Bella Sims Drops 100 Back, 200 IM to Focus on 800 Free on Saturday (PSS Psych Sheets)

2023 PRO SWIM SERIES – MISSION VIEJO

• May 17-20, 2023
• Marguerite Aquatics Center, Mission Viejo, California
• LCM (50 meters)
• Meet Central
• Psych Sheets (updated)
• All The Links
• How To Watch
• Live Results
• Day 1 Finals Live Recap
• Day 2 Prelims Live Recap | Day 2 Finals Live Recap
• Day 3 Prelims Live Recap
• Results through Friday

Saturday AM Prelims Heat Sheets

17-year old Sandpiper Bella Sims will focus on the mid-day 800 free on the final day of competition as she seeks a third win of the week in Mission Viejo.

Sims has already earned $3,000 in prize money via wins in the 200 free (1:58.44) and 400 free (4:06.41) this week in California. She also finished 6th in the 200 backstroke (2:13.98).

With three entries on Saturday, it seems as though Sims might be honing-in on some choices ahead of next month’s International Team Trials. She’s the top seed in the 800 by eight seconds and is dropping the 100 back (#7 seed) and 200 IM (#9 seed).

Many of the highly-seeded scratches from Saturday came from swimmers who are absent from the meet in general, but there were a few other notable choices and drops:

• Quintin McCarty of NC State, a Colorado native, has chosen to focus on the 50 free (#8 seed) over the 100 back (#10 seed) on Saturday. His best swim of the meet so far was the 50 back, where he placed 5th in 25.50.
• Santo Condorelli from the pro group at Texas Ford Aquatics will swim the 50 free (#3 seed) and skip the 100 fly (#3 seed) on Saturday. An Olympic medalist for Italy, Condorelli is now seeking to represent the US again. Remember that the last time he swam a 100 fly, he stopped mid-race. So far this week, he’s placed 24th in the 100 free (51.79) and  9th in the 50 fly (24.38).
• USC swimmer Isabelle Odgers will swim the 200 breast (#3 seed) rather than the 200 IM (#11 seed) on Saturday. She placed 4th in the 100 breast earlier in the meet in 1:09.15, which is just .17 seconds away from her best time.
• UCLA’s Beril Bocekler, after adding big time in her first two swims of the meet, has opted out of her best race, the 800 free, and wrapped her meet early. She was the #6 seed in that event coming in.

Among the interesting races to watch will be the men’s 100 fly, where Ryan Murphy has held onto his entry. He swam a best time in that race in Westmont and said at the time that he was weighing a run at the event for the 2024 US Olympic Trials.

Other Expected Scratches From High Seeds:

• Chris O’Grady – 200 breast (#4 seed)
• Xavier Ruiz – 200 breast (#9 seed)
• Charlotte Hook – 100 fly (#10 seed), 200 IM (#7 seed)
• Matthew Chai – 800 free (#5 seed)

Saturday’s Olympic Trials Cuts:

• Women’s 100 back – 1:01.89
• Men’s 100 back – 55.79
• Women’s 200 breast – 2:31.69
• Men’s 200 breast – 2:15.99
• Women’s 100 fly – 1:00.19
• Men’s 100 fly – 53.59
• Women’s 200 IM – 2:16.09
• Men’s 200 IM – 2:03.49
• Women’s 50 free – 25.69
• Men’s 50 free – 22.79
• Women’s 800 free – 8:45.79
• Men’s 800 free – 8:09.69