The 2022 University Athletic Association Swimming & Diving Championships began for the men Thursday in Atlanta with Emory University capturing four conference titles and setting two UAA meet records.
Through one day of competition, the Eagles top the field with 563 points with the University of Chicago in second at 478.5 points while spots three through five are tightly grouped together with WashU in third with 389.5, NYU fourth with 386.5 points and Carnegie Mellon in the fifth position at 335.5.
Junior Lucas Bumgarner continued his dominance at the UAA Championships, leading off the finals session with his third consecutive conference title in the 3-meter diving event with his winning score of 527.15. Sophomore Alex York joined Bumgarner in the 3-meter finals, taking eighth at 413.40.
The swimming portion of the evening got underway in incredible fashion, as the Eagles' team of juniors Colin LaFave, Will O'Daffer, Pat Pema and sophomore Nicholas Goudie edged out Carnegie Mellon by a fingernail (.02 seconds) to win the 200 Freestyle Relay at 1:21.28. The win marks the fourth title in the last five meets for the Eagles in the event.
Goudie followed later in the night with an impressive individual performance in the 50 Freestyle, setting the UAA record in the 50 Freestyle with his winning time of 19.90. Goudie, now a two-time champion in the 50 after tying for first in 2020, marks the fifth straight conference meet an Emory swimmer has won gold in the event.
Goudie, along with junior Ryan Soh, sophomore Jake Meyer and senior Hwa Min Sim rounded out day one with the Eagles' fourth event title, breaking the UAA record with a time of 3:13.36 en route to the 400 Medley Relay crown. Thursday's win represents the Eagles' fourth title in the event of the last five.
In addition to the team's four first place finishes, LaFave came through with an individual All-UAA effort, touching third in the 50 Free at 20.34, his first top-three showing of his career in the event.
The UAA Championships continues Friday with the 200 Medley Relay, 400 IM, 100 Butterfly, 200 Freestyle, 100 Breaststroke, 100 Backstroke, 800 Freestyle Relay and women's 3-meter diving.