University of Florida - Tower / Seminole Yearbook (Gainesville, FL)

MEN ARE NCAA CHAMPIONS The NCAA Men ' s Swimming was a competition that went right down to the wire. In the end, UF, squeaked by Southern Methodist with a score of 227-225. Winning the 400 yard freestyle relay the final event of the meet — was the key to the Gators ' win. Freshman Mike Heath swam an impressive 43.67 second split on the anchor leg of the relay to beat out SMU ' s four-time All-American Steve Lindquist by a yard. The relay team also included another freshman, Albert Mestie, with an excellent time of 43.26, Donald Gibb (44.05), and Geoff Gaberino (44.08). Men ' s Swim Team: FRONT ROW; Bill Sawchuk, manager, Shawn Toffolo, Stan Kupiszewski, Patrick Kennedy, Mike Siragusa, Rafael Visal, Alberto Mestre, Doug Soltis, Keith Switzer, Matt Cetlinski, Bob Saeger, Vince Santostefano, asst. coach, Randy Reese, head coach. TOP ROW; Tom LeMaire, Fred Delcourt, Paul Herring, Eric Boyer, Mike Heath, Dan Weldon, Donald Gibb, Geoff Gaberino, Bobby Laugherty, Andrew Hamer, Brian Zielinski, Skip Foster, asst. Coach. All American Doug Soltis is working hard toward a strong finish in the freestyle. Flash Foto A strong men ' s swimteam is nothing new at UF. In the past five years, Coach Randy Reese has led to Gators to three third place and one fifth place national finishes prior to this year ' s national championship. Consistency was the key to the Gators ' success at nationals; unlike the rest of the season when inconsistencies haunted their dual meets. This ended with an easy upset for the SEC title over favored Alabama. The Gators ' win at the championship meet was largely due to an outstanding team effort. Surprisingly, none of the UF swimmers won any individual events but instead depended on the high point value of the relay for their victory. The strength of the Gator swim team is shown by looking at the members placed on the All-SEC team and the team. Matt Cetlinski, Mike Heath, Patrick Kennedy, Alberto Mestre, Rafael Vidal and Brian Zielinski all made both the All-SEC team and the All-American squad. Other Gators placed on the All- American team include Eric Boyer, Geoff Gaberino, Donald Gibb, Joe Greenwell, Bob Laugherty, and Doug Soltis. A. Youngblood