By Braden Keith on SwimSwam

2020 WOMEN’S B1G CHAMPIONSHIPS

• Swimming & Diving
• When: Wednesday, February 19th to Saturday, February 22nd | Prelims 11am | Finals 6:30pm (6pm Saturday)
• Where: Campus Recreation & Wellness Center, Iowa City, Iowa (Central Time Zone)
• Defending Champion: Indiana University Hoosiers (1x) (results)
• Live Results
• Streaming: Big Ten Network
• Championship Central: here
• Fan Guide
• Estimated NCAA Invite Times
• NCAA ‘A’ Cuts
• Day 3 (Friday AM) Heat Sheets

Data compiled by Barry Revzin

The data supports what the eye sees at the 2020 Women’s Big Ten Swimming & Diving Championships: the Ohio State Buckeyes are dropping time all over the place, which has allowed them to take the lead after 2 days of competition.

Team Standings After Day 2:

1. Ohio State University 561
2. Michigan, University of 478
3. Indiana University 338
4. Wisconsin, University of, Madi 257
5. Northwestern University 242
6. University of Minnesota 235
7. Purdue University 202
8. Iowa, University of 168
9. Pennsylvania State University 161
10. University of Nebraska-Lincoln 158
11. Rutgers University 135
12. Michigan State University 111
13. University of Illinois 108

More than half of the Ohio State individual swims on day 2 of the competition improved over seed time by at least 2%. That’s the best median improvement rate in the conference by almost double. Michigan’s median swimmer, meanwhile, has improved over seed time by less than 1%, while Indiana falls somewhere in the middle (though an early relay DQ is keping them well back in the standings).

In fact, every Ohio State individual swimmer on Thursday improved their seed time on Thursday in 32 entries (with 2 loopholes: Sarah Sperber didn’t have an entry time in the 200 IM, and Laura Banks, who swam breaststroke in the 50 free). That’s a rare feat at this level.

While the Buckeyes were expected to have a good day 2 of competition (it feeds into their team strengths), if they continue to perform the way they did on day 2, the meet could easily turn into a runaway in their favor.

Nebraska, which sits in 10th place after 2 days of competition, and Penn State, who are a slot ahead of them in 9th, are having the next-best performances compared to seed. They were tabbed pre-meet by the Swimulator to finish 9th and 6th, respectively.

In the charts below, negative (lower) boxes are bigger drops, while higher positive (higher) boxes are smaller drops (more on the chart methodology at the end).

Chart Explanation: The charts represent improvement percentages versus seed (season best) times. The colored box is the middle 50% of swimmers, so those ranging from 25th% to 75th% (the inter-quartile range) on each team, with the black lines extending from the box (the “whiskers”) being essentially all-but-outliers. Bigger boxes and longer lines indicate more variation in a team’s improvement versus seed. The red line in the middle of the box is the improvement of each team’s median swimmer. Teams are ranked from left to right based on the improvement of their median swimmer.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Hot-or-Not: Ohio State Women on Fire at the 2020 Big Ten Championships

By Retta Race on SwimSwam

2020 MCCULLAGH INTERNATIONAL MEET

• Thursday, February 20th – Sunday, February 23rd
• Aurora Complex, Bangor
• 50m (LCM)
• Event Schedule
• Meet Entries
• SwimSwam Preview
• Live Results

The 2020 McCullagh International Meet gives swimmers a chance to test out having finals in the morning, as the ‘day 1 prelims’ took place last night at Aurora Complex in Bangor. This mimicks the timing set to happen at this summer’s Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan.

Not giving the timing a second thought was Olympic and World champion Adam Peaty, with the 25-year-old first busting out a night swim of 58.90 before lowering it further this morning to a swift 58.78 to take 100m breast gold.

The Loughborough man split 27.42/31.36 to beat a stacked field this AM by over a second, a field which included Commonwealth Games medalists James Wilby, Ross Murdoch, plus two-time Olympian Craig Benson.

Wilby finished under a minute as well tonight, dropping his 1:00.26 prelims swim down to 59.91 for a solid in-season effort. Splits for Peaty’s teammate included 28.08/31.83 to get him on the board with the silver.

Murdoch finished with the bronze in 1:00.54 to kick-off his 2020 calendar year.

As fast as Peaty was this morning, he sits just off the #1 time in the world, which stands at the 58.61 Dutch record holder Arno Kamminga clocked last month at the FINA Champions Series in Shenzen. Belarusian Ilya Shymanovich also ranks slightly above Peaty, holding a season-best of 58.73, albeit from last August at the FINA World Cup stop in Tokyo.

Also situated just ahead of Peaty is young gun Nicolo Martinenghi of Italy, who posted a mark of 58.75 in Riccione last December.

However, these rankings merely set the stage for what’s to come as the months roll on, with the British Championships still sitting 2 months away.

Additional racers in this morning’s finals session included Commonwealth Games champion Aimee Willmott putting up the fastest 400m IM time for the women, stopping the clock in 4:39.63. The 26-year-old Stirling standout will most likely be happy hitting a sub-4:40 this time of year.

Behind her was 3-time Olympian Hannah Miley in 4:44.60, while 15-year-old Katie Shanahan rounded out the top 3 in 4:47.95.

Aberdeen’s Miley is the long-time British record holder in this event, owning a lifetime best of 4:31.33 from 2009. Willmott is GBR’s 2nd fastest performer all-time, possessing a PB of 4:33.01 from the 2014 Commonwealth Games.

As for Shanahan, the teen has been as fast as 4:43.36 from the 2019 European Junior Championships, placing her at slot #11 among Britain’s all-time performers. That time also rendered her the bronze medalist last year in Kazan. This effort here checks-in as Shanahan’s 5th fastest time ever.

Also in the water was two-time relay Olympic silver medalist Duncan Scott, with the versatile 22-year-old immediately moving on to this McCullagh International after contesting BUCS last weekend.

Scott dove in the for 100m freestyle, posting a night prelim effort of 49.11 to represent the only heats swimmer to delve under the 50-second mark. He mimicked the feat in this morning’s finals, touching in a winning time of 48.86 to collect the only sub-49 second time of the field.

Splitting 23.44/25.42, Scott looked smooth as silk, getting clean water with the next-fastest swimmer being that of home nation World Championships 50m backstroke bronze medalist Shane Ryan.

Ryan secured silver in 49.92, while Bangor native Jack McMillan produced a mark of 49.97 to also land on the podium.

17-year-old Edward Mildred of Northampton represented the youngest finalist of this men’s 100m free by 3 years. But the teen held his own, checking with a very respectable 50.60 to drop .18 from last night’s swim.

Mildred’s 50.60 sits just .13 outside of the 50.47 lifetime best he achieved at the NASA County Championships just last month. Plus, Mildred knew he had the 200m fly just a couple of events later in this morning’s session.

In that 200 fly, it was Loughborough’s Max Litchfield who made a late surge to get to the wall first in 1:59.53. Mildred settled for runner-up in 1:59.97, off his 1:59.66 heats swim from last night.

Irish national record holder Brendan Hylandjust missed breaking 2:00, touching in 2:00.04 as this morning’s bronze medalist.

Larne’s Danielle Hill and Stirling’s Kathleen Dawson produced the exact same time of 28.35 to tie for gold in the women’s 50m back, leaving Harriet West to snag the bronze in 28.97.

Hill has been on a record-breaking tear over the past year, a run which included taking the 50m backstroke national standard down to a swift 27.95 at last year’s Irish Summer Championships.

As for Dawson, although the Stirling athlete owns a PB of 27.92, this is a solid indicator that she is back to form after having battled injuries as of late.

Siobhan-Marie O’Connor produced a time of 1:08.15 in the women’s 100m breast, but so did her Loughborough teammate Sarah Vasey to give us our 2nd tie of the night. With both women coming in for gold, McSharry, fresh off the 100m free final just a few events earlier, snagged bronze in 1:08.20.

As noted in our meet preview, we expected this race to be tight and indeed it was. The fact that the aforementioned women, in addition to Molly Renshaw touching in 1:08.25 for 4th, are all pushing each other early in the year is essential if GBR wants to see anyone near the 1:06.34 British Swimming-mandated cut for Olympic qualification.

No British woman ranks among the top 25 performers this season, which means the nation has some catching up to do in terms of confidence-boosting for April.  The 2019 British Championships saw Jocelyn Ulyett take the gold in a time of 1:07.35, while 18-year-old Tatiana Belonogoff reaped silver in 1:07.61.

Belonogoff has since pursued Russian sports citizenship, while Renshaw finished 7th in Gwangju last year in a time of 1:06.96.

Additional Winners:

• Joe Litchfield nailed a winning 50m back time of 25.62 to win somewhat comfortably over Nick Pyle and his runner-up effort of 25.79. Litchfield’s time from this morning is now his lifetime best, rendering him the 16th fastest Brit all-time. Luke Greenbank was also in the Shane Ryan-less race, posting 26.14 for 3rd place.
• Ireland’s Mona McSharry took the women’s 100m free in a time of 57.05.
• Commonwealth Games champion Alys Thomas of Swansea got it done for gold in the women’s 200m fly, posting 2:10.07 to comfortably clear runner-up Charlotte Atkinson. Atkinson secured silver in 2:11.47, while Miley was back in the water to earn bronze in 2:16.16. Shanahan, also from the 400m IM, was back as well, taking 5th in 2:23.00.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: McCullagh Morning Finals Bring In-Season 58.7 For Peaty, 48.8 For Scott

By Karl Ortegon on SwimSwam

Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) Swimming & Diving Championships – Men and Women

• Wednesday, February 19 – Saturday, February 22
• East Los Angeles College, Monterey Park, California (swim)/Marguerite Aquatics Center, Mission Viejo, California (Dive) (Pacific Time Zone)
• Teams: BYU, UC Santa Barbara, Hawaii, Cal Poly, Pacific, UC-Davis (women only), San Diego (women only), UCSD
• Defending Champion: Hawaii men (1x) & Hawaii women (3x) (results)
• Live results on Meet Mobile
• Live Video
• Championship Central
• Psych Sheets

The second night of the MPSF Swimming & Diving Championships is done and dusted, with the Hawaii men and UC-Santa Barbara women moving into the lead in the team race.

Day two results

MEN’S MEET

Hawaii moved into a slim lead after day two, putting up four A-finalists in the 200 IM, three in the 50 free, and one in the 500 free. They went without a winner on the night, led by 200 IM runner-up David Springhetti (1:46.11).

That 200 IM was won by UCSB’s Douglas Nogueira, keying on a 25.10 final 50 to push past Springhetti to the wall at 1:45.83. This session was all UCSB at the beginning, as they kicked off the night by winning the 200 free relay with a 1:18.20 to snap the meet record set by BYU in 2013. UCSB was led by a 19.13 second leg from Riley Ferguson and a 19.28 anchor from Justin Nguyen. Hawaii was 1:18.76 for second, with Franz Adam anchoring at 19.33, and BYU took third in 1:18.80 with a 19.21 anchor from Connor Stirling.

The big split came on the end of UCSD’s fourth-place relay, however, as Spencer Daily ripped an 18.84. Daily is a sophomore.

UCSB was back in action in the 500 free, as Joseph Lastelic clocked a 4:19.84 to snag the win. Finally, in the 50 free, BYU swam to a 1-2 finish with Jared Shaw (19.62) and Stirling (19.77). Hawaii took third and fourth with ‘aukai Lileikis (19.78) and Mateusz Chaba (19.86), while Daily would grab fifth (19.88).

SCORES (through Day One)

1. Hawaii – 247
2. UCSB – 229
3. BYU – 196
4. UCSD – 161
5. Cal Poly – 113
6. Pacific – 89

WOMEN’S MEET

UCSB moved into first on the women’s side, getting seven A-finalists individually. Freshman Zoe Cosgrove was third in the 200 IM (2:00.45) and another freshman, Maelynn Lawrence, posted a 4:50.64 for third in the 500 fre to lead the Gauchos.

UCSD won the opening 200 free relay in 1:30.84, splitting 22’s the whole way through with a 22.43 anchor from sophomore Cody Hardagon. UCSB took second at 1:31.15, with Bryn McGowan‘s 22.02 the quickest split of the field.

Hawaii picked up two individual wins, as Phoebe Hines cruised to 500 free victory (4:43.39) and Lucia Lassman eked out the 50 free win in 22.70 over BYU’s Gwen Gustafson (22.71).

BYU freshman Katie McBratney took down the 200 IM field, going 1:59.70 to finish on top.

SCORES (through Day One)

1. UCSB – 227
2. Hawaii – 204
3. UCSD – 165
4. BYU – 147
5. UC Davis – 138
6. Pacific – 116
7. Cal Poly – 104
8. San Diego – 72

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Spencer Daily Drops 18.8 Split as Hawaii Men, UCSB Women Move Into MPSF Lead

By Braden Keith on SwimSwam

2020 SEC SWIMMING & DIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS

• Tuesday, February 18 – Saturday, February 22, 2020
• Auburn, AL – James E. Martin Aquatic Center
• Prelims/Finals: 9:30 AM/5:30 PM Wed-Sat, 10/4:20PM Tues (Central Standard Time)
• Defending Champion: Florida (7x) (results)
• Live Video – SEC Network+ (prelims), ESPN (finals)
• Men’s Fan Guide
• Women’s Fan Guide
• Psych Sheets
• Championship Central
• Estimated NCAA Invite Times
• NCAA ‘A’ Cuts
• Day 1 Finals Recap
• Live Video (Wednesday Finals)
• Heat Sheets
• Live Results

Data Compiled by Barry Revzin

• See Also: Hot-or-Not, SEC Championships Day 2

The 4-time defending NCAA Champion Texas A&M women clawed their way into 4th place on day 3 of the 2020 SEC Swimming & Diving Championships, sitting within striking distance of 3rd-place Kentucky.

While the Aggies don’t seem like they’ve got the firepower this year to win another team title, they continue to have the best performance-against-seed after day 3 of the meet.

Not a lot changed at the top of the day 3 Hot-or-Not rankings, though the Vanderbilt Commadores did have a good session in spite of not scoring any points on Thursday. That was led by 6 season-best times from their 100 butterfly group.

In terms of the battle for the team title, Tennessee and Florida both have middling improvement levels to show so far in this meet. The two teams sort of reversed roles on Thursday: while Florida had more swimmers that dropped time versus seed overall than Tennessee, Tennessee had more swimmers that dropped more time than did the Gators, including for example Amanda Nunan, who dropped almost 7 seconds in the 400 IM to move from non-scorer to C finalist. Those are the kind of moves at the bottom end of a table that can make-or-break an SEC Championship.

WOMEN’S TEAM SCORES THROUGH DAY 3:

  1. Tennessee, University of, Knox  632.5   2. University of Florida           585.5
  3. Kentucky, University of         491.5   4. Texas A&M University              491
  5. Auburn University                 478   6. Georgia, University of            456
  7. University of Alabama           351.5   8. University of Arkansas            254
  9. Missouri                          252  10. Louisiana State University        236
 11. South Carolina, University of,    228  12. Vanderbilt University              90

Meanwhile, in the men’s team race, the Florida Gators have begun to pull away from the Texas A&M men thanks to 9 A-final swims on Thursday (as compared to just 1 for the Aggies). The Florida men showed about the same improvements on day 3 as they did on day 2, and the A&M men did a little worse against seed on day 3.

While Thursday simply lined up as a good day for the Florida men, A&M doesn’t have enough room left in this meet to simply ‘chip away.’ If they want to get back into contention, they’ll have to start seeing more big drops on Friday. Highlighting the difference in fates between the two schools: about 75% of the A&M men’s individual swims at this meet have dropped less than 2% versus seed. About 75% of the Florida men’s individual swims at this meet have dropped more than 2% versus seed.

MEN’S TEAM SCORES THROUGH DAY 3:

  1. University of Florida           694.5   2. Texas A&M University            538.5
  3. Georgia, University of          493.5   4. University of Alabama           438.5
  5. Tennessee, University of, Knox    422   6. Kentucky, University of           416
  7. Missouri                          415   8. Auburn University                 385
  9. South Carolina, University of,    265  10. Louisiana State University        258

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Hot-or-Not: Florida Men Pull Away from Texas A&M on Day 3 of SEC Championships

By Jared Anderson on SwimSwam

2020 WOMEN’S ACC SWIMMING & DIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS

• When: Wednesday, February 19th to Saturday, February 22nd | Prelims 10:00 am | Finals 6:00 pm (1650 prelims Saturday at 4:00 pm)
• Where: Greensboro Aquatic Center, Greensboro, North Carolina (Eastern Time Zone)
• Defending Champion: North Carolina State University (NC State) (1x) (results)
• Streaming: ACC Network
  • Day 2 Finals
  • Day 3 Finals
  • Day 4 Finals
• Championship Central: Here
• Detailed Timeline: Here
• Psych Sheets: Here
• Live Results

We’re onto a busy day 2 of ACCs, with five prelims swimming events on the docket.

NC State’s Sophie Hansson broke ACC and meet records in the 100 breast last year as a freshman, and she returns as the favorite there. In the 400 IM, NC State went 1-2-3-4 a year ago and return all four swimmers led by defending champ Kathleen Moore, who could be on the hunt for the meet record.

In the 100 fly, defending champ Morgan Hill returns for Virginia, but she should face a stiff challenge. It’ll either be her teammate, star freshman Kate Douglass, or Louisville’s Grace Oglesby, who was just .01 behind Hill for the title last year and won the event in 2018.

Douglass is entered in the 100 fly, 200 free, and 100 breast, but will probably have to choose one of those races. The 100 fly may be most likely.

Four-time 200 free champ Mallory Comerford is graduated, but Virginia’s Paige Madden looks like the heir apparent. She was second last year and went on to take 5th at NCAAs.

In the 100 back, NC State looks for a fourth-consecutive title by a third different woman. Alexia Zevnik won in 2017 and Elise Haan the following two years. Now freshman standout Katharine Berkoff enters as the second seed, although she’ll have to get by UNC’s Grace Countie as well as top returners Megan Moroney (UVA) and Carly Quast (Notre Dame).

Keep refreshing this page for live, event-by-event updates of all the action from Greensboro.

Women’s 100 Fly – Prelims

• ACC meet record: 50.06 – Kelsi Worrell, 2016
• ACC record: 49.43, Kelsi Worrell, 2017
• 2019 ACC Champion: Morgan Hill (UVA) – 51.01

Women’s 400 IM – Prelims

• ACC meet record: 4:04.21 – Tanja Kylliainen, 2015
• ACC record: 4:03.51 – Tanja Kylliainen, 2015
• 2019 ACC Champion: Kathleen Moore (NCS) – 4:05.24

Women’s 200 Free – Prelims

• ACC meet record: 1:41.60 – Mallory Comerford, 2019
• ACC record: 1:39.80 – Mallory Comerford, 2018
• 2019 ACC Champion: Mallory Comerford (LOU) – 1:41.60

Women’s 100 Breast – Prelims

• ACC meet record: 57.74 – Sophie Hansson, 2019
• ACC record: 57.74 – Sophie Hansson, 2019
• 2019 ACC Champion: Sophie Hansson (NCS) – 57.74

Women’s 100 Back – Prelims

• ACC meet record: 50.74 – Courtney Bartholomew, 2016
• ACC record: 50.01 – Courtney Bartholomew, 2014
• 2019 ACC Champion: Elise Haan (NCS) – 51.43

Read the full story on SwimSwam: 2020 ACC Women’s Swimming & Diving Championships: Day 3 Prelims Live Recap

By Lauren Neidigh on SwimSwam

2020 SEC SWIMMING & DIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS

• Tuesday, February 18 – Saturday, February 22, 2020
• Auburn, AL – James E. Martin Aquatic Center
• Prelims/Finals: 9:30 AM/5:30 PM Wed-Sat, 10/4:20PM Tues (Central Standard Time)
• Defending Champion: Florida (7x) (results)
• Live Video – SEC Network+ (prelims), ESPN (finals)
• Men’s Fan Guide|Women’s Fan Guide
• Psych Sheets
• Championship Central
• Estimated NCAA Invite Times|NCAA ‘A’ Cuts
• Heat Sheets
• Live Results

The 2020 SEC Championships continues with day 4 prelims in Auburn, Alabama. Swimmers are set to compete in the 200 fly, 100 back, and 100 breast. The Florida Gators lead the men’s team race, with Texas A&M battling to close the gap. Tennessee is in the lead on the women’s side as they race for their first SEC team title.

Georgia’s Dakota Luther and Texas A&M’s Jing Quah are returning medalists in the 200 fly. The men’s 200 fly features returning champion Camden Murphy of Georgia. Alabama’s Zane Waddell and Texas A&M’s Shaine Casas have the 100 back Meet Record on watch as Waddell defends his title and Casas leads the SEC this season.

Bama could sweep the 100 back as Rhyan White has been swimming very well at this meet and is a big threat in the women’s race. However, she’ll be racing returning medalists Sherridon Dressel of Florida and Asia Seidt of Kentucky. The 100 breast features the defending champions with South Carolina’s Itay Goldfaden and Texas A&M’s Anna Belousova.

WOMEN’S 200 FLY

• SEC Meet Record: Cammile Adams (Texas A&M), 2014, 1:52.19
• NCAA Record: Ella Eastin (Stanford), 2018, 1:49.51
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 1:53.20
• 2019 NCAA Invited: 1:56.18
• 2019 Champion: Olivia Carter (Georgia), 1:53.23

Top 8 Qualifiers:

MEN’S 200 FLY

• SEC Meet Record: Hugo Morris (Auburn), 2016, 1:40.59
• NCAA Record: Jack Conger (Texas), 2017, 1:37.35
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 1:40.76
• 2019 NCAA Invited: 1:42.35
• 2019 Champion: Camden Murphy (Georgia), 1:40.62

Top 8 Qualifiers:

WOMEN’S 100 BACK

• SEC Meet Record: Gemma Spofforth (Florida), 2009, 50.53
• NCAA Record: Beata Nelson (Wisconsin), 2019, 49.67
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 50.93
• 2019 NCAA Invited: 52.46
• 2019 Champion: Aly Tetzloff (Auburn), 50.92

Top 8 Qualifiers:

MEN’S 100 BACK

• SEC Meet Record: Connor Oslin (Alabama), 2017, 44.73
• NCAA Record: Ryan Murphy (Cal), 2016, 43.49
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 44.95
• 2019 NCAA Invited: 46.06
• 2019 Champion: Zane Waddell (Alabama), 44.77

Top 8 Qualifiers:

WOMEN’S 100 BREAST

• SEC Meet Record: Breeja Larson (Texas A&M), 2014, 57.28
• NCAA Record: Lilly King (Indiana), 2019, 55.88
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 58.60
• 2019 NCAA Invited: 59.93
• 2019 Champion: Anna Belousova (Texas A&M), 57.99

Top 8 Qualifiers:

MEN’S 100 BREAST

• SEC Meet Record: Caeleb Dressel (Florida), 2018, 50.03
• NCAA Record: Ian Finnerty (Indiana), 2018, 49.69
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 51.67
• 2019 NCAA Invited: 52.52
• 2019 Champion: Itay Goldfaden (South Carolina), 51.72

Top 8 Qualifiers:

Read the full story on SwimSwam: 2020 SEC Championships: Day 4 Prelims Live Recap

By Dan Dingman on SwimSwam

SwimSwam’s daily swimming workout series is a collection of workouts written by coaches from a variety of backgrounds. All daily swimming workouts have been written using Commit Swimming. The workouts themselves are not indicative of SwimSwam’s or Commit’s views on training. They strictly reflect the opinions of the author swim coach.

Workout Context

• Purpose:  Base building
• Target age group:  13-14 years old, 9-12 years old
• Target level:  Age Group (Advanced)
• Weeks until target meet:  2 weeks
• Team Location:  United States
• Course:  25 Yards
• Shared workout link:  Click here to view this workout on commitswimming.com

The Workout

Warm Up:
    1200 free kick/drill/drill/swim by 400

Main Set:
    800 rev. IM kick/drill by 200
    12×75 odds-choice/evens-IM @1:20
    400 rev. IM kick/drill by 100
    6×50 back/breast/free @ 1:00
    200 rev. IM
    4×25 underwater shooters w/fins @ :30
    100 IM SPRINT

Base Work:
    3×400 free cruz/build/FAST @ 6:00
    1×200 free kick w/board FAST
    200 ez
    4×50 SPRINT

Back Half:
    6×100 (75 build/25 sprint kick) @ 1:30

Bungee Cord Work

Coach Notes

The swim coach was asked to define any shorthand he or she used in this workout. Their notes should provide some additional context to this swimming workout.

Working on IM work and building the base for the 1000 free and 400 IM.

Trevor Rill
Assistant Head Coach, JCC Swimming

SwimSwam’s daily swimming workout is powered by Commit Swimming.

Swimming news for swim coaches and swim teams, courtesy of Commit Swimming. Click here to view all daily swimming workouts on SwimSwam.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Daily Swim Coach Workout #78

By Braden Keith on SwimSwam

Northeast Conference (NEC) – Women

• Wednesday, February 19 – Saturday, February 22
• Nassau County Aquatic Center, East Meadow, NY (Eastern Time Zone)
• Defending Champion: Bryant University (2x) (results)
• Live results
• Live Video
• Championship Central
• Day 1 Results (PDF)
• Day 2 Results (PDF)

The 2-time defending NEC Champions from Bryant University pushed forward on their quest for a three-peat on Thursday with their third-straight event win to open the championships.

After winning both the 800 free relay and 200 medley relay on Wednesday, Thursday saw the finals session begin with a 4:53.18 from senior Alyssa Difiore in the women’s 500 free.

That race was a matchup of the last two NEC champions in this event, as Difiore, the 2018 champion, reclaimed her title from Alaina Scifo, the 2019 champion, who was 2nd in 4:55.62. Difiore’s swim was a lifetime best by almost 4 seconds, improving upon her runner-up finish from last year’s meet.

That was one of two event wins on the day for Bryant. Freshman Kyriana Chambo won the women’s 1-meter ahead of Wagner College’s Aleah Mirand, with Bryant going 1-3-4 in that event (including a 3rd-place finish from another freshman, Katelyn Kirves). Diving has been a significant part of Bryant’s NEC run – last year, for example, they had 6 of the top 7 finishers in the 1 meter – and the team has reloaded after graduating a huge class of divers at the end of last season.

“It was a good start to the individual events with two wins from Alyssa DiFiore in the 500 and Kyri Chambo in the one-meter,” said Bryant head coach Aidan Devers. “We had some big swims and great drops from morning to night. Tomorrow is a great day for us so I am excited to see how fast they can go.”

While Bryant extended their lead on day 2 of the meet, the swim of the day came in the 200 IM where LIU junior captain Amanda Peren, who incidentally attended the same high school in Virginia as NCAA Champion and US National Teamer Andrew Seliskar.

On Thursday, Peren swam 2:00.30 in the 200 IM to smash the old conference record of 2:01.88 that was set in 2015 by Wagner’s Anu Nihipali. Nihipali that year became the first-ever Wagner swimmer to qualify for the NCAA Championships.

Saint Francis University’s Sabrina Bowman took 2nd in 2:03.44, while Wagner freshman Maile Mora placed 3rd in 2:03.98.

The Central Connecticut State Blue Devils were able to take a bite out of Bryant’s lead in this race, with Bryant scoring only 1 A final to a pair for Central Connecticut State. But they missed an opportunity to do more damage in the women’s 50 free.

CCSU’s Jeannette King won the women’s 50 free in 23.09, but the combination of Reeta Kanervo (23.64 – 5th) and Kayleigh Canavan (24.13 – 8th) still out-scored her in the A-final. CCSU also put 3 swimmers in the B final, but again Bryant was able to outscore them in that heat as well, even with only 2 qualifiers.

Earlier in the meet, King had the best 50 free anchor split on the 200 medley relay of 22.41.

Central Connecticut finished the day with a second-straight swimming win, touching 1st in 1:33.46 ahead of Wagner (1:33.70), Bryant (1:33.98) and Saint Francis University (1:33.99).

The Blue Devils were about 6-tenths behind Bryant before King, the 50 free champion, hit the water and opened up a big lead that anchor Simona Visinki (23.30) was able to hold on to. Also on that winning CCSU relay were Katie Czulewicz (23.82 leadoff) and Hallie Perrin (23.68). All 4 members of that winning relay are freshman.

Fastest 200 Free Relay Splits:

1. Dorian McMenemy, Wagner, senior – 22.62
2. Jeannette King, CCSU, sophomore – 22.66
3. Simona Visinski, CCSU, sophomore – 23.30
4. Alexa Rivera, Bryant, junior – 23.43 (LEADOFF)
5. Sabrina Bowman, Saint Francis U, senior – 23.47

Read the full story on SwimSwam: LIU’s Amanda Peren Crushes NEC 200 IM Record on Day 2; Bryant Extends Lead

By Jared Anderson on SwimSwam

2020 WOMEN’S ACC SWIMMING & DIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS

• When: Wednesday, February 19th to Saturday, February 22nd | Prelims 10:00 am | Finals 6:00 pm (1650 prelims Saturday at 4:00 pm)
• Where: Greensboro Aquatic Center, Greensboro, North Carolina (Eastern Time Zone)
• Defending Champion: North Carolina State University (NC State) (1x) (results)
• Streaming: ACC Network
  • Day 2 Finals
  • Day 3 Finals
  • Day 4 Finals
• Championship Central: Here
• Detailed Timeline: Here
• Psych Sheets: Here
• Live Results

We’re onto a busy day 2 of ACCs, with five prelims swimming events on the docket.

NC State’s Sophie Hansson broke ACC and meet records in the 100 breast last year as a freshman, and she returns as the favorite there. In the 400 IM, NC State went 1-2-3-4 a year ago and return all four swimmers led by defending champ Kathleen Moore, who could be on the hunt for the meet record.

In the 100 fly, defending champ Morgan Hill returns for Virginia, but she should face a stiff challenge. It’ll either be her teammate, star freshman Kate Douglass, or Louisville’s Grace Oglesby, who was just .01 behind Hill for the title last year and won the event in 2018.

Douglass is entered in the 100 fly, 200 free, and 100 breast, but will probably have to choose one of those races. The 100 fly may be most likely.

Four-time 200 free champ Mallory Comerford is graduated, but Virginia’s Paige Madden looks like the heir apparent. She was second last year and went on to take 5th at NCAAs.

In the 100 back, NC State looks for a fourth-consecutive title by a third different woman. Alexia Zevnik won in 2017 and Elise Haan the following two years. Now freshman standout Katharine Berkoff enters as the second seed, although she’ll have to get by UNC’s Grace Countie as well as top returners Megan Moroney (UVA) and Carly Quast (Notre Dame).

Keep refreshing this page for live, event-by-event updates of all the action from Greensboro.

Women’s 100 Fly – Prelims

• ACC meet record: 50.06 – Kelsi Worrell, 2016
• ACC record: 49.43, Kelsi Worrell, 2017
• 2019 ACC Champion: Morgan Hill (UVA) – 51.01

Top 8 Qualifiers:

1. Douglass (UVA) – 50.90
2. Hill (UVA) – 51.45
3. Cuomo (UVA) – 51.51
4. Oglesby (LOU) – 51.59
5. Marsh (DUKE) – 51.60
6. Nava (UVA) – 52.04
7. Vereb (VT) – 52.23
8. Gillilan (ND) – 52.40

It’s a huge event for Virginia to kick things off. The Cavaliers put four into the A final, including the top three prelims qualifiers. Kate Douglass looks like the clear favorite after cruising a casual 50.90 this morning. She was 23.7/27.1 in her splits, so there’s reason to believe she shut things down a little in the back half. (For reference, Douglass was 23.5/26.7 in her mid-season rest meet).

Defending champ Morgan Hill sits second with a 51.45, remarkably close to her 51.35 from prelims a year ago. Meanwhile Cavalier rookie Lexi Cuomo went 51.51 for third. That’s a huge drop for the Virginia high school product, who was 52.0 out of high school.

Louisville’s Grace Oglesby came within a hundredth of the win last year, and she’s lurking in fourth. Oglesby won ACCs in 2018.

Don’t count out Alyssa Marsh of Duke, who had the conference’s best 50 fly split on the 200 medley relay (22.0), besting Douglass (22.3) and Oglesby (23.1). She was fifth last year and qualified in that exact spot this morning. Virginia Tech’s Joelle Vereb is another top contender after a big 50 free last night.

This is the type of event that can break open the team race. Virginia has 4 A finalists and 1 B finalist. NC State, meanwhile, pulled most of their swimmers elsewhere and only entered one athlete in the 100 fly – Sirena Rowe, who added about a half second and missed the C final.

Women’s 400 IM – Prelims

• ACC meet record: 4:04.21 – Tanja Kylliainen, 2015
• ACC record: 4:03.51 – Tanja Kylliainen, 2015
• 2019 ACC Champion: Kathleen Moore (NCS) – 4:05.24

Top 8 Qualifiers:

Women’s 200 Free – Prelims

• ACC meet record: 1:41.60 – Mallory Comerford, 2019
• ACC record: 1:39.80 – Mallory Comerford, 2018
• 2019 ACC Champion: Mallory Comerford (LOU) – 1:41.60

Top 8 Qualifiers:

Women’s 100 Breast – Prelims

• ACC meet record: 57.74 – Sophie Hansson, 2019
• ACC record: 57.74 – Sophie Hansson, 2019
• 2019 ACC Champion: Sophie Hansson (NCS) – 57.74

Top 8 Qualifiers:

Women’s 100 Back – Prelims

• ACC meet record: 50.74 – Courtney Bartholomew, 2016
• ACC record: 50.01 – Courtney Bartholomew, 2014
• 2019 ACC Champion: Elise Haan (NCS) – 51.43

Top 8 Qualifiers:

Read the full story on SwimSwam: 2020 ACC Women’s Swimming & Diving Championships: Day 3 Prelims Live Recap

By Lauren Neidigh on SwimSwam

2020 SEC SWIMMING & DIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS

• Tuesday, February 18 – Saturday, February 22, 2020
• Auburn, AL – James E. Martin Aquatic Center
• Prelims/Finals: 9:30 AM/5:30 PM Wed-Sat, 10/4:20PM Tues (Central Standard Time)
• Defending Champion: Florida (7x) (results)
• Live Video – SEC Network+ (prelims), ESPN (finals)
• Men’s Fan Guide|Women’s Fan Guide
• Psych Sheets
• Championship Central
• Estimated NCAA Invite Times|NCAA ‘A’ Cuts
• Heat Sheets
• Live Results

On day 4 of the 2020 SEC Championships in Auburn, Alabama, the top seed for the women’s 100 back was absent. Missouri’s Haley Hines, who swam the 50 free on day 2, was a declared false start in both the 100 fly and 100 back. Hynes was the top seed in the 100 back today and the 12th seed in yesterday’s 100 fly. Last season, Hynes placed 5th in the 100 back. She’s not entered in any other individual events here.

On day 2, Hynes swam the 50 free, where she won the C final. She was the 7th place finisher in that event in 2019. Hynes also swam a 23.74 back split on the 200 medley relay that earned silver. She earned a bronze in the 200 free relay with a 22.07 on the 2nd leg.

Alabama’s Rhyan White has taken over as the fastest woman in the SEC this season. White tied the SEC Meet Record in prelims with a 50.53. That matches Gemma Spofforth’s mark from the 2009 SEC Championships.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Missouri’s Top Seed Haley Hynes Declares False Start in 100 Back on Day 4

By Coleman Hodges on SwimSwam

2020 SEC SWIMMING & DIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS

• Tuesday, February 18 – Saturday, February 22, 2020
• Auburn, AL – James E. Martin Aquatic Center
• Prelims/Finals: 9:30 AM/5:30 PM Wed-Sat, 10/4:20PM Tues (Central Standard Time)
• Defending Champion: Florida (7x) (results)
• Live Video – SEC Network+ (prelims), ESPN (finals)
• Men’s Fan Guide|Women’s Fan Guide
• Psych Sheets
• Championship Central
• Estimated NCAA Invite Times|NCAA ‘A’ Cuts
• Heat Sheets
• Live Results

^{Reported by Lauren Neidigh.}

Tennessee’s Erika Brown is 2-for-2 in her individual events at the 2020 SEC Championships. After breaking Natalie Coughlin’s Pool Record with her prelims swim, Brown raced to a new American Record in the 100 fly. The former record was a 49.43 set by Kelsi Dahlia in 2016. She’s now the 3rd fastest performer in history, behind only Louise Hansson and Maggie MacNeil, who share the NCAA Record in 49.26. Brown, Hansson, and MacNeil will get a chance to go head-to-head at the NCAA Championships.

Below is a comparison of splits between Brown’s new American Record and Dahlia’s old mark. We’ve also included Hansson and MacNeil’s splits from the NCAA Record. Brown had the fastest first 50 out of all 4 of those swims. You can also see a video of tonight’s race below.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: WATCH: Erika Brown Breaks 100 Fly American Record, 49.38 (Race Video)

By Lauren Neidigh on SwimSwam

2020 SEC SWIMMING & DIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS

• Tuesday, February 18 – Saturday, February 22, 2020
• Auburn, AL – James E. Martin Aquatic Center
• Prelims/Finals: 9:30 AM/5:30 PM Wed-Sat, 10/4:20PM Tues (Central Standard Time)
• Defending Champion: Florida (7x) (results)
• Live Video – SEC Network+ (prelims), ESPN (finals)
• Men’s Fan Guide|Women’s Fan Guide
• Psych Sheets
• Championship Central
• Estimated NCAA Invite Times|NCAA ‘A’ Cuts
• Heat Sheets
• Live Results

The 2020 SEC Championships continues with day 4 prelims in Auburn, Alabama. Swimmers are set to compete in the 200 fly, 100 back, and 100 breast. The Florida Gators lead the men’s team race, with Texas A&M battling to close the gap. Tennessee is in the lead on the women’s side as they race for their first SEC team title.

Georgia’s Dakota Luther and Texas A&M’s Jing Quah are returning medalists in the 200 fly. The men’s 200 fly features returning champion Camden Murphy of Georgia. Alabama’s Zane Waddell and Texas A&M’s Shaine Casas have the 100 back Meet Record on watch as Waddell defends his title and Casas leads the SEC this season.

Bama could sweep the 100 back as Rhyan White has been swimming very well at this meet and is a big threat in the women’s race. However, she’ll be racing returning medalists Sherridon Dressel of Florida and Asia Seidt of Kentucky. The 100 breast features the defending champions with South Carolina’s Itay Goldfaden and Texas A&M’s Anna Belousova.

WOMEN’S 200 FLY

• SEC Meet Record: Cammile Adams (Texas A&M), 2014, 1:52.19
• NCAA Record: Ella Eastin (Stanford), 2018, 1:49.51
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 1:53.20
• 2019 NCAA Invited: 1:56.18
• 2019 Champion: Olivia Carter (Georgia), 1:53.23

Top 8 Qualifiers:

1. Dakota Luther, Georgia, 1:53.52
2. Izzy Gati, Kentucky, 1:53.98
3. Tess Cieplucha, Tennessee, 1:54.69
4. Hallie Kinsey, South Carolina, 1:54.80
5. Jing Quah, Texas A&M, 1:54.84
6. Courtney Harnish, Georgia, 1:54.92
7. Taylor Pike, Texas A&M, 1:55.81
8. Alexis Preski, Alabama, 1:56.22

Georgia’s Dakota Luther was just half a second off her best as she led prelims in 1:53.42. Luther and Texas A&M’sJing Quah (1:54.84) return after earning podium finishes last season. Georgia will have 2 in the final as 500 free champion Courtney Harnish qualified 6th in 1:54.92. The Aggies also got 2 in with Taylor Pikenabbing 7th in 1:55.81.

Kentucky’sIzzy Gati continued her strong performance at this meet with a lifetime best by over a second. Gati broke 1:55 for the first time, qualifying 2nd in 1:53.98. Tennessee’s Tess Cieplucha(1:54.69), the 400 IM champion, and South Carolina’s Hallie Kinsey (1:54.80) also broke 1:55 for the first time to qualify for the final. Alabama’sAlexis Preski made a 2 second drop to take 8th in 1:56.22.

MEN’S 200 FLY

• SEC Meet Record: Hugo Morris (Auburn), 2016, 1:40.59
• NCAA Record: Jack Conger (Texas), 2017, 1:37.35
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 1:40.76
• 2019 NCAA Invited: 1:42.35
• 2019 Champion: Camden Murphy (Georgia), 1:40.62

Top 8 Qualifiers:

1. Harry Homans, Georgia, 1:42.15
2. Camden Murphy, Georgia, 1:42.89
3. Micah Slaton, Missouri, 1:43.09
4. Marc Hinawi, Tennessee, 1:43.16
5. Kayky Mota, Tennessee, 1:43.21
6. Mason Wilby, Kentucky, 1:43.35
7. Santiago Grassi, Auburn, 1:43.86
8. Miguel Cancel, Florida, 1:44.26

Georgia’s Camden Murphy (1:42.89) is the 2nd seed for tonight’s final as he defends his title, but a different Bulldog led the way through prelims. Freshman Harry Homans took a second off his best with a 1:42.15.

Tennessee’s Marc Hinawi clipped his best in 1:43.16 to qualify 4th. Missouri’s Micah Slaton (1:43.09) and Auburn’s Santiago Grassi (1:43.86) join Hinawi as returning finalists. Grassi was the 100 fly silver medalist last night, while Murphy took bronze.

WOMEN’S 100 BACK

• SEC Meet Record: Gemma Spofforth (Florida), 2009, 50.53
• NCAA Record: Beata Nelson (Wisconsin), 2019, 49.67
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 50.93
• 2019 NCAA Invited: 52.46
• 2019 Champion: Aly Tetzloff (Auburn), 50.92

Top 8 Qualifiers:

1. Rhyan White, Alabama, 50.53
2. Asia Seidt, Kentucky, 50.86
3. Sherridon Dressel, Florida, 51.07
4. Emma Ball, Florida, 51.38
5. Sarah Thompson, Missouri, 51.75
6. Caitlin Brooks, Kentucky, 51.78
7. Morgan Scott, Alabama, 52.47
8. Raena Eldridge, Texas A&M, 52.50

Alabama’s Rhyan White tied the SEC Meet Record with a 50.53, matching the mark set by Florida’s Gemma Spofforth in 2009. Kentucky’s Asia Seidt tied her 2nd fastest performance ever in 50.86, while Florida’s Sherridon Dresselwas a tenth shy of her best in 51.07. Dressel is the reigning bronze medalist, while Seidt was last season’s runner-up. Both White (silver) and Dressel (bronze) were medalists in the 100 fly last night.

Notably, top seed Haley Hynes of Missouri declared a false start. She was also a DFS in the 100 fly yesterday, and has no remaining individual entries.

MEN’S 100 BACK

• SEC Meet Record: Connor Oslin (Alabama), 2017, 44.73
• NCAA Record: Ryan Murphy (Cal), 2016, 43.49
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 44.95
• 2019 NCAA Invited: 46.06
• 2019 Champion: Zane Waddell (Alabama), 44.77

Top 8 Qualifiers:

1. Shaine Casas, Texas A&M, 44.73
2. Zane Waddell, Alabama, 44.74
3. Karl Luht, LSU, 45.63
4. Daniel Hein, Missouri, 45.75
5. Matthew Garcia, Tennessee, 45.98
6. Matt Menke, Alabama, 46.21
7. Clark Beach, Florida, 46.67
8. Christian Ginieczki, Auburn, 46.73

The men’s 100 back also saw a tie of the SEC Meet Record. Texas A&M’s Shaine Casas matched the mark of 44.73 set by Alabama’s Connor Oslin in 2017. Just a hundredth shy of it was Alabama’s Zane Waddell, who shaved a few hundredths off his lifetime best in 44.74. Waddell is the defending champion in this event. Teammate Matt Menke made a huge drop, knocking 2 seconds off his best as the freshman qualified 6th in 46.21.

LSU’s Karl Luht was hundredths shy of his best to take 3rd seed in 45.63. Luht won the B final last season. Returning champion finalistDaniel Hein of Missouri was 4th in 45.75. Teammate Nick Alexander narrowly missed the final with a 46.82 for 9th place. Tennessee’s Matthew Garcia rounded out the top 5 seeds in 45.98. That ties his 3rd fastest swim ever and the fastest he’s been since 2018.

Florida’s Clark Beach was a few tenths off his best to take 7th in 46.67. Auburn’s Christian Ginieczki dropped nearly a second to take the 8th spot in 46.73.

WOMEN’S 100 BREAST

• SEC Meet Record: Breeja Larson (Texas A&M), 2014, 57.28
• NCAA Record: Lilly King (Indiana), 2019, 55.88
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 58.60
• 2019 NCAA Invited: 59.93
• 2019 Champion: Anna Belousova (Texas A&M), 57.99

Top 8 Qualifiers:

By Jared Anderson on SwimSwam

2020 WOMEN’S ACC SWIMMING & DIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS

• When: Wednesday, February 19th to Saturday, February 22nd | Prelims 10:00 am | Finals 6:00 pm (1650 prelims Saturday at 4:00 pm)
• Where: Greensboro Aquatic Center, Greensboro, North Carolina (Eastern Time Zone)
• Defending Champion: North Carolina State University (NC State) (1x) (results)
• Streaming: ACC Network
  • Day 2 Finals
  • Day 3 Finals
  • Day 4 Finals
• Championship Central: Here
• Detailed Timeline: Here
• Psych Sheets: Here
• Live Results

We’re onto a busy day 2 of ACCs, with five prelims swimming events on the docket.

NC State’s Sophie Hansson broke ACC and meet records in the 100 breast last year as a freshman, and she returns as the favorite there. In the 400 IM, NC State went 1-2-3-4 a year ago and return all four swimmers led by defending champ Kathleen Moore, who could be on the hunt for the meet record.

In the 100 fly, defending champ Morgan Hill returns for Virginia, but she should face a stiff challenge. It’ll either be her teammate, star freshman Kate Douglass, or Louisville’s Grace Oglesby, who was just .01 behind Hill for the title last year and won the event in 2018.

Douglass is entered in the 100 fly, 200 free, and 100 breast, but will probably have to choose one of those races. The 100 fly may be most likely.

Four-time 200 free champ Mallory Comerford is graduated, but Virginia’s Paige Madden looks like the heir apparent. She was second last year and went on to take 5th at NCAAs.

In the 100 back, NC State looks for a fourth-consecutive title by a third different woman. Alexia Zevnik won in 2017 and Elise Haan the following two years. Now freshman standout Katharine Berkoff enters as the second seed, although she’ll have to get by UNC’s Grace Countie as well as top returners Megan Moroney (UVA) and Carly Quast (Notre Dame).

Keep refreshing this page for live, event-by-event updates of all the action from Greensboro.

Women’s 100 Fly – Prelims

• ACC meet record: 50.06 – Kelsi Worrell, 2016
• ACC record: 49.43, Kelsi Worrell, 2017
• 2019 ACC Champion: Morgan Hill (UVA) – 51.01

Top 8 Qualifiers:

1. Douglass (UVA) – 50.90
2. Hill (UVA) – 51.45
3. Cuomo (UVA) – 51.51
4. Oglesby (LOU) – 51.59
5. Marsh (DUKE) – 51.60
6. Nava (UVA) – 52.04
7. Vereb (VT) – 52.23
8. Gillilan (ND) – 52.40

It’s a huge event for Virginia to kick things off. The Cavaliers put four into the A final, including the top three prelims qualifiers. Kate Douglass looks like the clear favorite after cruising a casual 50.90 this morning. She was 23.7/27.1 in her splits, so there’s reason to believe she shut things down a little in the back half. (For reference, Douglass was 23.5/26.7 in her mid-season rest meet).

Defending champ Morgan Hill sits second with a 51.45, remarkably close to her 51.35 from prelims a year ago. Meanwhile Cavalier rookie Lexi Cuomo went 51.51 for third. That’s a huge drop for the Virginia high school product, who was 52.0 out of high school.

Louisville’s Grace Oglesby came within a hundredth of the win last year, and she’s lurking in fourth. Oglesby won ACCs in 2018.

Don’t count out Alyssa Marsh of Duke, who had the conference’s best 50 fly split on the 200 medley relay (22.0), besting Douglass (22.3) and Oglesby (23.1). She was fifth last year and qualified in that exact spot this morning. Virginia Tech’s Joelle Vereb is another top contender after a big 50 free last night.

This is the type of event that can break open the team race. Virginia has 4 A finalists and 1 B finalist. NC State, meanwhile, pulled most of their swimmers elsewhere and only entered one athlete in the 100 fly – Sirena Rowe, who added about a half second and missed the C final.

Women’s 400 IM – Prelims

• ACC meet record: 4:04.21 – Tanja Kylliainen, 2015
• ACC record: 4:03.51 – Tanja Kylliainen, 2015
• 2019 ACC Champion: Kathleen Moore (NCS) – 4:05.24

Top 8 Qualifiers:

1. Nelson (UVA) – 4:06.62
2. Richter (UVA) – 4:07.90
3. Moore (NCS) – 4:08.13
4. Sargent (NCS) – 4:08.47
5. Hay (LOU) – 4:09.58
6. Muzzy (NCS) – 4:11.54
7. Thomas (ND) – 4:12.93
8. Dean (DUKE) – 4:13.41

NC State mostly spent the 100 fly loading up for the next two events, which should be good ones for them. But Virginia nearly matched them in the 400 IM – UVA has two A finalists and NC State three.

The Wolfpack were 1-2-3-4 coming out of prelims last year and held that up in finals. This year, they’ll need some more finals magic to sweep the top spots. Virginia freshman Ella Nelson was 4:06.62, cutting three and a half seconds from her previous best. That’s the second-straight event with a Virginia freshman coming through in a big way.

Her teammate Abby Richterwas a B finalist in the 100 back last year (52.89), but made the leap to the 400 IM this year. It was a good decision so far, as Richter went a lifetime-best 4:07.90 (a drop of about three seconds) for second place.

NC State is still set up well, though. Kathleen Moore won this event last year in 4:05.24, and no one has touched that time in prelims. Moore sits third in 4:08.13, which is actually a half-second faster than she was in prelims last year. Kay Sargent returns after taking second last year, and third-placer Emma Muzzy is also into the A final. Last year’s 4th-place finisher, Julia Poole, will swim the 200 free instead.

It’s another good swim for Louisville freshman Abby Hay, who cuts three seconds to make the A final in 4:09.58. Notre Dame’s Luciana Thomas will make her second ACC A final in this raice in 7th, and Duke’s Constance Dean is in after scratching out of ACCs entirely last year.

Louisville’s Sophie Cattermole was an A finalist last year, but faded all the way to the C final in 4:18, adding five seconds from seed. Same goes for Pitt’s Sarah Giamber, who was 8th last year but 20th this morning.

Women’s 200 Free – Prelims

• ACC meet record: 1:41.60 – Mallory Comerford, 2019
• ACC record: 1:39.80 – Mallory Comerford, 2018
• 2019 ACC Champion: Mallory Comerford (LOU) – 1:41.60

Top 8 Qualifiers:

1. Moroney (UVA) – 1:44.87
2. Openysheva (LOU) – 1:44.93
3. Madden (UVA) – 1:45.14
4. Dolan (ND) – 1:45.16
5. Cole (UNC) – 1:45.94
6. Valls (UVA) – 1:46.02
7. Pish (DUKE) – 1:46.08
8. Kraus (LOU) – 1:46.17

Three-for-three for UVA so far. Megan Moroney‘s 1:44.87 leads the 200 free field, though not by much over Louisville’s Arina Openysheva (1:44.93).

Last year’s runner-up (and the top returner in the field) sits third. That’s Paige Madden, who dominated the 500 last night and is still the clear-cut favorite here after a 1:42 relay split on Wednesday. Moroney was second last year and Openysheva sixth.

Notre Dame’s Abbie Dolan is fourth in 1:45.16. She went 1:44.5 and was fourth overall last year. Also returning to the A final is Virginia’s Kyla Valls, who is sixth and one of three Cavaliers into the A final.

Emma Cole from UNC had a major drop – she was 1:47.1 leading off the 800 free relay Wednesday, but went 1:45.9 this morning and will make the A final. Duke (Melissa Pish) and Louisville (Alena Kraus) round out the top 8.

It was a missed opportunity for NC State, who are quickly falling behind a red-hot Virginia team. NC State took 9th with Julia Poole, who was a returning A finalist in the 400 IM but swapped out for the 200 free. The Wolfpack have three into the B final.

Women’s 100 Breast – Prelims

• ACC meet record: 57.74 – Sophie Hansson, 2019
• ACC record: 57.74 – Sophie Hansson, 2019
• 2019 ACC Champion: Sophie Hansson (NCS) – 57.74

Top 8 Qualifiers:

1. Wenger (UVA) – 58.17
2. Hansson (NCS) – 58.35
3. Calegan (NCS) – 59.05
4. Friesen (LOU) – 59.75
5. Higgs (UNC) – 59.92
6. Wheeler (LOU) – 59.94
7. Astashkina (LOU) – 1:00.04
8. Hauder (UNC) – 1:00.16

Virginia continued their hot streak at the top, as Alexis Wenger smashed a 58.17 for the top spot in the 100 breast. That’s a lifetime-best by two tenths, besting her 58.31 from this meet last year. She’s also on the cusp of moving into the top 10 of all-time in that event, which right now requires a 57.9.

Already in that top 10 is NC State’s Sophie Hansson, who was 58.35 this morning. The sophomore went 57.74 last year to win the ACC title, and went 57 two more times at NCAAs. Hansson and Wenger should be set up for a great showdown tonight, both here and in the 400 medley relay.

NC State finally got some momentum here, putting Olivia Calegan into the A final in third. Calegan was 59.05, cutting four tenths from her best.

Louisville has been on fire this morning. They add three A finalists here, all returners from last year’s championship heat. Morgan Friesen is the top swimmer at 59.75, with Kaylee Wheeler and Mariia Astashkina in tow.

Florida State’s Nina Kucheran got the dreaded 9th place after taking 5th last year. She tied with Miami’s Zorryon Mason at 1:00.76. Last year, Kucheran was 59.6, though she was only 1:00.1 in prelims.

This should ultimately be a bounce-back event for NC State, with 2 As, 1 B and 1 C. Virginia has just one scorer, Wenger.

Women’s 100 Back – Prelims

• ACC meet record: 50.74 – Courtney Bartholomew, 2016
• ACC record: 50.01 – Courtney Bartholomew, 2014
• 2019 ACC Champion: Elise Haan (NCS) – 51.43

Top 8 Qualifiers:

1. Berkoff (NCS) – 51.21
2. Gmelich (UVA) – 52.20
3. Countie (UNC) – 52.23
4. Alons (NCS) – 52.33
5. Moroney (UVA) – 52.33
6. Lindner (UNC) – 52.41
7. Quast (ND) – 52.55
8. Shuppert (DUKE) – 52.56

NC State rookie Katharine Berkoff is the runaway top qualifier in the 100 back. Her 51.21 leads all swimmers by almost a full second this morning. Berkoff was a highly-touted recruit out of high school, but so far this year has been well off her personal bests. This 51.21 is a big step in the right direction, closing in on her 50.72 best that is now a little more than a year old.

Swapping Kylee Alons out of the fly and into the back looks like a decent move so far for NC State. Alons is fourth here in 52.33, a best by three tenths. Alons was fourth in the 100 fly last year, but everyone ahead of her returned and Douglass’s addition there would likely move her down.

Virginia had three A finalists a year ago and get two in this year to match NC State. Caroline Gmelich sits second in 52.20. Look for her to dip below 52 tonight after doing so at mid-season. Megan Moroney was second overall last year and qualified 5th today with a good chance to move up.

North Carolina also had a great backstroke showing. Grace Countie is third overall. She got stuck in the C final last year, though she won that heat by dropping more than a second from prelims and putting up a time that would have been 6th overall. Meanwhile fellow sophomore Sophie Lindner went 52.41, also moving way up from a C final (22nd) appearance last year.

In team points, UVA’s backstroke depth is going to carry them in this event. They have 2 As, 2 Bs and 1 C, while NC State put up 2 As, 2 Bs and no Cs.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: 2020 ACC Women’s Swimming & Diving Championships: Day 3 Prelims Live Recap

By Retta Race on SwimSwam

SOUTH AFRICAN GRAND PRIX #2 – DURBAN

• Thursday, February 20th – Sunday, February 23rd
• Kings Park Pool, Durban, KZ, RSA
• 50m (LCM)
• SwimSwam Preview
• Meet Mobile – 2020 Grand Prix Invitational Swimming Meet-KZ

Although South African superstar Chad Le Clos isn’t competing at this South African Grand Prix #2 in Durban this weekend, another man has stepped up to the plate to put on a show in the men’s 200m fly.

Ethan du Preez, just 16 years of age, produced a monster lifetime best of 1:56.97 in today’s prelims to take the 2fly top seed by almost 5 seconds. Splitting 56.08/1:00.89, the Cybersmart Aquatics athlete hacked well over 1 1/2 seconds off his previous lifetime best of 1:58.67, a time he logged in the heats of this event at the 2019 World Junior Championships.

There in the Budapest, Preez wound up stopping the clock in a slightly slower effort of 1:58.83 to finish in 8th place in a World Juniors final that saw American Luca Urlando top the podium in 1:55.02. Preez’s time of 1:56.97 here, for perspective, would have bumped him up to 5th in that race as just a newly-turned 16-year-old.

Du Preez still has the final to go tomorrow here in Durban, but his time from prelims already bumps him up to become South Africa’s 4th fastest performer ever in this men’s 200m fly event.

South Africa’s Top 5 Performers All-Time in Men’s 200 Fly

For additional perspective, du Preez’s time would rank him as the 4th fastest American 15-16-year-old performer all-time, sitting only behind Michael Phelps (1:54.58), Urlando (1:55.21) and Andrew Seliskar (1:56.42).

Taking into account this year we have the Olympic Games, du Preez has now suddenly entered the chat for potential Tokyo qualification come April’s South African Championships. Even if he doesn’t replicate his 1:56-range time in tomorrow’s final, the fact he put up a time within striking distance of the FINA ‘A’ Olympic qualification time of 1:56.48 bodes well for this young flyer.

Du Preez now enters the list of top 20 performers in the world this season at slot #18.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: 16-Year-Old South African Ethan Du Preez Fires Off 1:56.97 200 Fly PB

By Jared Anderson on SwimSwam

For those unfamiliar with swimming terminology, the concept of “Ups” and “Downs” is a good way to track which teams performed best at prelims. In prelims, swimmers qualify for one of three finals heats: the top 8 finishers make the A final, places 9 through 16 the B final and places 17 through 24 the C final. In finals, swimmers are locked into their respective final, meaning a swimmer in the B heat (spots 9-16) can only place as high as 9th or as low as 16th, even if they put up the fastest or slowest time of any heat in the final.

With that in mind, we’ll be tracking “Ups,” “Mids” and “Downs” after each prelims session. “Up” refers to swimmers in the A final, “Mid” to swimmers in the B final and “Down” to swimmers in the C final.

2020 WOMEN’S ACC SWIMMING & DIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS

• When: Wednesday, February 19th to Saturday, February 22nd | Prelims 10:00 am | Finals 6:00 pm (1650 prelims Saturday at 4:00 pm)
• Where: Greensboro Aquatic Center, Greensboro, North Carolina (Eastern Time Zone)
• Defending Champion: North Carolina State University (NC State) (1x) (results)
• Streaming: ACC Network
  • Day 2 Finals
  • Day 3 Finals
  • Day 4 Finals
• Championship Central: Here
• Detailed Timeline: Here
• Psych Sheets: Here
• Live Results

With 19 scoring swims, Virginia was suffocating on day 3 prelims, and have set themselves up to run away with the ACC points lead tonight.

Virginia widely leads all programs in A finalists (12) and total scoring swims (19), while already holding a 27.5-point lead over NC State. Virginia has won all three relays so far, and should have a great shot to win the 400 medley relay tonight. Virginia won the 200 medley by a tenth over NC State, but have the top qualifiers in the 100 fly (Kate Douglassor Morgan Hill) and 100 breast (Alexis Wenger), along with the #2 qualifier in 100 back (Caroline Gmelich) and the top two seeds in the 100 frees (Douglass/Hill).

It was also a great morning for Louisville, which almost matched NC State. Louisville actually has more total scoring swims (17 to 16), but two less B finalists.

The other standout: UNC, which earned 13 scoring swims and a whopping 5 A finalists. The Tar Heels should be primed to challenge Notre Dame tonight – UNC currently trails by 25, but has one more A finalist and two more Bs.

There is no women’s diving event tonight, so the only addition to these Ups/Mids/Downs will be the 400 medley relay.

Note: these figures include the five events from this morning’s prelims. Tonight will add a 400 medley relay, but no diving events.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: 2020 Women’s ACCs: Day 3 Ups/Mids/Downs – UVA Primed For a Charge With 12 Up

By Nick Pecoraro on SwimSwam

2020 WOMEN’S B1G CHAMPIONSHIPS

• Swimming & Diving
• When: Wednesday, February 19th to Saturday, February 22nd | Prelims 11am | Finals 6:30pm (6pm Saturday)
• Where: Campus Recreation & Wellness Center, Iowa City, Iowa (Central Time Zone)
• Defending Champion: Indiana University Hoosiers (1x) (results)
• Live Results
• Streaming: Big Ten Network
• Championship Central: here
• Fan Guide
• Estimated NCAA Invite Times
• NCAA ‘A’ Cuts

Day 3 (Friday AM) Heat Sheets

Team Scores After Day 2

1. Ohio State — 561
2. Michigan — 478
3. Indiana — 338
4. Wisconsin — 257
5. Northwestern — 242
6. Minnesota — 235
7. Purdue — 202
8. Iowa — 168
9. Penn State — 161
10. Nebraska — 158
11. Rutgers — 135
12. Michigan State — 111
13. Illinois — 108

While Ohio State leads Michigan by nearly 100 points after day 2, Wolverine Maggie MacNeil looks to be the heavy favorite in the 100 fly with her 49.26 NCAA record seed. Into the 400 IM, last year’s event runner-up Calypso Sheridan of Northwestern is seeded less than 2 seconds behind Ohio State top seed Kathrin Demler.

Iowa’s Hannah Burvill comes in as the only sub-1:45 time (1:44.92) in the 200 free. However, Wisconsin’s Lillie Hosackbroke the Iowa pool record at 1:44.00 leading off the winning 800 free relay on Wednesday.

The first non-King B1G 100 breast champion will be crowned this evening, headlined by last year’s runner-up Michigan’s Miranda Tucker, #2 seed Lindsey Kozelskyof Minnesota, and IU freshman Emily Weiss. Looking to end both day 3 sessions will be Wisconsin senior Beata Nelson, who will aim to defend her B1G 100 back title.

100 Fly — Prelims

• B1G Record: 49.59, Maggie MacNeil (Michigan)
• Meet Record: 49.59, Maggie MacNeil (Michigan)
• Pool Record: 51.43, Maggie MacNeil (Michigan)
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 50.92
• Defending Champion: Maggie MacNeil (Michigan)

Top 8 Qualifiers:

1. Maggie MacNeil (Michigan)- 50.55 *pool record
2. Madison Hart (Penn State)- 51.64
3. Miriam Guevara (Northwestern)-  52.37
4. Vanessa Krause (Michigan)- 52.50
5. Olivia Carter (Michigan)- 52.59
6. Kelsey Drake (Iowa)/Madison Ledwith (Penn State)- 53.30
7. –
8. Tevyn Waddell (Minnesota)- 53.34

400 IM — Prelims

• B1G Record: 4:01.35, Calypso Sheridan (Northwestern)
• Meet Record: 4:01.41, Allysa Vavra (Indiana)
• Pool Record: 4:01.41, Allysa Vavra (Indiana)
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 4:03.62
• Defending Champion: Bailey Andison (Indiana)

Top 8 Qualifiers:

200 Free — Prelims

• B1G Record: 1:40.69, Siobhan Haughey (Michigan)
• Meet Record: 1:41.57, Siobhan Haughey (Michigan)
• Pool Record: 1:44.00, Lilli Hosack (Wisconsin)
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 1:42.98
• Defending Champion: Siobhan Haughey (Michigan)

Top 8 Qualifiers:

100 Breast — Prelims

• B1G Record: 55.88, Lilly King (Indiana)
• Meet Record: 55.88, Lilly King (Indiana)
• Pool Record: 58.76, Emily McClellan (UW-Milwaukee)
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 58.60
• Defending Champion: Lilly King (Indiana)

Top 8 Qualifiers:

100 Back — Prelims

• B1G Record: 49.18, Beata Nelson (Wisconsin)
• Meet Record: 49.78, Beata Nelson (Wisconsin)
• Pool Record: 51.95, Katharine Berkoff (USA)
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 50.93
• Defending Champion: Beata Nelson (Wisconsin)

Top 8 Qualifiers:

Read the full story on SwimSwam: 2020 B1G Women’s Championships: Day 3 Prelims Live Recap

By Lauren Neidigh on SwimSwam

2020 SEC SWIMMING & DIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS

• Tuesday, February 18 – Saturday, February 22, 2020
• Auburn, AL – James E. Martin Aquatic Center
• Prelims/Finals: 9:30 AM/5:30 PM Wed-Sat, 10/4:20PM Tues (Central Standard Time)
• Defending Champion: Florida (7x) (results)
• Live Video – SEC Network+ (prelims), ESPN (finals)
• Men’s Fan Guide|Women’s Fan Guide
• Psych Sheets
• Championship Central
• Estimated NCAA Invite Times|NCAA ‘A’ Cuts
• Heat Sheets
• Live Results

The 2020 SEC Championships continued this morning in Auburn, Alabama with day 4 prelims. Swimmers stepped up for the 100 back, where we saw the SEC Meet Records tied in both the men’s event and the women’s event. Prelims of the event set up an exciting match up for tonight’s finals, as multiple swimmers have the potential to break these records.

Texas A&M’s Shaine Casas has a lifetime best from this season that’s already faster than the SEC Meet Record. He tied that mark in prelims, however, with a 44.73 for top seed. Casas matched the mark originally set by Alabama’s Connor Oslin in 2017. Just a hundredth off that mark this morning, however, was Bama’s Zane Waddell, the defending champion.

On the women’s side, Alabama’s Rhyan White tied the 50.53 Meet Record that Florida’s Gemma Spofforth set back in 2009. That was a lifetime best for White. In the final, she’ll be up against Kentucky’s Asia Seidt, an All-American and the reigning silver medalist, and Florida’s Sherridon Dressel, another All-American in this event and the reigning bronze medalist.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Shaine Casas, Rhyan White Both Tie SEC Meet Records in 100 Back Prelims

By Coleman Hodges on SwimSwam

This is Pancake Hot Take, where we rate racing on a scale of 1-5 pancakes, and give you our highlights. This is week 1 of major NCAA DI Conference championships, and we are taking you through every day of racing with our picks for the top swims

After Day 2 of conference meets, we got to take a breath after some serious excitement. Nevertheless, we saw an American record fall, and some surprising swims. For that, I give Day 2 of conference swimming…

3 PANCAKES

Let’s get into it.

• Race of the Day: Erika Brown kept the best time train rolling, and broke an American record in the 100 fly, registering a 49.38 to become the #3 performer all-time
• Surprise of the Day: Hello Ohio State women. Coming into the B1G Champs, we had Michigan winning by a sizable amount, which could still happen. But after Day 2 of the meet, and OSU’s 18… yes, 18!!! finals swims, they’re leading the meet by 83 points.
• Syrup on Top: Kate Douglass continues to impress during her freshman campaign, dropping a 1:51.36 200 IM to take the ACC title and become the fastest freshman ever in the event.

HOW MANY PANCAKES DO YOU THINK TODAY DESERVED? LET US KNOW IN THE COMMENTS BELOW

Stay tuned for Pancake Hot Takes every day after finals. And until then… stay hungry.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Pancake Hot Take: Week 1, Day 2 of Conference Championship Season

By Lauren Neidigh on SwimSwam

2020 SEC SWIMMING & DIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS

• Tuesday, February 18 – Saturday, February 22, 2020
• Auburn, AL – James E. Martin Aquatic Center
• Prelims/Finals: 9:30 AM/5:30 PM Wed-Sat, 10/4:20PM Tues (Central Standard Time)
• Defending Champion: Florida (7x) (results)
• Live Video – SEC Network+ (prelims), ESPN (finals)
• Men’s Fan Guide|Women’s Fan Guide
• Psych Sheets
• Championship Central
• Estimated NCAA Invite Times|NCAA ‘A’ Cuts
• Heat Sheets
• Live Results

The 2020 SEC Championships continued this morning in Auburn, Alabama with prelims of the 200 fly, 100 back, and 100 breast. We’ll see swimmers compete for medals in those races tonight, along with the 400 medley relay and men’s platform diving. Read on for the up/mid/down tracking of this morning’s preliminary events, and how it may impact the team standings.

For those unfamiliar with swimming terminology, the concept of “Ups” and “Downs” is a good way to track which teams performed best at prelims. In prelims, swimmers qualify for one of three finals heats: the top 8 finishers make the A final, places 9 through 16 the B final and places 17 through 24 the C final. In finals, swimmers are locked into their respective final, meaning a swimmer in the B heat (spots 9-16) can only place as high as 9th or as low as 16th, even if they put up the fastest or slowest time of any heat in the final.

With that in mind, we’ll be tracking “Ups,” “Mids” and “Downs” after each prelims session. “Up” refers to swimmers in the A final, “Mid” to swimmers in the B final and “Down” to swimmers in the C final.

MEN’S TOTAL UP/MID/DOWNS

(Note: Does not include relays or diving)

Diving will play a big factor in how the top 5 shakes out at the end of the day, but it doesn’t look like anyone will be able to catch Florida tonight. Things could change up in the top 5 as Missouri (11) and Tennessee (10) lead with the most scorers tonight. Florida, Bama, and Tennessee are tied with the most championship finalists (4 each).

MEN’S 200 FLY

MEN’S 100 BACK

MEN’S 100 BREAST

By Giusy Cisale on SwimSwam

MCCULLAGH INTERNATIONAL MEET 2020

• Giovedì 20 Febbraio – Domenica 23 Febbraio
• Aurora Complex, Bangor
• 50m (LCM)
• Event Schedule
• Meet Entries
• SwimSwam Italia preview
• Recap Batterie Day1

Le finali del McCullagh International Meet 2020 hanno riservato qualche emozione in più rispetto alla mattina.

Il meeting, che si svolge in vasca lunga, nell’Aurora Complex di Nagor, ed è organizzato da Swim Ireland, ha visto ai blocchi di partenza il ritorno di Adam Peaty.

Peaty nelle batterie di qualifica aveva nuotato i tempo di 58.90, come vi abbiamo riportato questa mattina. 

• leggi qui il nostro articolo

Il ranista più veloce del mondo, nelle finali ha fatto segnare un passaggio ai 50 metri di 27.42 ed una seconda vasca in 31.36 per andare a toccare la piastra per primo con il tempo di 58. 78, anticipando i concorrenti di oltre un secondo.

L’unico altro uomo sotto il minuto è stato James Wilby, che da 1:00.26 delle batterie è passato a 59.91 in finale. Terzo con 1:00.54, Ross Murdoch.

Lo slancio di Peaty lo fa salire di posizione nella classifica mondiale stagionale.

Al primo posto rimane l’olandese Arno Kamminga con il tempo di 58.61 realizzato durante la tappa di Shenzen della FINA Champions Swim Series, lo scorso Gennaio. Quel crono gli è valso anche il nuovo Record Nazionale sulla distanza.

A secondo posto c’è il bielorusso Ilya Shymanovich con 58,73, che però è stato realizzato ad Agosto 2019 durante la tappa della Coppa del Mondo FINA a Tokyo.

Mantiene il terzo posto nel ranking mondiale stagionale l’azzurro Nicolo Martinenghi con il tempo di 58.75 realizzato a Dicembre durante iCampionati Assoluti di Riccione. Martinenghi  è stato il primo italiano a conquistare la qualificazione individuale per le prossime Olimpiadi di Tokyo 2020.

Anche in acqua si è visto anche Duncan Scott.

Nella finale dei 100 metri stile libero è stato l’unico a nuotare sotto i 49″, chiudendo primo in 48.86.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Finali McCullagh Meet: Peaty Scende A 58.7-Scott 48.8 Nei 100 Stile