TAMPA – Florida Southern's All-American 200-medley relay team made sure the Moccasins got off to a winning start in a new season Friday night, and a trio of juniors who earned individual All-American awards last year started the same way. Alli Crenshaw, Kelsey Gouge, and Lauren Reynolds all won multiple events, and another junior, Morgan Burns had a first- and second-place finish as Florida Southern defeated Tampa, 157.5-104.5.
Swimming under the lights in a dual meet for the first time in program history, the Mocs started with Reynolds (South Elgin, Ill.) and Gouge (Snellville, Ga.), along with sophomoresAlex Ballard (Kingfisher, Okla.) and Cassie Ley (Hilton Head, S.C.), winning the 200-medley relay. It was the same team that earned All-American status last spring and also won the Sunshine State Conference title in that event.
Following the 200-medley relay, Crenshaw, Reynolds, and Gouge picked up their first wins of the season in the 200-freestyle, 100-backstroke, and 100-breaststroke respectively, giving the Moccasins a commanding lead in the meet. In the latter two of those races, Florida Southern swimmers also finished second and third, with Ballard and sophomore Lily Rose (Rockley, Barbados) claiming those spots in the backstroke, and Burns and Ley doing it in the breaststroke.
After Tampa won the 200-butterfly, Gouge, Crenshaw, Reynolds and Burns combined for five more wins, with Gouge taking both the 50-freestyle and the 100-freestyle. Crenshaw's second win of the meet came in the 1,000-freestyle where she already hit an NCAA "B" qualifying time, and Reynolds won another backstroke race, this time the 200. Burns notched her first win of the new season in the 200-breaststroke, with freshman Jacinda Whittenburg (Lakewood, Colo.) and sophomore Elizabeth Fris (Holland, Mich.) finishing second and third.
The Spartans then won another butterfly race, but Crenshaw matched Gouge with her third win of the night by capturing the 500-freestyle.
Tampa closed out the meet by winning the 200-individual medley and the 200-freestyle relay, but Florida Southern nearly matched the Spartans in points during the 200-IM with Ley, Whittenburg, and Burns holding the second through fourth positions.
Whittenburg wasn't the only freshman to have a strong debut for the Moccasins. Peyton Breault (Jacksonville, Fla.) placed second to Crenshaw in both the 200-freestyle and 500-freestyle, and Britt Aubley, another Jacksonville native, helped them place second in the 200-freestyle relay.
Florida Southern will have its first home meet of the season next Saturday when it hosts Florida International at 1 p.m., with only the women's team scheduled to compete.
