February 5, 2026

Corcoran, Morales Win Gold; Eagles Add Three Additional Podium Finishes

Carson-Newman turned in a championship-level performance Wednesday on day two of the 2026 South Atlantic Conference Swimming Championships, racking up multiple podium finishes and high-point swims to remain firmly in contention on both sides of the meet at the Kingsport Aquatic Center.

KINGSPORT, Tenn. — Carson-Newman turned in a championship-level performance Wednesday on day two of the 2026 South Atlantic Conference Swimming Championships, racking up multiple podium finishes and high-point swims to remain firmly in contention on both sides of the meet at the Kingsport Aquatic Center.

"The main thing that I saw was our team being able to build momentum session to session," said head coach Ben Young. "We had a typical morning session and did enough to get into finals, but the challenge to the team was to hold themselves accountable for each and every session. This team does a great job of making the necessary changes, building momentum, and moving forward as the night went along."

The highlight of the night came in the men's 100-yard butterfly, where the Eagles delivered a dominant gold-silver finish. Junior Gabriel Morales captured the SAC title with a winning time of 47.14, followed closely by teammate Will Humphreys, who claimed silver in 47.75. Both swims met NCAA Division II B-cut standards. Senior Arthur Gluzman added to the scoring with a fifth-place finish at 48.43, giving Carson-Newman three top-five finishers in the event.

"I learned from my mistakes from this morning," said Gabriel Morales. "I moved on, fixed my turns, practiced all I could before the race, and executed the way I wanted to."

Carson-Newman also doubled up on the podium in the women's 400-yard individual medley. Sophomore Megan Corcoran earned the SAC title with a time of 4:26.90, while junior Paola Gonzalez secured silver in 4:30.05, as the Eagles placed two swimmers among the top three in the championship final.

"It took a lot of dedication and trusting the coaches and understanding that a bad practice doesn't mean that it's going to be a horrible race," said Megan Corcoran about her 400 IM performance. "No matter how many times I swim the event, I can't let myself get in my head about it. I have to put the hard work in while in the pool and trust the coaches."

On the men's side, the Eagles continued their strong showing in the 400-yard individual medley with two A-finalists. Junior Mikael Soederberg finished fourth in 3:59.93, narrowly missing the podium, while sophomore Jack Hebert placed fifth at 4:00.64. Freshman Justin Duke led the Carson-Newman B-final contingent with an 11th-place swim in 4:08.37.

Another podium performance followed in the men's 200-yard freestyle, where freshman Gabriel Catapano touched second to claim silver in 1:37.57, marking his first individual podium finish of the meet. Junior Cody Hart added a scoring swim in the B final with a time of 1:38.38.

"It was really hard, and there are guys here that can swim fast," said Gabriel Catapano. "I tried to improve myself and my skills because it's really hard to fix the small details. I'm getting better, and I'm excited for the next two days."

Relay action closed the night with another podium result for the Eagles. Carson-Newman finished second in the men's 400-yard medley relay, clocking a 3:13.34 behind Catawba. The relay team of Morales, Ryan Berry, Humphreys, and Catapano combined for a critical silver-medal performance to cap the session.

The Eagles return to the Kingsport Aquatic Center for the third day of the SAC Championships, with preliminary rounds beginning at 10 a.m., followed by finals at 5 p.m.

For updates throughout the week, follow @CN_Eagles on X and Instagram, or Carson-Newman Athletics on Facebook. Full coverage is also available at cneagles.com.