Tampa and Nova Southeastern Shine as Sunshine State Conference Swim Championships Heat Up on Day 4
OCALA, Fla. – The fourth day of the 2026 Sunshine State Conference Swim Championships featured strong competition, ending with the University of Tampa in first place overall (816 points) Nova Southeastern remained in second after day four with 696 points. Meanwhile, Lynn University is holding steady at third with 406 points.
In the men's standings, the top three teams remain the same as Tampa men are the team to beat with 721 points followed by Lynn with 410.5 points, and then Nova Southeastern on the tail of the Fighting Knights with 403 points.
Top Performances:
The women’s finals at the Sunshine State Conference Swimming Championships opened with a dominant performance in the 500 freestyle. Hailey Williams led from start to finish to claim gold for Nova Southeastern University in 4:49.32. Teammate Emilia Ronningdal followed closely for silver at 4:51.23, while Mckenna Patrick secured bronze for University of Tampa with a 4:54.91 finish.
Tampa controlled the 100 backstroke, sweeping the podium in commanding fashion. Lindsey Louder earned gold in 55.03, edging teammate Sidni Meister for silver at 55.36. Kimberley McCaffrey completed the sweep with a bronze-medal swim of 55.52.
Nova Southeastern continued its strong night in the 100 breaststroke, claiming the top two spots. Zsofia Kurdi touched first in 1:01.40 for gold, while Hannah Montgomery followed for silver in 1:01.91. Rollins College earned bronze as Taiylor Tegler posted a 1:02.21 finish.
The final individual race of the evening, the 200 butterfly, saw Burlingtyn Bokos deliver a winning swim of 1:59.44 for Tampa. Nova Southeastern secured silver with a 2:00.22 effort, and Mariele De Santis claimed bronze for Lynn University in 2:01.07.
The night concluded with an electric women’s 200 freestyle relay. Nova Southeastern’s quartet of Kurdi, Kristina Orban, Maxine Egner, and Maya Esparza combined to set an NCAA record, capturing gold in 1:30.04. Tampa followed with a strong 1:31.58 performance, while Florida Southern College secured bronze in 1:33.93 to close out a highly competitive evening in the pool.
The men’s finals on day four of the Sunshine State Conference Swimming Championships opened with a dominant showing in the 500 freestyle as University of Tampa swept the podium. Jacob Hamlin led the charge with a winning time of 4:19.86, followed by teammate Eliot Weisel in second at 4:23.05. Barnabas Fluck completed the sweep, touching third in 4:23.17.
The 100 backstroke delivered a record-breaking performance from Maurice Grabowski of Lynn University, who surged to gold in 46.14 to establish a new meet record. The mark eclipsed the previous record of 46.25 set in 2025 by Brandon Wilson of Florida Southern College. Tampa’s William Beckstead-Holman claimed silver in 46.87, while Lynn’s Paul Melcer secured bronze with a 47.16 finish.
Momentum continued in the 100 breaststroke as Maxim Tsyfarov powered to gold for Lynn in 52.73. Rollins College earned silver behind William Slowey at 53.18, while Janek Barczyk captured bronze for Florida Southern in 53.55.
Before the break, the 200 butterfly featured another meet record as Luke Dinges of Rollins delivered a blistering 1:43.96 swim, surpassing last year’s record of 1:44.06 set by Vitaly Kostin. Tampa’s Aidan Clements finished second in 1:45.77, with Kostin returning to the podium for bronze at 1:45.97.
The evening closed with a thrilling 200 freestyle relay, where Florida Southern’s quartet of Michael Tretyakov, Will Neville, Nino Viallon, and Matheus Da Rocha produced another meet-record effort, winning in 1:18.48. Tampa followed closely in 1:19.00, while Florida Institute of Technology secured third in 1:19.40 to cap an action-packed night in the pool.
The championship concludes tomorrow, Sunday, February 15th, at 10:00 AM with Day 5 prelims. Events for the day include the 100 freestyle, 200 backstroke, 200 breaststroke, and 1650 freestyle. The evening finals will feature the final heat of the 1650 free and the 400 free relay to complete the championship events.
Day 4 Medalists (#Indicates SSC Meet Record/*Indicates SSC Record/**Indicates NCAA Record)
Women’s 500 Free Medalists:
1. Hailey Williams, Nova Southeastern (4:49.32)
2. Emilia Ronningdal, Nova Southeastern(4:51.23)
3. Mckenna Patrick, Tampa (4:54.91)
Men’s 500 Free Medalists:
1. Jacob Hamlin, Tampa (4:19.86)
2. Elliot Weisel, Tampa (4:23.05)
3. Barnabas Fluck, Tampa (4:23.17)
Women's 100 Back Medalists:
1. Lindsey Louder, Tampa (55.03)
2. Sidni Meister, Tampa (55.36)
3. Kimberly McCaffrey, Tampa (55.52)
Men's 100 Back Medalists:
1. Maurice Grabowski, Lynn (46.14 #)
2. William Beckstead-Holman, Tampa (46.87)
3. Paul Melcer, Lynn (47.16)
Women’s 100 Breast Medalist:
1. Zsofia Kurdi, Nova Southeastern (1:01.40)
2. Hannah Montgomery, Nova Southeastern (1:01.91)
3. Taiylor Tegler, Rollins (1:02.21)
Men’s 100 Breast Medalist:
1. Maxim Tsyfarov, Lynn (52.73)
2. William Slowey, Rollins (53.18)
3. Janek Barczyk, Florida Southern (53.55)
Women’s 200 Fly:
1. Burlingtyn Bokos, Tampa (1:59.44)
2. Vika Kostromina, Nova Southeastern (2:00.22)
3. Mariele De Santis, Lynn (2:01.07)
Men’s 200 Fly:
1. Luke Dinges, Rollins (1:43.96 #)
2. Aidan Clements, Tampa (1:45.77)
3. Vitaly Kostin, Lynn (1:45.97)
Women’s 200 Free Relay Medalist:
1. Nova Southeastern (1:30.04**) Zsofia Kurdi, Kristina Orban, Maxine Egner, Maya Esparza
2. Tampa (1:31.58) Avery Frece, Tilde Morin, Madalee Roberts, Hannah-Claire Jowers
3. Florida Southern (1:33.93) Mallory Baker, Elizabeth Sikes, Rania Khallouqi, Sam Hunter
Men’s 200 Free Relay Medalist:
1. Florida Southern (1:18.48 #) Michael Tretyakov, Will Neville, Nino Viallon, Matheus Da Rocha#
2. Tampa (1:19.00) Tibor Tistan, Riccardo Pandin, Nick Cavic, Mathias Rike Holmann
3. Florida Tech (1:19.40) Andy Pleiman, Lucas Mitchelmore, Emiel Van Oord, Dylan Ostolaza