2023 Winter Juniors – West: Day 4 Prelims Live Recap

2023 Speedo Winter Junior Championships – West

• December 6-9, 2023
• FMC Natatorium, Westmont, Illinois
• Prelims: 9:00 am (CST)/ Finals: 5:00 pm (CST)
• Wednesday finals (relays only): 6:00 pm (CST)
• SCY (25 yards)
• Meet Central (USA Swimming)
• How To Watch
• Psych Sheet
• Live Results or on Meet Mobile

Saturday morning heat sheets

Saturday distance heat sheets

We’ve got heats of 200 back, 100 free, 200 breast, and 200 fly on Day 4 at Winter Juniors – West. The slower heats of the 1650 free will begin in the early afternoon.

Girls’ meet livestream courtesy USA Swimming

Girls’ 200 Yard Backstroke – Prelims

• West Record: 1:48.32, Bella Sims (2022)
• Meet Record: 1:48.32, Bella Sims (2022)
• 13-14 NAG Record: 1:50.95, Charlotte Crush (2023)
• 15-16 NAG Record: 1:48.30, Regan Smith (2018)
• 17-18 NAG Record: 1:47.16, Regan Smith (2019)

Top 8 qualifiers:

1. Grace Rabb, Aquajets Swim Team – 1:53.82P
2. Maggie Wanezek, Elmbrook Swim Club – 1:55.20P
3. Teagan O’Dell, Mission Viejo Nadadores – 1:55.30P
4. Finley Anderson, Univ of Denver Hilltoppers – 1:55.50P
5. Tierney Lenahan, NASA Wildcat Aquatics – 1:56.46
6. Teia Salvino, Mission Viejo Nadadores – 1:56.76
7. Charlotte Wilson, Univ of Denver Hilltoppers – 1:57.46
8. Madison O’Connell, Crow Canyon Sharks – 1:57.90

Finley Anderson from Denver Hilltoppers opened the circle-seeded heats with a 1:55.50 to win her heat over Mission Viejo’s Teia Salvino, who dropped .9 to clock in at 1:56.76.

Grace Rabb from Aquajets improved her seed time by over 2 seconds to win heat 10 with a pool record of 1:53.82.

Top-seeded Maggie Wanezek from Elmbrook Swim Club took the final heat with 1:55.20, about a body length ahead of NASA Wildcats’ Tierney Lenahan. Lenahan went .3 better than her entry time to finish with 1:56.46.

A pair of 13-year-olds, Daniela Linares from Crow Canyon and Maggie Dickinson of Schroeder YMCA, broke the 2-minute barrier for the first time and made the B final. Linares came in with a PB of 2:00.16 and went 1:58.66. Dickinson went from 2:00.77 to 1:58.81. Lizzie Watson from The Woodlands Swim Team, Ellie Schrank of Northwest Arkansas, and Neptune Swimming’s Natalie Farquhar all had big swims, as well.

Girls’ 100 Yard Freestyle – Prelims

• West Record: 46.29, Abbigail Weitzeil (2014)
• Meet Record: 46.29, Abbigail Weitzeil (2014)
• 13-14 NAG Record: 47.67, Claire Curzan (2019)
• 15-16 NAG Record: 47.23, Claire Curzan (2020)
• 17-18 NAG Record: 46.09, Simone Manuel (2015)

Top 8 qualifiers:

1. Leah Hayes, Fox Valley Park District – 48.44
2. Caroline Larsen, Foxjets Swim Team – 48.88
3. Annika Parkhe, Patriot Aquatic Club – 48.99
4. Liberty Clark, Crow Canyon Sharks – 49.04
5. Teagan O’Dell, Mission Viejo Nadadores – 49.15
6. Ava De Anda, Riverside Aquatics – 49.35
7. Bailey Hartman, Crow Canyon Sharks – 49.48
8. KK LeBlanc, Sharks Swim Club – 49.59

Swimming in heat 15 of 20, with a LCM seed time, Leah Hayes of Fox Valley Park District Riptides ripped a 48.44 to win the heat and come within .1 of her lifetime best. That time held up through the next five heats to become the fastest of the morning. Liberty Clark of Crow Canyon improved her time by a full 1.9 seconds to finish second in the heat with 49.04.

Elmbrook’s Maggie Wanezek was DFS in the first circle-seeded heat, which KK LeBlanc from Sharks Swim Club won from lane 1, going 49.59, a PB by .27. Amelia Bodenstab from Longhorn Aquatics was 2nd to the wall with 49.62.

Caroline Larsen of Foxjets was the winner of heat 19 with 48.88. She touched about half a body length ahead of Crow Canyon’s Bailey Hartman (49.48).

Annika Parkhe took care of business in the last heat, touching out Mission Viejo’s Teagan O’Dell, 48.99 to 49.15. Riverside’s Ava De Anda was 3rd with 49.35.

Girls’ 200 Yard Breaststroke – Prelims

• West Record: 2:06.81, Lydia Jacoby (2022)
• Meet Record: 2:06.02, Alex Walsh (2018)
• 13-14 NAG Record: 2:10.22, Allie Szekely (2012)
• 15-16 NAG Record: 2:06.45, Alex Walsh (2018)
• 17-18 NAG Record: 2:05.68, Ella Nelson (2020)

Top 8 qualifiers:

1. Raya Mellott, Crow Canyon Sharks – 2:11.92P
2. Piper Enge, Bellevue Club – 2:12.41P
3. Leah Hayes, Fox Valley Park District – 2:12.51P
4. Emma Sayers, Scottsdale Aquatic Club – 2:12.52P
5. Avery Collins, Lakeside Aquatic – 2:13.08P
6. Ashlyn Hernandez, Pacific Swim – 2:13.10P
7. Mikayla Tan, DART Swimming – 2:13.46P
8. Bella Brito, Beach Cities Swimming – 2:13.63P

Kaitlyn Nguyen of Irvine Novaquatics got the circle seeds off to a good start with a pool record when she won heat 9 with 2:13.74. Ella Smoker from The Woodlands touched 2nd in 2:15.55, just ahead of Clovis Swim Club’s Hannah Marinovich (2:15.95).

Bellevue Club Swim Team’s Piper Enge broke the pool record with her heat 10 win; she stopped the clock at 2:12.41, just .10 ahead of Leah Hayes and .11 ahead of Scottsdale Aquatic Club’s Emma Sayers (2:12.52).

Top-seeded Raya Mellott took another half-second off the pool record when she won the last heat in 2:11.92. Lakeside Aquatic Club’s Avery Collins (2:13.08) touched out Pacific Swim’s Ashlyn Hernandez (2:13.10). DART Swimming’s Mikayla Tan (2:13.46) was 4th in the heat.

Girls’ 200 Yard Butterfly – Prelims

• West Record: 1:51.06, Bella Sims (2022)
• Meet Record: 1:51.06, Bella Sims (2022)
• 13-14 NAG Record: 1:55.29, Tess Howley (2019)
• 15-16 NAG Record: 1:51.24, Regan Smith (2018)
• 17-18 NAG Record: 1:50.85, Claire Curzan (2022)

Top 8 qualifiers:

1. Kelsey Zhang, Palo Alto Stanford – 1:56.61
2. Camden Doane, King Aquatic Club – 1:56.79
3. Bailey Hartman, Crow Canyon Sharks – 1:57.26
4. Annemarie Vlaic, Lake Oswego – 1:58.09
5. Carli Cronk, Alamo Area Aquatics – 1:59.09
6. Montse Spielmann, Alamo Area Aquatics – 1:59.37
7. Clare Watson, Bellevue Club – 1:59.51
8. Sophia Sim, SOCAL Aquatics – 1:59.58

Sophia Sim of SOCAL Aquatics had a big swim in heat 2, dropping 2.25 seconds to win with her first sub-2:00, a 1:59.58. That vaulted her from 42nd seed straight into the A final, which she made by a margin of .10.

Camden Doane of King Aquatic Club won the first circle-seeded heat, going 1:56.79. Carli Cronk of Alamo Area (1:59.09) took 2nd place ahead of Scottsdale Aquatic Club’s Emmy Therrien (1:59.68).

Palo Alto Stanford’s Kelsey Zhang went 1:56.61 in the next heat to win by a comfortable margin over Alamo Area’s Montse Spielmann (1:59.37) and La Mirada Armada’s Angelica Mom (1:59.81). It was Mom’s first time under 2 minutes.

Top-seeded Bailey Hartman of Crow Canyon claimed the last heat with 1:57.26. Lake Oswego’s Annemarie Vlaic improved her seed time by .4 to finish 2nd in 1:58.09. Bellevue Club’s Clare Watson followed with 1:59.51 for 3rd.

Boys’ meet livestream courtesy USA Swimming

Boys’ 200 Yard Backstroke – Prelims

• West Record: 1:40.32, Keaton Jones (2022)
• Meet Record: 1:39.62, Daniel Diehl (2022)
• 13-14 NAG Record: 1:43.15, Michael Andrew (2014)
• 15-16 NAG Record: 1:40.88, Maximus Williamson (2022)
• 17-18 NAG Record: 1:37.35, Ryan Murphy (2014)

Top 8 qualifiers:

1. Nate Thomas, River City Aquatics – 1:43.64P
2. Gavin Keogh, Flatiron Athletic – 1:44.62
3. Brady Johnson, FMC Aquatic – 1:44.78
4. Brady Calkins, Sierra Marlins – 1:45.27
5. Ben Bricca, Seattle Metro – 1:45.52
6. Szymon Mieczkowski, FMC Aquatic – 1:45.53
7. Shae Stratton, Sawtooth Aquatic – 1:45.73
8. Jack O’Shaughnessy, Alpha Aquatics – 1:45.79

As was the case yesterday, we had a lot of DFS declarations in prelims this morning, starting with the 200 back in which we had empty lanes for Maximus Williamson, Luke Stibrich, and Max Hatcher, among others.

Oliver Schimberg of Aquawolves had a big swim in heat 4, winning from lane 8 by over 3 seconds with 1:45.99. That was a 2.4-second improvement from his seed time. Jack O’Shaughnessy from Alpha Aquatics ripped a 1:45.79 in the next heat, also dropping time from his lifetime best (1:46.54).

Nate Thomas from River City Aquatics won the first circle-seeded heat in a pool-record time of 1:43.64. He dropped 1.8 seconds and beat Eddie Jin of Blue Tide Aquatics (1:45.32) and Taisel Saito from Alpha Aquatics (1:46.56).

Gavin Keogh from Flatiron Aquatic Club went 1:44.62 to win heat 9; Ben Bricca of Seattle Metro (1:45.52) and Szymon Mieczkowski of FMC (1:45.53) were 2nd and 3rd in the heat. (Mieczkowski was the pool record holder with 1:43.64 until this morning.)

With an empty lane 4 in the last heat, FMC’s Brady Johnson took the win with 1:44.78, followed by Louie Fasani of Wolverine Aquatic Club (1:46.13), NASA Wildcats’ Charlie Bufton (1:46.34), and Rose Bowl’s Ray Liu (1:46.65).

Boys’ 100 Yard Freestyle – Prelims

• West Record: 41.23, Ryan Hoffer (2015)
• Meet Record: 41.23, Ryan Hoffer (2015)
• 13-14 NAG Record: 43.51, Thomas Heilman (2021)
• 15-16 NAG Record: 41.96, Kaii Winkler (2023)
• 17-18 NAG Record: 41.23, Ryan Hoffer (2015)

Top 8 qualifiers:

1. Maximus Williamson, Lakeside Aquatic – 43.67
2. Evan Croley, Streamline Aquatics – 43.80
3. Marre Gattnar, North Bay Aquatics – 43.84
4. Quin Seider, Ojai Heat Waves – 44.05
5. Cooper Lucas, Lakeside Aquatic – 44.20
6. Diggory Dillingham, Bend Swim Club – 44.44
7. PJ Foy, Glacier Swim Club – 44.56
8. Sammy Empey, Lake Oswego Swim – 44.59

After his DFS in the 200 back, Lakeside’s Maximus Williamson posted the top time of the morning in the 100 free, where he was also seeded 1st. Williamson was about 1.2 seconds off his PB but he secured lane 4 for tonight’s final.

Evan Croley of Streamline Aquatics took .3 off his seed time to win the first circle-seeded heat with 43.80. Bend Swim Club’s Diggory Dillingham was 2nd with 44.44.

Marre Gattnar from North Bay Aquatics (43.94) edged Ojai’s Quin Seider (44.04) and Lakeside’s Cooper Lucas (44.20) in the penultimate heat.

Williamson was the final heat winner, followed by Glacier Swim Club’s PJ Foy (44.56) and Lake Oswego’s Sammy Empey (44.59).

Boys’ 200 Yard Breaststroke – Prelims

• West Record: 1:52.92, Zhier Fan (2021)
• Meet Record: 1:52.12, Josh Matheny (2019)
• 13-14 NAG Record: 1:55.52, Reece Whitley (2014)
• 15-16 NAG Record: 1:52.37, Reece Whitley (2016)
• 17-18 NAG Record: 1:51.38, Josh Matheny (2020)

Top 8 qualifiers:

1. Maximus Williamson, Lakeside Aquatic – 1:56.76P
2. Hudson Schuricht, Scottsdale Aquatic Club – 1:56.97P
3. Jake Eccleston, Fort Collins Area – 1:57.41P
4. Colin Zhang, RISE Aquatic Club – 1:57.75P
5. Daniel Li, Rose Bowl Aquatics – 1:57.79P
6. Abram Mueller, Badger Aquatics – 1:59.05
7. Joe Polyak, Iowa Flyers – 1:59.48
8. Ewan Lonergan, Quicksilver Swimming – 1:59.62

In heat 12, Joe Polyak of Iowa Flyers put up a big swim from lane 1 to win with 1:59.48. It was a huge swim for Polyak, whose best time had been 2:03.03.

Maximus Williamson won the first circle-seeded heat from lane 5, where he dropped .9 to go 1:56.76 and break the pool record. Scottsdale’s Hudson Schuricht, swimming next door in lane 4, outsplit Williamson by 8-tenths on the second half and nearly caught him, but wound up with 2nd place in 1:56.97.

RISE Aquatic Club’s Colin Zhang won a thriller over Rose Bowl’s Daniel Li in the next heat, getting the touch 1:57.75 to 1:57.79.

100 breast winner Jake Eccleston of Fort Collins Area went 1:57.41 to win the last heat ahead of Badger Aquatics’ Abram Mueller (1:59.05) and Quicksilver’s Ewan Lonergan (1:59.62).

Boys’ 200 Yard Butterfly – Prelims

• West Record: 1:40.91, Gianluca Urlando (2018)
• Meet Record: 1:40.86, Thomas Heilman (2022)
• 13-14 NAG Record: 1:42.77, Thomas Heilman (2021)
• 15-16 NAG Record: 1:40.86, Thomas Heilman (2022)
• 17-18 NAG Record: 1:51.38, 1:40.39, Aiden Hayes (2022)

Top 8 qualifiers:

1. Cooper Lucas, Lakeside Aquatic – 1:45.24
2. Aiden Musick, NASA Wildcats – 1:45.61
3. Matteo Palmisani, Lakeside Aquatic – 1:45.93
4. Logan Noguchi, Rose Bowl – 1:46.22
5. Brandon Ha, DART Swimming – 1:46.75
6. Campbell McKean, Bend Swim Club – 1:46.80
7. Micah Davis, Aquajets – 1:46.93
8. Leo Cerda, Irvine Novaquatics – 1:47.12

Top-seeded Cooper Lucas put up the morning’s fastest qualifying time of 1:45.24, winning the last heat ahead of teammate Matteo Palmisani (1:45.93) and FMC’s Jeffrey Hou (1:47.41).

Aiden Musick of NASA Widcats dropped just over a second to win the previous heat in 1:45.61, touching out 100 fly winner Logan Noguchi of Rose Bowl (1:46.22). Bend’s Campbell McKean was 3rd with 1:46.80.

Micah Davis of Aquajets took the first circle-seeded heat in 1:46.93. Rose Bowl’s Ryan Makouar was 2nd with 1:47.39.

DART Swimming’s Brandon Ha had a huge swim in heat 9; he dropped 1.6 seconds to win with 1:46.75 from lane 7.