2023 NC State/GAC Invitational
- November 16-18, 2023
- Greensboro Aquatic Center, Greensboro, North Carolina
- Short Course Yards (25 yards), Prelims Finals
- Prelims start at 9:30 AM Eastern, Finals at 5:30 PM Eastern
- Participating teams: #1M/#15W Arizona State, #4M/#7w NC State, #8M/#18W Virginia Tech, Army, #16W Duke
- Full Meet Results (PDF)
Women’s 1650-Yard Freestyle – Fastest Heat
- NCAA Record: 15:03.31 – Katie Ledecky, Stanford (2017)
- 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 15:52.41
- 2023 NCAA Invited Time: 16:13.73
Podium:
- Deniz Ertan (ASU), 15:53.23
- Alexa Reyna (ASU), 16:07.25
- Emma Hastings (NCS), 16:11.18
- Yara Hierath (NCS), 16:15:71
- Chase Travis (VT), 16:16.74
- Lia Csulak (ASU), 16:23.38
- Brooke Travis (NCS), 16:25.60
- Emily Gjertsen (DUKE), 16:40.91
ASU’s Deniz Ertan took 2.5 seconds off her lifetime best from last year’s ACC Championships (when she swam for Georgia Tech) to win the 1650 free in 15:53.23. Teammate Alexa Reyna improved by 13.5 seconds to place 2nd in 16:07.25. Ertan was 15th at NCAAs last year.
NC State’s Emma Hastings came with 2.2 seconds of her best time, coming to the wall 3rd with 16:11.18. She qualified for NCAAs last year and finished 25th.
Yara Hierath from NC State (16:15.71) edged Virginia Tech’s Chase Travis (16:16.74) by 1 second to claim 4th place, while ASU’s Lia Csulak got to the wall 2.2 seconds ahead of Chase’s older sister, Brooke Travis, swimming in the same heat.
Duke’s Emily Gjertsen took the 8th slot on the podium. She had the fastest time from the morning heats and (16:40.91) displaced ASU’s Katherine Randall (16:41.16), who was 8th in the evening heat.
Men’s 1650-Yard Freestyle – Fastest Heat
- NCAA Record: 14:12.08 – Bobby Finke, Florida (2020)
- 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 14:37.31
- 2023 NCAA Invited Time: 14:53.84
Podium:
- Owen Lloyd (NCS), 14:41.32
- Ross Dant (NCS), 14:43.85
- Daniel Matheson (ASU), 14:45.52
- Lance Norris (NCS), 14:54.60
- Sam Flack (NCS), 15:03.09
- James Plage (NCS), 15:03.49
- Ian Tansill (AWP), 15:13.82
- Brice Barrieault (AWP), 15:17.72
NC State’s Owen Lloyd chopped 4.8 seconds off his lifetime best to get his hand to the wall just ahead of teammate Ross Dant, 14:41.32 to 14:43.85. Dant was runner-up at the 2023 NCAA Championships (14:30.32), while Lloyd placed 11th (14:46.16).
ASU’s Daniel Matheson, who scored in 14th place at NCAAs (14:48.21), beat his PB by 2.7 seconds to rob the Wolfpack of a 1-2-3-4-5 sweep of the event here in Greensboro.
Army West Point’s Ian Tansill and Brice Barrieault, who had the fastest times out of the earlier heat, finished 7th and 8th overall with 15:13.82 and 15:17.72, respectively.
Women’s 200-Yard Backstroke – Finals
- NCAA Record: 1:47.24 – Beata Nelson, Wisconsin (2019)
- 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 1:50.50
- 2023 NCAA Invited Time: 1:53.34
Podium:
- Caroline Bentz (VT), 1:52.43
- Ali Pfaff (DUKE), 1:53.48
- Charli Brown (ASU), 1:55.23
- Molly Donlan (DUKE), 1:55.86
- Meghan Donald (NCS), 1:55.87
- Layne Peterson (AWP), 1:58.00
- Carmen Weiler Sastre (VT), 1:58.32
- Katey Lewicki (NCS), 1:59.86
Virginia Tech’s Caroline Bentz downed her PB of 1:52.76 from 2023 NCAAs (14th place) to win the A final in 1:52.43. She was nearly a full body length ahead of Duke’s Ali Pfaff, who took another 1.2 seconds off the brand new PB she had established in prelims. Her 1:53.48 is just .14 off what it took to be invited to NCAAs last season.
Arizona State’s Charli Brown shaved another tenth off her PB from this morning’s heats to placed 3rd with 1:55.23.
Duke’s Molly Donlan, who had dropped 2.1 seconds from her previous lifetime best this morning, added 1 second in the final but came in 4th place, just edging out NC State’s Meghan Donald by .01 with 1:55.86. That was a PB by 3-tenths for Donald.
Men’s 200-Yard Backstroke – Finals
- NCAA Record: 1:35.73 – Ryan Murphy, Cal (2016)
- 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 1:39.13
- 2023 NCAA Invited Time: 1:40.62
Podium:
- Hubert Kos (ASU), 1:36.54
- Owen McDonald (ASU), 1:39.31
- Jack Wadsworth (ASU), 1:41.28
- Nico Garcia (VT), 1:42.41
- Hunter Tapp (NCS), 1:42.44
- Quinlan Gould (ASU), 1:43.62
- JT Ewing (NCS), 1:43.86
- Chase Mueller (NCS), 1:44.00
The Arizona State 200 back training group put on a display in the final, led by Hubert Kos who broke the ASU school record by 1.42 seconds with 1:36.54. He had set the program mark in March at NCAAs with his 3rd-place finish of 1:37.96. His new time would have placed 2nd last year ahead of Hugo Gonzalez, just 8-tenths behind NCAA champion Destin Lasco.
That wasn’t all for the Sun Devils. Owen McDonald, who placed 5th at NCAAs last year, took .03 off his PB from that final, to go 1:39.31 for 2nd place. Teammate Jack Wadsworth was .38 off his best time but beat his 2023 Pac-12s performance by 2-tenths to finish 3rd with 1:41.28.
Virginia Tech’s Nico Garcia was the fastest of the rest of the field, edging NC State’s Hunter Tapp, 1:42.41 to 1:42.44, for 4th place. Tapp and Garcia finished 19th and 22nd, respectively, at NCAAs with 1:41-lows.
Women’s 100-Yard Freestyle – Finals
- NCAA Record: 45.56 – Simone Manuel, Stanford (2017)
- 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 47.18
- 2023 NCAA Invited Time: 48.37
Podium:
- Katharine Berkoff (NCS), 47.18
- Tyler Driscoll (NCS), 48.82
- Erin Milligan (ASU), 48.84
- Annabel Crush (NCS), 49.15
- Katherine Helms (NCS), 49.20
- Ieva Maluka (ASU), 49.30
- Tatum Wall (DUKE), 49.50
- Miriam Sheehan (NCS), 49.54
NC State’s Katharine Berkoff smoked the field with 47.18 to win the 100 free by well over a body length. While 3-tenths short of her PB of 46.87, she was by 8-tenths the fastest she has even been at this point in the season.
Teammate Tyler Driscoll, a freshman, who dropped .5 this morning to notch a new lifetime best, improved another half-second to touch 2nd with 48.82. Driscoll edged ASU’s Erin Milligan by .02. Milligan came within .09 of her lifetime best with 48.84 for 3rd place.
NC State’s Annabel Crush (49.15) and Katherine Helms (49.20) came to the wall just ahead of ASU’s Ieva Maluka (49.30), Duke’s Tatum Wall (49.50), and their NCSU teammate Miriam Sheehan (49.54).
Men’s 100-Yard Freestyle – Finals
- NCAA Record: 39.90 – Caeleb Dressel, Florida (2018)
- 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 41.50
- 2023 NCAA Invited Time: 42.32
Podium:
- Jonny Kulow (ASU), 41.44
- Jack Dolan (ASU), 41.53
- Quintin McCarty (NCS), 41.95
- Patrick Sammon (ASU) 42.28
- Youssef Ramadan (VT), 42.31
- Luke Miller (NCS), 42.49
- Tiago Behar (ASU), 42.66
- Drew Salls (NCS), 43.15
The Sun Devils swept 3 of the top 4 slots in the men’s final, foretelling good things for the 400 free relay. Jonny Kulow got the win by .09 over teammate Jack Dolan, 41.44 to 41.53. Kulow (11th) and Dolan (16th) both scored in the B final at NCAAs last year.
NC State freshman Quintin McCarty dipped under 42 seconds for the first time, taking .8 off his previous PB to clock in with 41.95 for 3rd place. That’s a time that would have scored in the B final at 2023 NCAAs.
ASU’s Patrick Sammon (42.28) eked out the win for 4th place over Virginia Tech’s Youssef Ramadan (42.31) and NC State’s Luke Miller (42.49).
Women’s 200-Yard Breaststroke – Finals
- NCAA Record: 2:01.29 – Kate Douglass, Virginia (2023)
- 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 2:05.73
- 2023 NCAA Invited Time: 2:09.68
Podium:
- Kaelyn Gridley (DUKE), 2:06.92
- Abby Arens (NCS), 2:07.57
- Zoe Summar (ASU), 2:09.41
- Aurelie Migault (AWP), 2:10.86
- Emma Gehlert (ASU), 2:11.50
- Catherine Belyakov (DUKE), 2:12.87
- Sonia Vaishnani (ASU) 2:15.12
- Ginger McMahon (ASU), 2:16.87
Duke’s Kaelyn Gridley came within 7-tenths of her PB from last year’s NCAA Championship (where she placed 5th), winning the A final in 2:06.92. Just behind her was NC State’s Abby Arens in 2:07.57, just .01 off her lifetime best. Arens scored in the B final of the 200 fly on Day 3 at NCAAs last year. Her best time comes from 2021 ACCs, where, as a freshman, she came in 5th with 2:07.56.
ASU’s Zoe Summar took another couple of tenths off her PB, which she has been chipping away at all season. Summar’s 3rd-place 2:09.41 makes her just over 2.7 seconds faster than her PB from last season’s Pac-12 Championships.
Army West Point’s Aurelie Migault broke the 2:11 barrier for the first time, taking 3-tenths off her best time to finish 4th with 2:10.86. Her time would have won the Patriot League title by over a second, and would have been 3-tenths off the meet record, to boot.
Duke’s Sally Foley and NC State’s Grace Sheble scratched the final after having qualified in the top 8.
Men’s 200-Yard Breaststroke – Finals
- NCAA Record: 1:46.91 – Leon Marchand, Arizona State (2023)
- 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 1:51.09
- 2023 NCAA Invited Time: 1:52.94
Podium:
- David Schlicht (ASU), 1:51.55
- Carles Coll Marti (VT), 1:53.56
- Cale Martter (ASU), 1:54.05
- Andy Dobrzanski (ASU), 1:54.93
- AJ Pouch (VT), 1:54.98
- John Heaphy (ASU), 1:56.16
- Joseph Hong (VT), 1:56.50
- Kohen Rankin (AWP), 1:56.64
ASU’s David Schlicht notched a lifetime best and won the men’s 200 breast A final by 2 full seconds, stopping the clock at 1:51.55. That’s .26 faster than his performance at NCAAs last year, where he placed 11th with 1:51.81.
Carles Coll Marti of Virginia Tech went a season-best 1:53.56 for 2nd place. He finished 7th at NCAAs last year with 1:51.20.
ASU’s Cale Martter (1:54.05) and Andy Dobrzanski (1:54.83) touched out Virginia Tech’s AJ Pouch (1:54.98) for 3rd and 4th.
Women’s 200-Yard Butterfly – Finals
- NCAA Record: 1:49.51 – Ella Eastin, Stanford (2018)
- 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 1:52.86
- 2023 NCAA Invited Time: 1:55.92
Podium:
- Lindsay Looney (ASU), 1:54.02
- Martina Peroni (DUKE), 1:55.80
- Kennedy Noble (NCS), 1:56.26
- Caroline Sheble (NCS), 1:58.31
- Keelan Cotter (NCS), 1:58.36
- Catherine Purnell (DUKE), 1:58.44
- Jade Foelske (ASU), 1:58.88
- Katrina Marty (ASU), 1:59.48
Lindsay Looney of ASU won by more than a body length with 1:54.02, leaving Duke’s Martina Peroni (1:55.80) and NC State’s Kennedy Noble (1:56.26) in her wake. Looney was 4th at NCAAs last year with 1:52.25.
Perroni’s and Noble’s times were their second-best ever.
Caroline Sheble (1:58.31) touched out NC State teammate Keelan Cotter (1:58.36) and Duke’s Catherine Purnell (1:58.44) for 4th place.
Men’s 200-Yard Butterfly – Finals
- NCAA Record: 1:37.35 – Jack Conger, Texas (2017)
- 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 1:40.16
- 2023 NCAA Invited Time: 1:42.57
Podium:
- Ilya Kharun (ASU), 1:39.10
- Alexander Colson (ASU), 1:41.32
- Noah Bowers (NCS), 1:42.11
- Mikey Moore (NCS), 1:46.74
- Nathan Jao (AWP) 1:47.70
- Alex Neff (VT), 1:49.16
- Mitchell Ledford (NCS), 1:50.10
- Carl Bloebaum (VT), 1:50.23
ASU freshman Ilya Kharun cracked the 1:40 barrier for the first time, and nearly went under 1:39, as he won by 2 body lengths with 1:39.10. Teammate Alexander Colson, who went 1:39.55 at Pac-12s last year, was second to the wall in 1:41.32.
NC State’s Noah Bowers (1:42.11) and Mikey Moore (1:46.74) placed 3rd and 4th in a rather spaced-out heat, where 11 seconds separated the 1st and 8th finishers.
Army West Point’s Nathan Jao took 2 seconds off his lifetime best to finish 5th with 1:47.70. That time would have placed 3rd at last year’s Patriot League Championships, where the Black Knights’ only finalist was Jack Pogue, who won the B final tonight in a PB of 1:47.93.
Women’s 400-Yard Freestyle Relay — Timed Finals
- NCAA Record: 3:05.84 – Virginia (Douglass, A. Walsh, Parker, G. Walsh) – 2023
- 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 3:14.10
- 2024 NCAA ‘B’ Standard: 3:16.25
Podium:
- NC State “A” 3:13.05
- Arizona State “A” 3:15.04
- NC State “B” 3:17.13
- Virginia Tech “A” 3:17.71
- Duke “A” 3:19.78
- Duke “B” 3:20.32
- Arizona State “B” 3:20.61
- NC State “C” 3:21.12
NC State won the 400 free relay by 2 body lengths as Abby Arens (48.89), Annabel Crush (48.74), Tyler Driscoll (48.56), and Katharine Berkoff (46.86) combined for 3:13.05 to claim the final event of the night. Berkoff (47.18), Driscoll (48.82), and Crush (49.15) finished 1-2-4 in the 100 free. The Wolfpack came in 4th at NCAAs last season with 3:10.51 from Berkoff (47.06), Kylee Alons (47.59), Abbey Webb (48.13), and Arens (47.59).
Arizona State finished 2nd with 3:15.04, coming to the wall 2 body lengths ahead of NC State’s B squad. Erin Milligan (48.71), Ieva Maluka (48.77), Lindsay Looney (48.49), and Molly Batchelor (49.07) contributed to the effort.
Men’s 400-Yard Freestyle Relay — Timed Finals
- NCAA Record: 2:44.07 – Florida (Liendo, Chaney, Smith, McDuff) – 2023
- 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 2:50.44
- 2024 NCAA ‘B’ Standard: 2:51.86
Podium:
- Arizona State “A” 2:46.57
- NC State “A” 2:48.65
- Arizona State “B” 2:49.80
- Arizona State “C” 2:54.18
- NC State “C” 2:55.17
- NC State “B” 2:55.63
- Virginia Tech “B” 2:56.77
- Army West Point “A” 2:58.60
Like in the women’s race, the men’s relay winner featured the 1st, 2nd, and 4th-place finishers in the individual event. Jack Dolan (42.02), Ilya Kharun (41.74), Patrick Sammon (41.91), and Jonny Kulow (40.90) combined to give Arizona State a 2:46.57 victory over NC State (2:48.65). The Sun Devils (with Kulow, Leon Marchand, Grant House, and Dolan) came in 3rd at NCAAs last year.
Second place went to NC State’s Quintin McCarty (41.90), Luke Miler (42.38), Jerry Fox (41.85), and Hunter Tapp (42.52) with 2:48.65.
Final Team Scores – Women
- North Carolina State University 1964
- Arizona State University 1816
- Duke University 1407
- Virginia Tech 1014
- S. Military Academy 657
Final Team Scores – Men
- Arizona State University 2058.5
- North Carolina State University 1806
- Virginia Tech 1289.5
- S. Military Academy 965
- Duke University 732
ASU followed up the Thurs-Saturday NCState Fall Invite at GAC with a Monday dual meet @ Utah (Salt Lake City, University elevation 4783 feet.) For the day after a rest meet, 4783 feet elevation and a pool built in 1968 and very shallow, they had some remarkably fast swims. Among the efforts either subject to altitude adjustment and swims either faster than at NCState/GAC or not done at that meet, include:
200 MR Dolan :21.12, Heaphy :23.83; Kharun :20.70, Kulow :17.56 (sure the Ks were really :19.70 and :18.56)
Kos :21.09; … Cam Peel free: 18.68
1000 Matheson 9:05.39 (per SwimCloud altitude adj. 8:53.99{#6}); Ryan King 9:21.68 (alt. adj. 9:10.28{#59})
100 Back Owen McDonald 100 Back(didn’t swim… Read more »
This was an excellent meet based on the swimming times but I believe the host did not do as well in providing spectator support for the meet. Here are my reasons: 1) There was no video of the meet, either live or after events. To me this is inexcusable for a major meet today especially at a venue that is fully equipped for live video. 2) There was no running score of the meet. Here it is Monday after a meet and no day by day or final scores are posted. 3) Posts of results of individual events was unsatisfactory. There are still events for which the full results are not available to the public on Hy Tec. I really… Read more »
Does anyone have the final scores for the meet?
Just found the full results as a file on the NC State Athletics website as a PDF file which does have all final scores. This was not available when I checked late yesterday.
Final scores:
Scores – Women Women – Team Rankings – Through Event 307 1. North Carolina State Universit 1964 2. Asu 1816 3. Duke University 1407 4. VA Tech 1014 5. U.S. Military Academy 657
Scores – Men Men – Team Rankings – Through Event 307 1. Asu 2058.5 2. North Carolina State Universit 1806 3. VA Tech 1289.5 4. U.S. Military Academy 965 5. Duke University 73
Full PDF file of meet at: https://gopack.com/documents/2023/11/19/nc_state_gac_invite_2023_full_meet_results.pdf
To me the fact that the ASU men absolutely dominated this meet against a strong NC state team without Leon Marchand, their strongest swimmer, speaks much about their prospects at PAC 12s and NCAAs. It certainly shows they are not a “one swimmer team” as so many have thought.
ASU is better but they also tend to swim faster before conference championships/NCAAs than most teams.
They’re loaded
Loaded and rested. Tough to beat that.
who thought that after last year?
One could be forgiven for thinking that Marchand was the engine that made all of ASU’s gears turn. His 3 individual titles were the only ones claimed by ASU, and his relay splits were game changing
If im Maximus or Thomas, I’m kicking myself right now for not going to ASU, asu doesn’t need instagram/swimswam hype, they don’t need great recruits, they build them. Sure they have
Marchand and kos (who both came in as fast recruits but have sky rocketed in this program) but every other kid on their team is continuing to drop time and most of them weren’t swimswam top 20, ex kulow, Sammon, behar, colsen, McDonald and many more. Ilya continues to drop an insane amount of time every swim. They have something special there.
100% agree.
They on the way to having better backstroke depth than Cal
Let’s not forget these kids are still going to college and are probably considering more than just the swimming program…
The simple fact is swimming isn’t the lucrative career path financially, ASU isn’t a bad school by any means but let’s not kid ourselves
Go to Harvard then if you want a top notch education. When it comes to it, most state schools are very similar in their education and in the workforce the slight difference between asu and other schools doesn’t matter, it matters more about the people you know . Don’t go to a program that has their freestyle anchor, almost going as fast as their woman’s.
Don’t go to a program that has their freestyle anchor, almost going as fast as their woman’s.
—
Burn! ❤️🔥
Personally I think Harvard is a bit overrated at present. And my sister teaches at Harvard Law, so I do hear much of the latest.
Wow you really got me why doesn’t everyone just go to Harvard!? Especially athletes to whom they don’t’ give scholarships?
Also all public universities are regarded the same is such a horrible take I’m sorry
UVA is a top 5 public and a top 25 overall university, they are almost certainly closer to Harvard than they are to ASU. This binary way of thinking where every school that’s not the #1 school is the same is nonsensical
I hate to have to keep repeating this every time these silly debates come up:
Every major flagship public university in every state has really great programs and really important research going on. The quality of education you receive at them is commensurate with the amount of effort you put into receiving a good education. You can coast at most of them and graduate without working too hard or learning too much, or you can put in a big effort and learn a lot of things and become involved in a lot of really high level stuff.
Demand for flagship universities has become too high for these schools to not have to provide quality educations and to not have very… Read more »
Do not sell ASU short on academics! In many fields they have the top people and programs of any state school in the US. Many athletes are attending due to ASUs very innovative “Sports Law” program which is part of ASUs Sandra Day O’Connor Law School.
Remember both Marchand and Kos have said in interviews that “We are doing something special at ASU” or it is “The Bowman Effect”! I have watched the ASU team at meets for over 20 years and coach Bowman knows how to to both make swimmers want to do better and then shows them how to do better. Perhaps the biggest endorsement of his training program is the fact that so many pro swimmers have chosen to train at ASU that it is now the largest pro group in the US. By the way at ASU the undergrads and the pros train together much of the time. Imagine as a freshman you are swimming in the same lane as an Olympic… Read more »
They both went through the recruiting process. I know that Heilman went on an official to ASU, not sure about Williamson. You don’t know the reason why any recruit picks a certain school and being the “fastest school” at a certain time is not the only consideration. Actually for many top swimmers its rarely even a consideration. If that was the case, Diehl, Winkler, Heilman, Williamson, etc should all be going to ASU and all the top female recruits should be going to UVA. Not even sure Diehl, Winkler, or Williamson considered ASU. So if “You were Maximus or Thomas, you’d be kicking yourself” but I am sure these swimmers are not. Also, in today’s day the great thing is… Read more »
It’s very surprising that ASU doesn’t recruit better domestically. Maybe all of their scholarship money is going to the European stars?
Kos’ swim was epic, but I think Kharun’s 200FL performance is nearly as epic given that he’s a freshman! 1.75s off Conger’s legendary record in November. Crazy to think he has at least 3.5 years left to beat it
He’ll surely beat it if he doesn’t turn pro.
This ASU team is just so loaded everywhere. Cal is gonna have to be perfect to beat them in March
Yeah it’s gonna be a crazy good meet. I think Pac 12s may even be pretty good since last year ASU definitely shaved and rested most of their guys to win it for the first time while Cal pretty much trained through it. Now ASUs talent is high enough that both teams will probably swim through conference fairly tired, with eyes on NCAAs and eventually trials. Gonna be some great racing.
Is there going to be a Pac 12s?
This year there will be. Possibly the last one.
Shame. What’s better than ASU vs Cal nowadays?
Oregon State and Washington State are in court trying to mantain control over the Pac-12 contracts now that everyone else is leaving. Unless they manage to hook-up with some other western conferences/universities with swimming programs, the only one left with a team is Washington State women. Might not be much of a conference meet, eh? Pretty sad end to the “Conference of Champions.”
Kind of ran through the ‘unless’ there. Probably need to give that one some more time to marinate before we say never again.
But certainly it’s the end of the Pac-12 as we knew it.
Let’s just stop with the canard that Cal trains through Pac-12 like its a September dual meet. Other than the guys who already have times that will be invited, they all have to rest pretty fully to make the NCAA meet. I’d say at a pretty similar ratio to ASU.
For every Lasco, who isn’t fully rested because he’s already made his times, but still races hard, there is a full blown taper for a guy like Jason Louser, who went from 2:04 2brst in late January to 1:50.99 at early March Pac-12(just 1:50.90 at NCAA) and 3:58.26 400IM in late January to 3:37.60 at Pac-12 (then 3:38.19 at NCAA). This past spring Bjorn Seeliger was :40.90 in his 100… Read more »
Special K’s getting it done for ASU tonight.