DES MOINES SECTIONALS
- March 11-14, 2021
- Des Moines, IA (Wellmark YMCA)
- Short course yards (SCY) with SCY/LCM time trials
- Meet info
- Psych sheets
- Results on Meet Mobile
The Des Moines Sectionals kicked off tonight with a session of long course time trials. Among the top swimmers tonight was Ames Cyclones’ Josh Chen, who hit lifetime bests in two breaststroke events.
Chen first raced the 100 breast, where he demolished his old best of 1:10.53 from 2019, when he was just 13. Tonight, Chen posted a 1:04.33, dropping six seconds, splitting 30.32/34.01 by 50. He’s now just over a second off of the Olympic Trials Wave I cut of 1:03.29.
In the 200 breast, Chen returned to hit a 2:23.48, destroying his old best by almost 12 seconds. he was out in a 31.7 on the first 50, then fell off a bit, going 36.4/37.7/37.5, still able to push the final 50 a bit.
In the women’s 50 free, Aquastorm went 1-2, as 16-year-old Erin Palmer set a new personal best of 26.67 ahead of teammate and Arizona commit Lexi Duchsherer (26.80). The OT Wave I cut is a 25.99. In the 100 breast, Palmer also posted a 1:12.83 for second behind her sister Carly Palmer (1:12.78). Carly Palmer went a best by almost a second, while Erin Palmer hacked almost five seconds off of her best.
Iowa Flyer 16-year-old Scarlet Martin, a Florida commit, came painfully close to an OT Wave I cut in the 100 fly. She shaved .03 off of her old best with a 1:00.81, but is still .12 off of the standard.
14-year-old Mason Turner, swimming unattached, also snagged a new lifetime best. He took three seconds off of his old best in the 200 fly, breaking 2:10 for a 2:09.47, out in 1:01.3 and back in 1:08.1.