March 30, 2002

ATHENS, Ga. - With a school record swim in the 1650-yard freestyle, Georgia Tech junior Shilo Ayalon finished eighth and earned All-America honors at the 2002 NCAA Men's Swimming and Diving Championships at the University of Georgia's Gabrielsen Natatorium. As a team, the Jackets finished 27th with 11 points.

Ayalon's effort is the highest-ever individual finish at the NCAA Championships for Tech. He clocked a time of 14:55.05, while USC's Erik Vendt placed first in a pool record time of 14:37.48.

As for the team, the 27th-place finish and the 11 points represent program-bests for the Jackets, who scored 10 points a year ago to finish 29th. Last's year's points were the team's first-ever at the NCAA meet.

Ayalon placed 11th in the 1650 at last year's championships, garnering honorable mention All-America accolades. He is the only Tech swimmer to earn such honors in back-to-back seasons.

The only other Jacket in action on Saturday was junior James Salazar, who placed 20th in the 200-yard backstroke. He swam a time of 1:45.59.

-GT-