Tampa Men's and Women's Swimming Lead After Day Two of SSC Championships

Tampa Men's and Women's Swimming Lead After Day Two of SSC Championships

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OCALA, Fla. – The second day of the 2026 Sunshine State Conference Swim Championships kicked off with the first of many finals and concluded with a close race for first as the University of Tampa holds a seven-point lead over Nova Southeastern University (288-281). Lynn University rounds out the top three with 148 points.
 
In the men's standings, Tampa matched with a successful day, leading by 100 points (271) over Nova Southeastern (171). Lynn maintains third with 140 points. 
 
Top Performances:
An exciting evening of finals began with the top heat of the 1000 freestyle as Hailey Williams from Nova Southeastern emerged victorious. Williams won with a time of 9:52.24, with a close swim for second and third between Tampa teammates Laura Hodgson and Burlingtyn Bokos. Hodgson finished second in 10:00.91, followed closely by Bokos in third with 10:00.94.  
 
In the 200 IM, the women’s A final came down to the final freestyle leg as Tampa’s Caroline Foltz took gold with a 2:01.36 over NSU’s Emilia Ronningdal (2:01.97). Third place went to Mariele De Santis of Lynn, who finished with a time of 2:03.07. 
 
The final individual event of the evening was the 50 free, as NSU’s Kristina Orban won the event in 22.71. In the final heat of prelims, Orban set a new SSC record in the 50 free, finishing with a time of 22.30. Nova Southeastern’s Maya Esparza joined Orban on the podium for the 50 free with a second-place time of 22.77, followed by Tampa’s Tilde Morin, who had a time of 22.93. 
 
The last event of the evening was the 200 medley relay, as a team of Mollie Morfelt, Hannah Montgomery, Kristina Orban, and Maya Esparza led NSU to a gold medal in a time of 1:39.79. Lynn was second in 1:41.48, followed by Tampa with a time of 1:41.56. 
 
On the men’s side of the 1000 free, Tampa had a podium sweep led by Jacob Hamlin with a 9:00.05. Elliot Weisel was second in 9:03.26, followed by Julian Ithier in third with a time of 9:09.14. For the 200 IM, William Slowey from Rollins set a new meet record of 1:45.14, beating Tampa’s William Beckstead-Holman (1:45.52). Florida Tech’s Akos Hajagos won the final podium spot with a time of 1:47.20. 
 
Lynn’s Maurice Grabowski had an incredible day, first setting a new SSC meet record in the 50 free with a time of 19.26. Grabowski turned around and beat the same record in the evening finals, going 19.13 for an NCAA A standard time and just 0.01 off from an overall SSC record. Tibor Tistan of Tampa took second in the finals in 19.69, just ahead of Florida Southern’s Will Neville, finishing in 19.70. 
 
The final event of the evening was the 200 medley relay as a team of Grabowski, Maxim Tsyfarov, Vitaly Kostin, and Enzo Constable took first with a new meet record of 1:25.19. Tampa was just behind in second with a time of 1:25.74, followed by Rollins in third with a time of 1:28.12. 
 
The championship resumes on Friday, February 13th, at 10:00 AM with Day 3 prelims. Events for the day include the 100 butterfly, 400 IM, and 200 freestyle. The evening finals will add the 400 medley relay to complete the day’s events.
 
Day 2 Medalists (#Indicates SSC Meet Record/*Indicates SSC Record/**Indicates NCAA Record))
 
Women’s 1,000 Freestyle Medalists:

  1. Hailey Williams, Nova Southeastern (9:52.24)
  2. Laura Hodgson, Tampa (10:00.91)
  3. Burlingtyn Bokos, Tampa (10:00.94)
 
Men’s 1,000 Freestyle Medalists:
  1. Jacob Hamlin, Tampa (9:00.05)
  2. Elliot Weisel, Tampa (9:03.26)
  3. Julian Ithier, Tampa (9:09.14)
 
Women's 200 IM Medalists:
  1. Caroline Foltz, Tampa (2:01.36)
  2. Emilia Ronningdal, Nova Southeastern (2:01.97)
  3. Mariele De Santis, Lynn (2:03.07)
 
Men's 200 IM Medalists:
  1. William Slowey, Rollins (1:45.14#)
  2. William Beckstead-Holman, Tampa (1:45.52)
  3. Akos Hajagos, Florida Tech (1:47.20)
 
Women’s 50 Freestyle Medalist:
  1. Kristiana Orban, Nova Southeastern (22.71)
  2. Maya Esparza, Nova Southeastern (22.77)
  3. Tilde Morin, Tampa (22.93)
 
Men’s 50 Freestyle Medalist:
  1. Maurice Grabowski, Lynn (19.13#)
  2. Tibor Tistan, Tampa (19.69)
  3. Will Neville, Florida Southern (19.70)
 
Women’s 200 Medley Relay Medalists:
  1. Nova Southeastern (1:39.79) (Mollie Morfelt, Hannah Montgomery, Kristina Orban, Maya Esparza)
  2. Lynn (1:41.48) (Alicja Piascinska, Malaika Schneider, Lydia Douthit, Luz Tapia Sahagun)
  3. Tampa (1:41.27) (Kimberly McCaffery, Alicia Soderlind, Sierra Gillan, Tilde Morin)
 
Men’s 200 Medley Relay Medalists:
  1. Lynn (1:25.19#) (Maurice Grabowski, Maxim Tsyfarov, Vitaly Kostin, Enzo Constable)
  2. Tampa (1:25.74) (Rufus Bernhardt, River Streefland, Tibor Tistan, Riccardo Pandin)
  3. Rollins (1:28.12) (Valentino Montegrande, William Slowey, Luke Dinges, Sebastian Lopez)