Lucy Thomas Lowers Wisconsin LSC Record in 100 Breast at Senior Short Course Champs

2023 Wisconsin LSC Senior Short Course Championships

• Feb. 23-26, 2023
• Walter Schroeder Aquatic Center
  • Brown Deer, Wisconsin
• SCY (25 yards)
• Results on MeetMobile: “2023 WI Senior SCY State Championships”

Elmbrook Swim Club 17-year-old Lucy Thomas lowered her own Wisconsin Swimming LSC 17-18 record in the 100 breast at last month’s Wisconsin Senior Short Course Championships.

Thomas, a Stanford commit, shaved .05 seconds off her previous mark with a victory in 58.84. She was also a key piece of four first-place Elmbrook relay teams, highlighted by a 27.88 breast split in the 200 medley relay. Thomas added personal bests in two off-events, the 50 fly (24.54) and 100 free (49.16).

At the NCSA Spring Championships a few weeks later, Thomas took another couple tenths off her LSC record in the 100 breast with a 58.65. She also threw down a 27.01 in the 50 breast. Those times should be a welcome sight for Cardinal coaches after Stanford’s best breaststroker, fifth year Allie Raab, split 27.34 and 59.20 on the medley relays at the NCAA Championships earlier this month. The Cardinal placed 9th in the 200 medley relay and 4th in the 400 medley relay at NCAAs.

At 16 years old, Thomas blazed a 2:09.16 at last year’s NCSAs, faster than the LSC 17-18 record of 2:13.75. She wasn’t able to replicate that performance at this year’s NCSAs, but her season-best 2:11.10 was still more than two seconds quicker than Reese Tiltmann’s previous mark set last year.

Thomas’ Elmbrook teammate, 17-year-old Wisconsin commit Maggie Wanezek, was off her best times in her primary backstroke events, but she tallied lifetime bests in off-events such as the 50 breast (30.17) and 100 breast (1:03.98). At NCSAs a few weeks later, though, Wanezek clocked a 1:50.63 to win the 200 back and wipe out Wisconsin Swimming’s LSC 17-18 record of 1:50.66 set by current University of Virginia standout Reilly Tiltmann back in 2021.

The 50 back turned out to be an exciting race as Wanezek (24.31) held off 15-year-old Alana Berlin (24.40) by less than a tenth of a second. Berlin, who represents Schroeder YMCA Swim Team, dropped a few tenths off her previous-best 24.71 from November of 2021. Wanezek has been sub-24 in this event before, having posted a 23.98 last November.

Girls’ Team Scores

1. Schroeder YMCA Swim Team – 1,287
2. Waukesha Express Swim Team – 1,043.5
3. Elmbrook Swim Club – 1,001
4. Verona Area Swim Team – 936.5
5. Madison Aquatic – 819.5

On the boys’ side, Badger Aquatic Club 17-year-old Abram Mueller took home three victories in the 200 breast (1:57.27), 200 IM (1:50.75), and 500 free (4:33.08). His time in the 200 breast represented a huge seven-second drop compared to his previous-best 2:04.90 from November of 2021. Mueller is now just a few seconds shy of Max McHugh’s LSC 17-18 record of 1:53.59 from 2018.

In the 100 back, Schroeder YMCA Swim Team 16-year-old Sam Lorenz won with a 48.48, then went even faster leading off the 400 medley relay with a personal-best 48.32. The Wisconsin commit’s 100 back split was just a couple tenths off Will Hayon’s LSC 15-16 record of 48.10 from 2021.

Verona Area Swim Team 18-year-old Jack Madoch totaled five individual wins in the 50 fly (21.73), 100 fly (47.55), 50 free (20.02), 100 free (43.83), and 50 back (22.56). Three of those — his 21.73 50 fly, 47.55 100 fly, and 22.56 50 back — marked new personal bests for the University of Virginia commit. Madoch is within a second of the LSC 17-18 record in the 100 back, which belongs to Ziyad Saleem (46.95) from 2021.

Oregon Community Swim Club 16-year-old Finnley Conklin finished second behind Mueller in the 200 breast (2:00.61), but he racked up victories in the 50 breast (25.31) and 100 breast (54.82). In the 50, he shaved .17 seconds off his lifetime best from December’s Winter Juniors.

Boys’ Team Scores

1. Madison Aquatic Club – 1,278.5
2. Verona Area Swim Team – 1,078.5
3. Waukesha Express Swim Team – 1,062
4. Ozaukee Aquatics – 841
5. Schroeder YMCA Aquatics – 816