville, Tenn.), and Summer Osborne (Clearwater, Fla.).
The men continued the successful meet start in the 200-yard medley relay with their time of 1:34.85 by the quartet of Nikita Puzevich (Belarus), Felix Lund (Herlev, Denmark), Collin Tindall (Murfreesboro, Tenn.), and Brandon Meier (Greeneville, S.C.).
Among many of the bright spots for the Eagles men's side on Saturday was senior Brandon Meier (Greenville, S.C.). Meier started off his day as the anchor leg for the winning men's 200-yard medley relay before going on to win the men's 50-yard freestyle with a time of 21.12.
"The seniors really did the work today to close out with a huge win after a tough week of training. However, this week we wanted to put in the work and win this one for the seniors," Meier said. "The energy was immaculate today as we are a tight-knit team. To send off such a big group, today meant everything especially before going to UT next week. Next weekend will be fun as we try to give them a run for their money."
For the women, Debora Xavier provided a level of consistency as part of the Eagles victory. Xavier would win the women's 100-yard butterfly with a time of 59.79.
"I was really unsure how this week would go since I was in quarantine last week. Once I got into action, the rest of my team continued to cheer me on and push me to do my best which I know I did today," Xavier said. "Next weekend will be truly exciting for our program and for me to go out and continue improving as Conference approaches."
At the halfway point of competition, C-N was in firm control as they held a combined lead of 191-41. Through 14 events, C-N men were leading Mars Hill 92-22 while the women's scores were in favor of C-N 99-19.
Helping Meier and the men's team coast to the dominating Senior Day victory was Colin Tindall, who stepped up in a massive way for C-N Saturday. After being part of the winning men's 200-yard medley relay quartet, Tindall stamped his place on Saturday with the victory in the men's 200-yard butterfly with a time of 2:01.24.
On the women's side, freshman Lily Parr had a coming-out type of performance to help C-N maintain an unblemished home meet record this season. After helping C-N women's gain the victory in the 200-yard medley relay, Parr would go on to take the individual event win for the women's 100-yard freestyle in a time of 54.61.
The Eagles also saw sophomore Kyla Blakemore (Durban, South Africa) provided some massive individual wins as she would sweep both backstroke events on Saturday. First, the South Africa native swam a winning time of 57.11 seconds in the 100-yard backstroke. However, she was not done as she would win the 200-yard backstroke in a time of 2:04.77, almost 15 seconds faster than second place who finished with a time of 2:18.49.
The lone event loss for C-N came in the men's 100-yard breaststroke as Mars Hill saw Matthew Goslin take the victory with his time of 1:02.91. This would end up being one of the closest finishes on the afternoon as C-N's Kodee Eads, who finished second, came in right behind with a time of 1:03.08.
Head coach Jordan Taylor and his staff know what these next few weeks mean to the team and staff as they near Conference. He knows how hard the team has been working to get to this point and he is excited to see his squad showcase their talent one final time next weekend in Knoxville.
"The ability to go and compete one-on-one with Tennessee speaks volume for our program. We know they are full of world talent and for our athletes to be able to compete alongside future Olympians, I want the team to go out and compete like we have practiced and the results will follow," Taylor said. "It may not be all about winning every race and gaining the points, but instead bettering ourselves as we start to taper and prepare for Conference soon. This should be not only the biggest dual meet this season, but quite possibly, the biggest dual meet in Carson-Newman swim history."
UP NEXT
The Eagles will prepare to make the short trek to good ole Rocky Top and Knoxville, Tennessee to face off with a pair of nationally ranked Tennessee Volunteers programs. The Eagles and Vols will take to the pools of the Allan Jones Aquatic Center starting at 12 p.m. next Saturday, January 29.
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