2022 NC State/GAC Invite: Day 2 Finals Live Recap

2022 NC STATE/GAC INVITATIONAL

• November 17-19, 2022
• Greensboro Aquatic Center, Greensboro, NC
• SCY (25 yards)
• Live Results on MeetMobile
• Live Results
• Full Results

TEAMS

• NC State
• Stanford
• Arizona State
• Duke
• Penn State
• Army
• George Washington (diving only)
• UNC Asheville (diving only)

The second night of the Wolfpack Invite has arrived with a full slate featuring the 200 medley relay, 400 IM, 100 fly, 200 free, 100 breast, 100 back, and 800 free relay.

Claire Curzan was the top qualifier in both the 100 fly (50.85) and 100 back (50.90) this morning, but she’ll be challenged by long-course world champion Torri Huske and reigning NCAA champion Katharine Berkoff in each event, respectively.

After breaking the pool record in the 200 IM last night, Arizona State sophomore Leon Marchand might be eyeing another record in the 400 IM. He was five seconds ahead of the field in prelims, and less than five seconds shy of the pool record set by Hugo Gonzalez last year.

The Arizona State men (647.5 points through day 1) will be looking to protect their triple-digit lead over Stanford (469.5) and NC State (437), while the Stanford women (639) are aiming to pull away from second-place NC State (509.5).

WOMEN’S 200 MEDLEY RELAY – FINALS

• NCAA ‘A’ Cut — 1:36.40
• Pool Record: 1:32.93, Virginia (2021)

Top 8:

1. NC State – 1:34.37
2. Stanford – 1:35.94
3. NC State – 1:38.17
4. Duke – 1:38.24
5. Penn State – 1:38.45
6. Stanford – 1:38.58
7. Duke – 1:39.48
8. ASU – 1:39.55

NC State senior Katharine Berkoff (23.70) outdueled Stanford sophomore Torri Huske (23.82) by just about a tenth of a second on the opening backstroke leg before Heather MacCausland crushed a 26.12 breaststroke split to carry the Wolfpack to a thrilling victory over the Cardinal in the first race of the evening.

Stanford came home quicker than NC State thanks to Claire Curzan (22.30 fly) and Taylor Ruck (21.77 free), but the damage was already done during the first half of the race. Joining Berkoff and MacCausland on the Wolfpack’s winning squad was senior Kylee Alons (22.66) and junior Abby Arens (21.89).

Aside from MacCausland, the only other breaststroker with a sub-27 split was her teammate, Andrea Podmanikova (26.62), who helped the Wolfpack’s second unit claim third place ahead of Duke.

Stanford swapped the order of their versatile Olympians, Curzan and Huske, for this 200 medley final after the opposite strategy (Curzan opening on back, Huske on fly) paid off in last night’s 400 medley relay final.

MEN’S 200 MEDLEY RELAY – FINALS

• NCAA ‘A’ Cut — 1:24.22
• Pool Record: 1:22.11, Louisville (2021)

Top 8:

1. ASU – 1:22.97
2. NC State – 1:23.34
3. Stanford – 1:24.76
4. ASU – 1:25.87
5. Penn State – 1:25.92
6. Stanford – 1:26.16
7. NC State – 1:26.41
8. Duke – 1:27.70

With Leon Marchand taking on the 400 IM just two events later, Arizona State had to go without its star sophomore for the 200 medley relay final, but the Sun Devils (1:22.97) still managed to pull out a tight victory over NC State (1:23.34).

The race began neck and neck, with ASU senior Jack Dolan (20.86) tying with NC State sophomore Aiden Hayes (20.86) on the opening backstroke split. On the next breaststroke leg, ASU senior John Heaphy (23.73) kept the Sun Devils close behind NC State’s Mason Hunter (23.56). Then ASU fifth-year Max McCusker threw down a huge 19.81 fly split to pull away just enough from NC State senior Nyls Korstanje. ASU fifth-year Grant House (18.57) barely edged NC State sophomore David Curtiss (18.60), but it wasn’t enough to erase the gap. Both teams earned NCAA ‘A’ cuts under the standard of 1:24.22.

Stanford’s quartet of Leon MacAlister (21.28), Ethan Dang (23.99), Jonny Affeld (20.30), and Luke Maurer (19.19) were not far back in third place with a total time of 1:24.76.

WOMEN’S 400 IM – FINALS

• NCAA ‘A’ Cut – 4:03.62
• Pool Record: 4:01.57, Brooke Forde (2021)

Top 8:

1. Grace Sheble (NCS) – 4:06.73
2. Lucy Bell (STAN) – 4:08.37
3. Charli Brown (ASU) – 4:09.78
4. Sam Tadder (STAN) – 4:11.83
5. Martina Peroni (DUKE) – 4:12.70
6. Catherine Purnell (DUKE) – 4:13.65
7. Yara Hierath (NCS) – 4:15.41
8. Sophie Duncan (STAN) – 4:18.07

NC State sophomore Grace Sheble used a strong second half of her race to rally past Stanford freshman Lucy Bell (4:08.37) for the women’s 400 IM crown. Sheble trailed Bell by just over a second at the midway point, but she clocked a 1:09.03 breaststroke split to take a comfortable lead that she protected on her freestyle anchor. Both swimmers were just over a second off their personal bests from early this year.

The finals lineup was young, with NC State junior Yara Hierath being the only upperclassman in the field.

MEN’S 400 IM – FINALS

• NCAA ‘A’ Cut – 3:39.16
• Pool Record: 3:36.73, Hugo Gonzalez (2021)

Top 8:

1. Leon Marchand (ASU) – 3:33.65
2. David Schlicht (ASU) – 3:43.16
3. Owen McDonald (ASU) – 3:44.27
4. Ron Polonsky (STAN) – 3:44.50
5. Daniel Matheson (ASU) – 3:46.64
6. Kyle Ponsler (NCS) – 3:46.78
7. Cale Martter (ASU) – 3:48.41
8. Conall Monahan (NCS) – 3:50.16

Arizona State sophomore Leon Marchand didn’t just break the pool record — he demolished it with a new personal best.

The French sensation pieced together a 400 IM time of 3:33.65, shattering Hugo Gonzalez‘s previous mark by more than three seconds and bettering his own lifetime best by nearly half a second. The swim makes him the third-fastest performer of all time in the event, surpassing Carson Foster‘s 3:33.79 and putting him just behind Chase Kalisz (3:33.42 in 2017) and Gonzalez (3:32.88 in March of this year).

Marchand split 48.31 on his opening butterfly leg, 54.32 on the backstroke portion, a blistering 1:00.64 on his breaststroke, and 50.38 on his freestyle anchor.

The 20-year-old reached the wall nearly 10 seconds ahead of the field, which was packed with four other Sun Devils (second-place finisher David Schlicht, third-place finisher Owen McDonald, fifth-place finisher Daniel Matheson, and seventh-place finisher Cale Martter). Training with Marchand might be rubbing off on the rest of the ASU squad.

WOMEN’S 100 FLY – FINALS

• NCAA ‘A’ Cut – 50.92
• Pool Record: 48.89, Maggie MacNeil (2021)

Top 8:

1. Torri Huske (STAN) – 49.25
2. Claire Curzan (STAN) – 49.93
3. Kylee Alons (NCS) – 51.83
4. Lindsay Looney (NCS) – 52.09
5. Abby Arens (NCS) – 52.33
6. Emma Harvey (PSU) – 53.36
7. Jade Foelske (ASU) – 53.43
8. Emma Wheal (STAN) – 53.53

Stanford sophomore Torri Huske fired off a nation-leading time of 49.25 to hold off freshman teammate Claire Curzan in lightning-fast women’s 100 fly final. The two were the sub-50 swimmers in the field, and two of the only ones in the NCAA this season along with Kate Douglass, who went 49.84 at the Tennessee Invitational tonight.

Huske was just off her personal best 49.17 from March, and close to the American record of 49.04 set by Douglass in March.

MEN’S 100 FLY – FINALS

• NCAA ‘A’ Cut – 44.82
• Pool Record: 44.24, Ryan Hoffer (2021)

Top 8:

1. Luke Miller (NCS) – 44.99
2. Max McCusker (ASU) – 45.01
3. Alexander Colson (ASU) – 45.77
4. Ethan Hu (STAN) – 45.86
5. Aiden Hayes (NCS) – 45.89
6. Aaron Sequeira (STAN) – 46.19
7. Cody Bybee (ASU) – 46.20
8. Jonny Kulow (ASU) – 47.08

NC State junior Luke Miller was the only swimmer sub-45 in the field tonight with a time of 44.99, just a couple tenths off the NCAA ‘A’ cut of 44.82.

ASU fifth-year Max McCusker tallied a new personal best with a 45.01, just .02 seconds shy of Miller. McCusker’s previous best was a 45.29 from prelims this morning.

WOMEN’S 200 FREE – FINALS

• NCAA ‘A’ Cut – 1:42.84
• Pool Record: 1:39.10, Missy Franklin (2015)

Top 8:

1. Taylor Ruck (STAN) – 1:43.11
2. Kayla Wilson (STAN) – 1:44.35
3. Lillie Nordmann (STAN) – 1:44.83
4. Morgan Tankersley (STAN) – 1:45.64
5. Natalie Mannion (STAN) – 1:46.12
6. Erin Milligan (ASU) – 1:47.03
7. Catherine Meisner (PSU) – 1:47.09
8. Amy Tang (STAN) – 1:47.34

Stanford swimmers swept the top five spots in the women’s 200 free final, led by Taylor Ruck‘s 1:43.11.

She touched more than a second ahead of Kayla Wilson and just a few tenths of a second off the NCAA ‘A’ cut of 1:42.84. Ruck’s first 25 was a second faster than anyone else in the field.

MEN’S 200 FREE – FINALS

• NCAA ‘A’ Cut – 1:31.98

Top 8:

1. Grant House (ASU) – 1:31.96
2. Julian Hill (ASU) – 1:32.26
3. Patrick Sammon (ASU) – 1:32.79
4. Andrey Gray (ASU) – 1:33.55
5. Bartos Piszczorowicz (NCS) – 1:33.75
6. Michael Cotter (NCS) – 1:34.45
7. Luke Maurer (STAN) – 1:34.77
8. Rafael Gu (STAN) – 1:35.73

The lopsided racing continued in the men’s 200 free with ASU taking the top four spots.

Fifth-year Grant House snuck under the NCAA ‘A’ cut by just .o2 seconds with his time of 1:31.96. Julian Hill was a few tenths behind in 1:32.26, edging out fellow Sun Devils Patrick Sammon (1:32.79) and Andrew Gray (1:33.55). House and Hill split almost identically for most of the race except for the opening length, where House beat him by nearly half a second.

WOMEN’S 100 BREAST – FINALS

• NCAA ‘A’ Cut – 58.10
• Pool Record: 57.23, Sophie Hansson (2021)

Top 8:

1. Heather MacCausland (NCS) – 58.16
2. Andrea Podmanikova (NCS) – 58.56
3. Sarah Foley (DUKE) – 59.39
4. Kaelyn Gridley (DUKE) – 1:00.38
5. Aubree Brouwer (NCS) – 1:00.42
6. Iza Adame (ASU) – 1:00.63
7. Kaylee Hamblin (NCS) – 1:01.41
8. Aurelie Migault (ARMY) – 1:01.79

NC State senior Heather MacCausland dropped nearly a full second off her personal best with a 58.16 to beat Wolfpack teammate Andrea Podmanikova for the women’s 100 breast title. MacCausland’s time is one of the fastest in the nation this year behind Virginia stars Alex Walsh (57.94) and Kate Douglass (58.14).

Podmanikova, the fourth qualifier in prelims, shaved about a second and a half off her time from this morning with a 58.56 in the finals, leapfrogging the Duke duo of Sarah Foley and Kaelyn Gridley in the rankings.

MEN’S 100 BREAST – FINALS

• NCAA ‘A’ Cut – 51.40
• Pool Record: 50.18, Max McHugh (2021)

Top 8:

1. Mason Hunter (NCS) – 52.57
2. Mariano Lazzerini (PSU) – 52.76
3. Zhier Fan (STAN) – 52.96
4. Dan Raisanen (PSU) – 53.10
5. John Heaphy (ASU) – 53.39
6. Ethan Dang (STAN) – 53.48
7. Evan Yoo (ARMY) – 54.46
8. Ben Doyle (PSU) – 54.77

WOMEN’S 100 BACK – FINALS

• NCAA ‘A’ Cut – 50.89
• Pool Record: 49.74, Katherine Berkoff (2021)

Top 8:

1. Claire Curzan (STAN) – 50.12
2. Katharine Berkoff (NCS) – 51.21
3. Kylee Alons (NCS) – 51.83
4. Kennedy Noble (NCS) – 52.40
5. Emma Muzzy (NCS) – 52.47
6. Lucie Nordmann (STAN) – 53.10
7. Easop Lee (DUKE) – 53.54
8. Emma Shuppert (DUKE) – 53.77

At the end of a triple featuring the 200 medley relay and 100 fly, Stanford freshman Claire Curzan crushed a nation-leading time of 50.12 to beat reigning NCAA champion Katharine Berkoff by more than a second. Curzan was just six-tenths of a second slower than her personal best from March.

Berkoff was joined by three more NC State swimmers (senior Kylee Alons, freshman Kennedy Noble, and senior Emma Muzzy) behind Curzan.

MEN’S 100 BACK – FINALS

• NCAA ‘A’ Cut – 44.79
• Pool Record: 44.04, Coleman Stewart (2020)

Top 8:

1. Jack Dolan (ASU) – 45.43
2. Leon MacAlister (STAN) – 45.82
3. Aiden Hayes (NCS) – 46.06
4. Jack Wadsworth (ASU) – 46.55
5. Giovanni Izzo (NCS) – 46.71
6. Hunter Tapp (NCS) – 47.20
7. Aaron Sequeira (STAN) – 47.37
8. Hayden Kwan (STAN) – 48.90

Jack Dolan secured the fourth victory of the evening for ASU men with a 45.43 in the 100 back final. It was slightly slower than his personal-best 45.25 from prelims, but still a few tenths ahed of Stanford senior Leon MacAlister (45.82).

NC State sophomore Aiden Hayes had the biggest drop from prelims to snag third place in 46.06. It was a new personal best, improving upon his previous mark of 46.31 from December of 2019.

WOMEN’S 800 FREE RELAY – FINALS

• NCAA ‘A’ Cut — 7:00.86
• Pool Record: 6:50.99, Cal (2015)

Top 8:

1. Stanford – 6:56.45
2. Stanford – 7:03.39
3. NC State – 7:05.83
4. ASU – 7:07.27
5. Duke – 7:09.96
6. NC State – 7:16.73
7. Penn State – 7:19.91
8. ASU – 7:20.14

Stanford’s A and B teams took the top two spots in the 800 free relay final. Taylor Ruck posted the fastest split of the race with a 1:43.08, although sophomore teammate Torri Huske‘s 1:44.25 flat start was just as impressive. Curzan, swimming her fourth event of the night, clocked a 1:43.74 split, the second-fastest swinging split in the race behind Ruck.

Stanford’s B team of freshman Natalie Mannion (1:46.27), sophomore Aurora Roghair (1:46.76), senior Morgan Tankersley (1:45.37), and sophomore Lillie Nordmann (1:44.99) combined for a total time of 7:03.39. The quartet was seven seconds behind the A group, but notably beat the top teams from NC State, ASU, and Duke in the final.

MEN’S 800 FREE RELAY – FINALS

• NCAA ‘A’ Cut — 6:16.80
• Pool Record: 6:07.25, Texas (2021)

Top 8:

1. ASU – 6:08.97
2. NC State – 6:15.80
3. Stanford – 6:17.35
4. ASU – 6:21.01
5. NC State – 6:28.80
6. Duke – 6:36.59
7. Penn State – 6:38.70
8. Stanford – 6:40.56

Grant House (1:32.04), Julian Hill (1:32.60), Patrick Sammon (1:31.96) and Leon Marchand (1:32.37) combined to give ASU the win in a total time of 6:08.97.

Luke Miller (1:32.15), Michael Cotter (1:34.52), Bartosz Piszczorowicz (1:34.86), and Noah Bowers (1:34.27) led NC State to a runner-up finish in 6:15.80 ahead of third-place Stanford (6:17.35).

Team Standings Through Day 2

Men

1. ASU – 1,520.5
2. NC State – 1,155
3. Stanford – 1,000
4. Penn State – 524.5
5. Duke – 399.5

Women

1. NC State – 1,489.5
2. Stanford – 1,353
3. ASU – 807
4. Penn State – 806.5
5. Duke – 766