Gogulski Claims Silver at SEC Championships

Ethan Gogulski earns a silver medal in the 100 back at SEC Championships

Feb 18, 2022 | Men's Swimming and Diving

By: Rachel Perreault, Texas A&M Athletics Communications

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KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Junior Ethan Gogulski made his podium debut, bringing home a silver medal Friday night at SEC Championships at the Jones Aquatic Center. The Aggies remain in fifth through four days of competition with 636.5 points.

"The competition tonight was intense in every event, as usual in the SEC. Everything you get is something you have to battle for," head coach Jay Holmes said following the meet. "We are proud of our flyers and how they competed tonight. They were aggressive and I know our team got excited seeing how they fought through.

"Tomorrow is arguably our best swimming day. While we don't have a men's diving event to help us, the events are some that our guys have the most confidence in. We've got work to do in prelims."

Gogulski locked up the No. 3 seed in prelims and went on to again lower his personal best in the 100 back final, fighting his way into second place with a time of 45.42. The time ranks as the second-fastest time in program history.

"There are some races that you know you will remember. Seeing Ethan [Gogulski] medal tonight for the first time in his SEC career will be one of those swims," Holmes said. "There is a lot to his story and tonight just added to the fun part of being able to watch him compete like that."

Joining Gogulski in the 100 back final were Tyler Hulet and Thomas Shomper. Hulet placed 16^th with a time of 47.21 and Shomper finished 18^th with the ninth-fastest time in program history at 46.95.

Luke Stuart led the way for A&M in the 200 fly, placing 13^th with a time of 1:44.74. Trey Dickey took the top spot in the C-final and 17^th overall with a personal best 1:44.83, which ranks sixth on A&M's all-time 200 fly list. Jace Brown rounded out the Aggies in the final, finishing 23^rd with a time of 1:45.79.

Andres Puente clocked in at 52.44 to take sixth in the 100 breast. Alex Sanchez and Jacob Schababerle added top-22 finishes for the Aggies, with respective times of 53.20 and 53.89.

All four Aggies competing in the platform added points for the Aggies, with Allen Bottego leading the way in 11^th with a score of 311.10. Rhett Hensley took 15^th with a score of 282.15, while Kyle Sanchez and Kurtis Mathews scored 242.90 and 234.20, respectively, to earn top-24 finishes.

"We got solid points from our divers on the platform. With the two freshmen [Allen Bottego and Rhett Hensley] scoring like they did, it gives us a lot confidence in the divers they will be for us in years to come."

A&M closed out the evening with an eighth-place finish in the 400 medley relay as Gogulski, Puente, Brown and Kaloyan Bratanov went 3:08.28.

The Aggies will conclude SEC Championships Saturday, competing in the 1,650 free, 200 back, 100 free, 200 breast, platform and 400 free relay. Follow @aggieswimdive on Twitter for updates throughout the meet.

Top Finishers
200 Fly: Luke Stuart – 1:44.74 (B)
100 Back: Ethan Gogulski – 45.42 (B)
100 Breast: Andres Puente - 52.44 (B)
Platform: Allen Bottego – 311.10
400 Medley Relay: Ethan Gogulski, Andres Puente, Jace Brown, Kaloyan Bratanov – 3:08.28

Remaining Schedule
Saturday, Feb. 19
Prelims – 8:30 a.m. – Watch
Finals – 4:30 p.m. - 1650 Free, 200 Back, 100 Free, 200 Breast, Women's Platform Diving, 400 Free Relay – Watch