Tennessee swimming & diving fall to Texas amid strong start

Keira Everett, Contributor

October 25, 2025

Ericksen Gomez-Villeda / The Daily Beacon

Ella Jansen races in a heat of the women’s 200 meter butterfly at the Tennessee invitational at the Allan Jones Intercollegiate Aquatic Center. Friday, Nov. 22, 2024.

Tennessee swimming & diving enjoyed a quality road showing to kick off its season with plenty of promising performances.

The Lady Vols came in ranked No. 4 in the preseason poll, and the Vols at No. 5, setting up a high-energy matchup in Austin. The women suffered a 135-51 defeat to the Longhorns, while the men fell 120-65. Texas even promoted the meet through Meta advertisements, adding to the anticipation.

One of Tennessee’s top performers, Camille Spink, got things rolling with a 21.43 to win the 50-meter freestyle. She followed that up with a 47.07 in the 100 freestyle, finishing second while staying close to her 46.25 best time from last year’s SEC Championships.

McKenzie Siroky, an NCAA finalist and world championships qualifier, kept the momentum going in the breaststroke. Her 57.78 came in just shy of her lifetime best from last season’s SEC Championships. Sophomore Ella Jansen also had a big day, landing on the podium in the 200 IM, 200 freestyle and 400 IM. She posted a 1:43.48 from the free that ranks in the Lady Vols’ all-time top ten.

The men came out strong as well. Gui Caribe, Pedro Sansone, Nikoli Blackman and Kamal Muhammad teamed up to win the 200 freestyle relay. Caribe turned in some fast swims in the 50 and 100 free. Senior Martin Espernberger grabbed a win of his own in the 200 fly with a 1:41.86.

Freshman Gabe Nunziata made an impressive debut, finishing the 200 breaststroke in 1:53.62. This mark beat his lifetime best of 1:53.73 and secured a spot in the Tennessee record books.

In diving, freshman Desharne Bent-Ashmeil stood out with a 291.30, good enough for a second-place finish in the two-meter, followed by a 316.35 on the three-meter. Lynae Shorter, one of Tennessee’s top returning divers, also started strong with a 325.48 on the three-meter board. Both helped lead a solid showing from the Lady Vols divers.

While Texas took the meet, Tennessee came away with plenty of positives. Strong early-season swims, personal bests and big contributions from both veterans and newcomers highlighted the day.