2015 U.S. JUNIOR NATIONALS
- Thursday, July 30th – Monday, August 3rd
- Northside Aquatics Center – San Antonio, Texas
- Prelims 9AM/Finals 6PM (local time)
- Full coverage
- Psych sheets
- Live stream link
- Live results
Scratches
Only three swimmers have scratched out of finals heading into night 2, and all three come out of C finals.
In the girls 200 back, Tampa Bay Aquatics’ Christin Rockway has scratched out as the 18th seed, bumping her teammate Celi Guzman into the bonus final.
A pair of swimmers have dropped out of the 400 IM. SwimAtlanta’s Haley McInery was the last qualifier into finals of the girls event, but she’ll drop out tonight in favor of Beach Cities Swimming’s Jasmine Margetts.
In the boys race, Nitro’s Chris Yeager was the 18th seed but will scratch out of finals. That clears up a tie for 24th that would have required a 400 IM swim-off. Thankfully for Brennan Day and Zach Snyder, that swim-off won’t have to happen underneath the hot midday Texas sun, and both boys will be into the C final tonight.
Event Previews
Want the scoop on what to watch for tonight? We’ve got a quick storyline or two from each event to get you prepped for tonight’s action.
Girls 200 back
Tonight’s most youthful event will be the opening number with two of the meet’s youngest competitors in the A final. 13-year-old Alex Walsh is the second qualifier, and another 13-year-old, Regan Smith, will compete in the championship heat too.
And don’t take your eyes off of top-seeded Emma Seiberlich, who absolutely crushed her final split in last night’s 200 fly. If she can close the same way tonight, she’ll be in the hunt no matter what place she turns in at the 150.
Boys 200 back
Sarasota’s Austin Katz is the top qualifier, and like Seiberlich, he’s a great closer. Also keep an eye on Nitro’s Sean Grieshop – the 200 back isn’t typically a primary event for Grieshop, but it’s probably a good indicator of how his backstroke will look in the 200 IM later this weekend and the 400 IM at Senior Nationals next week.
Girls 100 free
One of the best YMCA swimmers in the nation, Katrina Konopka will look to jump to the next tier of nationally-ranked sprinters tonight with a potential foray into the 54s. She was a lifetime-best 55.29 this morning, but a 54 would put her in the hunt for a top 10 time nationally.
Boys 100 free
Pleasanton’s Maxime Rooney had arguably the swim of the morning with his 49.67, his first time ever under 50 seconds. Looking to join him under that barrier tonight will be 16-year-old Michael Andrew, who went a lifetime-best 50.23. The race between those two should be outstanding – Rooney is the nation’s best high school senior, verbally committed to Florida, and Andrew is the youngest pro swimmer in the nation.
Making things more interesting is Upper Dublin’s Michael Jensen, who broke 51 for the first time this morning, but could challenge Andrew and/or Rooney with another breakout swim.
Girls 400 IM
2013 Junior World champ Ella Eastin will look to stay unbeaten in San Antonio for the weekend. She’s the top seed by about half a second, and looks to have quite a bit left in the tank for tonight. She broke 4:40 back in 2013, but last summer could only muster a 4:43 at Jr. Pan Pacs. But if she can get back to her 2013 form, she’ll be pushing a top-5 ranking nationally and will have a shot at the U.S. National Team.
Boys 400 IM
Greater Miami Valley’s Mark Andrew dropped about 4 seconds off his lifetime-best this morning to take the top seed. The second seed is Arizona Gold’s Antonio Ramirez, who was just off his best – the big question is whether either swimmer was holding anything back in prelims. Swimming two all-out 400 IMs in a day is one of the more taxing feats in swimming, and we’ll find out tonight who’s got more left in the tank for finals.