Beata Nelson Skips 100 Fly to Focus on 100 Back on Day 3 of Big Tens

2019 B1G WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIPS

• When: Wednesday, February 20th to Saturday, February 23rd | Prelims 11am | Finals 6:30pm (6pm Saturday)
• Where: Counsilman-Billingsley Aquatics Center, Bloomington, IN (Eastern Time Zone)
• Defending Champion: Michigan Wolverines (3x) (results)
• Live Results
• Streaming: Big Ten Network
• Championship Central: here

Wisconsin junior Beata Nelson has skipped the 100 fly on day 2 of the 2019 Big Ten Women’s Swimming & Diving Championships to focus on her best event: the 100 back.

Editor’s Note: we never received Big Ten psych sheets, so we don’t know where swimmers were entered pre-scratches, so our focus for these scratch reports are based on comparing conference rankings to daily heat sheets.

Nelson’s 49.67 in the 100 yard back earlier this season is the fastest time in the history of the event. She placed 2nd at NCAAs last year, where she swam the 200 IM, 100 back, and 200 back, avoiding the day 3 double (which would turn into a triple with relays).

She did swim the 100 fly at the mid-season Texas Hall of Fame Invite, where she swam a 50.90. That ranks her 5th in the country this season and 2nd in the Big Ten behind only freshman Maggie MacNeil.

Nelson is a former National High School Record holder in the 100 fly and current 15-16 National Age Group Record holder in the event, though as a collegian backstroke has developed into her primary stroke.

The only other scratch from a top-10 seeded swimmer is Nebraska’s Autumn Haebig, who’s done just the opposite: dropped the 100 back (9th seed)

Nelson’s was the only major scratch on Friday morning.

The Indiana Hoosiers take a 60.5-point lead over Michigan and 63-point lead over Ohio State into the 3rd day of competition at Big Tens.