The fourth day of the swimming and diving Southeastern Conference Championships in Columbia, Missouri gave Crimson Tide fans two things they enjoy to seeing, championships and record-setting performances.
Connor Oslin, a junior from Kennesaw, Georgia., won the SEC 100 backstroke championship for the second straight year with a time of 45.25. Vlad Polyakov was the last Alabama swimmer to win consecutive SEC championships in the same event during his three-peat run in 2005, 2006 and 2007.
Oslin’s morning preliminary heat’s time of 45.39 was enough to make him the top seed of the day. His preliminary and 100 backstroke times eclipsed last year’s conference-winning time of 45.45.
Bridget Blood, a junior from Cincinnati, Ohio, was the first female for Alabama to make it to the podium this season due to her silver performance in the 100 breaststroke with a time of 59.44.
Blood, senior Emma Saunders and sophomores Hannah Musser and Temarie Tomley set a new school record in the women’s 400 medley relay with a time of 3:34.44, which placed them fifth in the day’s event.
On Saturday, the Crimson Tide compete in the 1650 freestyle, the 200 backstroke, 100 freestyle, 200 breaststroke, women’s platform diving and the 400 freestyle relay to conclude the 2016 edition of the swimming and diving SEC Championships.
