Day 2′s preliminary session wasn't quite the same fevered-pitch as we had in the morning on Thursday, but with a bit of a different event lineup, there was probably a little bit more saved up for finals here.
Tucson Ford's Christine Magnuson said before her 100 fly prelim that she hadn't been training the stroke all season, joking that she hoped she remembered how. The former American Record holder in the long course version of the event hustled the competition to take the top seed in 52.13, just ahead of USC's Jasmine Tosky (52.19) and Longhorn Aquatics' Kathleen Hersey (52.30).
Among other notable finishes was NCAP's Janet Hu as the 5th seed in 52.61, which ties Katie Hoff for 2nd-best all-time in the 15-16 ag3e group. She broke the 50 free National Age Group Record on Thursday morning, and will have about two-tenths to drop to get Kendyl Stewart's record in this race tonight. Stewart was in this final, though now 18 and swimming for USC, in 52.44.
Tom Shields tied the Meet Record in the men's 100 fly with a 45.07; he'll be followed by Davis Tarwater in 45.89 and Michigan State's Jacob Jarzen in 46.65. Texas's Tripp Cooper, who we've pegged as the Longhorns' future butterflier, was 6th in 47.43. Tyler McGill will require a swimoff to make the A-Final, as he tied with UCSB'sWade Allen in 47.52 for 8th.
Celina Li topped the women's 400 IM prelim in 4:11.33, followed by three USC Trojans (Stina Gardell, Jessica Schmitt, and Andrea Kropp). Expect much faster times in the final of that race.
The men's 400 IM was a bit better, with NBAC's Chase Kalisz winning in 4:45.51 – a personal best for him. 16-year old Gunnar Bentz from Dynamo, who has a NAG Record from the 200 at this meet already, was 2nd in 3:45.80; Michael Phelps' 3:42 is still elusive here, as he was already so good in this race.
The top seeds in this 400 IM are all phenomenal breaststrokers: Kalisz, Bentz, Austen Thompson, and Andrew Seliskar (another 16-year old), so watch for a shootout on the back-half of this race in finals.
The women's 200 free saw spectacular morning performances; 16-year old Quinn Carrozza from the home team Longhorn Aquatics was a 1:44.94 in the early heats to knock more than a second off of her best time; she will be the third seed behind veteran Erika Erndl (1:44.92) and Katie Ledecky (1:44.58). That's a great uptick in Ledecky's speed, as it's a two-second personal best for her.
Missy Franklin is the 4th seed in 1:45.73. There are 6 high school swimmers in this final alongside the 34-year old Erndl.
Ricky Berens, making his debut back under the flag of the burnt orange after a few years in SoCal, made it clear that he's back and committed after a brief retirement. He was the top seed in the men's 200 free in 1:33.21, followed by Ryan Lochte in 1:34.59 and Clay Youngquist in 1:34.62. Dax Hill and Joao de Lucca will also be in the A-Final to make a good college preview race, as is Ryan Murphy in a best time of 1:35.76.
Four women were under a minute in the women's 100 breast, led by Texas' Laura Sogar in 59.18. Kasey Carlson (59.29), Ellyn Baumgardner (59.31), and Jessica Hardy (59.62) also did it. Chelse Salli and Catherine Meili were just over as it took a 1:00.66 to make the top 8.
Arizona's Kevin Cordes topped the prelims of the 100 breaststroke in 51.86, just ahead of his fellow Arizona-trained swimmer Clark Burckle (51.98). Cordes' swim was only half-a-second away from his American Record set at NCAA's last year, and Burckle's was only a tenth from his personal best (though in Burckle's case, that doesn't mean he's all that rested as he's a much better swimmer now than he was in 2010). Mike Alexandrov and Carl Mickelson in 3rd and 4th means that the top four all have spent time training in Tucson in the last year
Tennessee's Bradley Craig was 5th in 52.67. That's Bradley's best time by two-tenths, showing that new Tennessee men's coach Matt Kredich will have no problem bringing his success with the women's team to the men's program as well.
No surprises in the 100 back, as the Olympic Champion Missy Franklin is the top seed in 52.28 – still quite a bit slower than she was in Minneapolis a month ago. Lauren Smart (52.70), Kathleen Hersey (52.78), and the National High School Record holder Olivia Smoliga (52.90) round out the top 4.
Matt Grevers is the top seed in the 100 back in 45.87; expect him to be way faster in finals. Ryan Murphy is the 4th seed in 46.18, followed by Ryan Lochte (46.26) and Tom Shields (46.59).