Milligan Swimming Produces Top-Flight Finishes at King Invite

Mary Grace Bitting was one of many Milligan swimmers to reach provisional standards on multiple events this weekend at the King Invite in Kingsport, helping the Buffs to a second-place finish on the women’s side

October 14, 2024

KINGSPORT, Tenn. – On Friday and Saturday, the Milligan University swim teams competed as part of the King Invite, hosted by the Kingsport Aquatic Center. In a field heavily filled by NCAA DII programs, the Milligan men finished first, while the Buffs women came away with a second-place result to start their seasons.

In session one, Azaliia Gabdrakipova earned a provisional qualifying time for the NAIA, finishing second with a 2:10.71 clip in the 200 backstroke. On the men's side of the event, Stephen Gilbert walked away with a triumph in the same event, notching a provisional result of 1:54.93.

Both Gellert Szedlak and Paxton Smith propelled themselves to provisional marks in the 100 freestyle, finishing at 47.29 and 47.44, respectively.

Teagan Jose and Robert Adam were able to reach provisional qualifying standards in the 200 women's and men's breaststroke events, respectively. They had times of 2:32.24 and 2:06.43 for their events, with Adam finishing atop the men's competition.

The 200 men's butterfly saw Szedlak and Andre Bazzana hit provisional standards with times of 1:56.67 and 1:58.46, while finishing in second and third places.

Mary Grace Bitting and Joash Mckonie swept the 100 IM races for Milligan, giving them a pair of victories in the lauded events. Their times were 1:02.25 and 53.38.

Session two included a 200 freestyle relay win by the Milligan men, as the quartet of Mckonie, Smith, Caleb Fry and Gilbert swam a 1:23.97 to win the title.

Then, in the 500 freestyle on the men's side, Szedlak and Peter Gilbert were provisional qualifiers in third and fourth places. They managed 4:51.54 and 4:51.86 clips in the event.

Adam and S. Gilbert then made provisional marks in the 200 IM with first and fourth place finishes. Adam's 1:55.12 paced the field, while S. Gilbert came in at 1:58.19.

Madison Akbari would then provisionally qualify in the women's 50 freestyle with a time of 25.57. She finished fifth in the field of 34. Smith and Fry would follow that up with provisional marks on the men's side of the 50 freestyle with 21.31 and 21.43 times to finish third and fourth.

In the third and final session, the Milligan women had three provisional qualifiers in the 400 IM, including Bitting, Peyton Brady and Samantha van Vuure. They clocked in at 4:52.56, 4:56.47 and 4:58.37, respectively. Adam and P. Gilbert were able to follow suit and reach their provisional standards with times of 4:14.90 and 4:21.98.

Fry notched a 59.05 in the 100 breaststroke to reach the provisional mark, finishing fourth.

The men's 100 butterfly saw a trio of Buffs meet their marks, with Mckonie, Sergio Tudor and Bazzana qualifying provisionally. They supplied times of 52.11, 52.27 and 52.37.

Szedlak dominated the 200 freestyle with a 1:44.03 time to win the event and reach a provisional qualifying mark.

Gabdrakipova then had her second qualification mark hit in the 100 backstroke with a time of 1:00.61 to finish second as an individual. Smith, S. Gilbert and Mckonie also qualified for the men in the 100 backstroke, finishing in second, third and seventh places, respectively. Their 52.09, 52.48 and 53.98 clips met the necessary standard.

Click HERE to view the full results.

Overall, the meet was a massive success for both sides, with a colossal number of provisional qualifiers for the NAIA National Championships. The two squads will now have a layoff until Nov. 2, when they head to Carson-Newman in Jefferson City, Tenn. for a triangular event with the hosts and Emory & Henry.