ATHENS, Ga. – No. 5 Texas (9-1) snapped No. 2 Georgia’s 103-meet home winning streak and dealt the defending NCAA champion Lady Bulldogs their first home loss since 1995, as the Longhorns posted a 171-124 win Saturday afternoon at UGA’s Gabrielsen Natatorium.
The win is the first for fifth-year Texas head coach Carol Capitani over Georgia and her mentor, UGA head coach Jack Bauerle, for whom she served 14 years as an assistant coach over two stints. Capitani left Georgia in 2012 to take over the Longhorns’ women’s swimming and diving program.
“What a big day for Texas,” Capitani said. “This is a very special team, and I couldn’t be more proud of this group of young women. Our girls have fought all year, and today was no exception. It is an emotional day for them and for me. I spent a long time at Georgia, and it has shaped the way I think and coach. I am very grateful for the people who have been a part of this journey. This team has some big goals, and this win is another step toward where we want to be.”
Texas seized the lead through the first event and never let up. UT captured the 200-yard medley relay by about two seconds, as All-America seniors Tasija Karosas and Madisyn Cox joined sophomore Remedy Rule and All-America junior Rebecca Millard to win in 1 minute, 37.70 seconds.
Texas sophomore Joanna Evans, a Rio Olympian for The Bahamas, held off Georgia’s tough distance contingent and claimed the 1,000 freestyle in 9:46.40. Cox went three-for-three against and won all six individual races on the road trip. She captured the 200 freestyle in 1:45.28.
Georgia answered with its first win of the day in the 100 backstroke before UT sophomore Olivia Anderson teamed with senior Jordan Surhoff to lead a one-two Longhorns finish in the 100 breaststroke. Anderson took the win in 1:01.85 while Surhoff followed in 1:01.98.
Rule, one of the nation’s standout butterflyers halfway through the dual-meet season, remained true to form in the 200 butterfly, where she was victorious in 1:56.03. Millard followed with another Longhorns win in the 50 freestyle at 22.53 and returned after a diving break to win at 100 yards in 48.83.
Freshman Alison Gibson swept the diving events and gave the UT women a diving sweep for the week over Auburn and Georgia. The Austin native claimed the one-meter event with 320.55 points and led a one-two-three Texas finish alongside sophomores Meghan O’Brien and Sofia Rauzi. Gibson edged O’Brien for top honors on three-meter with 359.45 points.
Karosas led from start-to-finish in the 200 backstroke and took the win in 1:53.80. Cox picked up her second win of the afternoon and cruised to victory in the 200 breaststroke at 2:09.56. Evans posted her second win of the day over the Georgia distance group and was victorious in the 500 freestyle at 4:45.85.
Rule finished off a sweep of the butterfly events and ran down UGA’s Chelsea Britt in the 100 butterfly at 53.12. With the team victory in hand, Texas elected to decline any remaining points due to them and completed the final two events as exhibitions. Nevertheless, it was Texas who came out on top to close out the meet. Cox nailed down her third victory of the day and powered away from the rest of the 200 IM field in 1:57.26, over four seconds clear of her nearest competitor.
Millard, Adams, Rule and Karosas put the finishing touches on the Longhorns’ victory with a win in the 400 freestyle relay at 3:17.61.
Texas returns to action on Jan. 27 when it hosts Arizona for a two-day dual meet at UT’s Lee and Joe Jamail Texas Swimming Center.
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