2024 AUSTIN SECTIONALS
- July 11-14
- Lee & Joe Jamail Texas Swim Center
- Austin, Texas
- LCM (50 meters)
- Results on MeetMobile: “2024 ST TXLA SZ LC Sectional Champs”
- Day 1 Recap
- Day 2 Recap
Recent University of Texas graduate Emma Sticklen scorched a lifetime best of 57.74 in the 100 butterfly to outduel recent NC State graduate Abby Arens (58.42) on Saturday night at Austin Sectionals.
Sticklen shaved a few hundredths off her previous-best 57.77 that she clocked to qualify for the Olympic Trials final last month, where she ultimately placed 8th in 58.44. The 22-year-old ranks just outside of the top 30 in the world this season. Sticklen is coming off back-to-back NCAA titles in the 200-yard fly.
Arens has been as fast as 58.16 last June. They were the only two swimmers under one minute in the final.
In the men’s 100 fly, rising Texas sophomore Will Modglin blasted a personal-best 52.53 to take the title over rising Texas junior Aleksej Filipovic (53.70). Modglin dropped more than a second off his previous-best 53.39 from last July to hit a lifetime best that would have placed 14th at Olympic Trials last month, where he was a two-time finalist at Trials in the 100 back and 200 IM.
Rising SMU junior Jack Forrest captured the 400 free crown in 3:56.65, less than half a second ahead of Texas A&M commit (’25) Bucky Gettys (3:57.02). Both swimmers set best times, with the 20-year-old Forrest going almost two seconds faster than he was at Trials last month. Gettys knocked almost a tenth off his previous-best 3:57.11 from last August.
Recent Texas A&M graduate Chloe Stepanek placed 1st in the women’s 400 free (4:17.31), a few seconds off her best time from 2022 (4:13.68). She’s currently in the NCAA transfer portal seeking a fifth-year destination after placing 15th in the 100 free (54.63) and 16th in the 200 free (2:00.02) at last month’s Olympic Trials. Stepanek reached the wall a few seconds ahead of rising Texas senior Olivia McMurray (4:20.61), who owns a personal-best 4:13.18 from back in 2019.
Rising Texas sophomore Emma Kern emerged victorious in the women’s 200 back at 2:15.19, taking a couple tenths off her previous-best 2:15.40 from last month. The 19-year-old placed 6th in the 100 back (1:00.98) at Olympic Trials last month.
Rising Alabama sophomore Kate Christian cut more than a second off her previous best 200 back time (2:17.27 from 2021) on her way to a runner-up finish in 2:15.81.
Recent Texas A&M graduate Thomas Shomper secured the men’s 200 back win in 2:00.21, a couple hundredths faster than her previous-best 2:00.23 that placed 25th at Trials. Rising Texas sophomore Nate Germonprez also registered a lifetime best in the 200 back with a 2nd-place showing in 2:02.19, more than half a second faster than her previous-best 2:02.92 from 2022.
The men’s 100 breast came down to the wire between recent Texas A&M graduate Vincent Ribeiro (1:02.84) and former Texas swimmer Adam Fusti-Molnar (1:02.91). Ribeiro touched less than a tenth quicker than Fusti-Molnar to clinch the win, just a couple tenths off his personal-best 1:02.60 from April.
Recent Texas A&M graduate Charlotte Longbottom (1:10.57) beat Desirae Mangaoang (1:11.16) and Lindsey Hosch (1:11.36) in the women’s 100 breast. Longbottom placed 41st in 100 breast (1:10.52) at Trials last month, more than a second off her personal-best 1:09.39 from 2022.
Alex Deng unattached ST???
Think Emma could do a grad year? Will she?
Meanwhile, a seventeen (17) year old Alex Shackell posted a time of 56.78 in the semifinals of the W 100 FL at the 2024 USA Swimming Olympic Team Trials.
Your obsession with a seventeen (17) year old is quite strange.
Is Kelly Pash retiring? I wonder if her absence at this meet means anything.
I assume she’s taking the summer to evaluate if she wants to continue. She seems to still be juggling some sponsorships related to her swimming career, so I assume she’ll probably stick around as a pro at Texas for the time being if she opts to keep at it. She’s out of NCAA eligibility and her Olympic potential is pretty limited considering Gretchen, Torri, Regan, and Alex Shackell are all likely returning for 2028, but I could see her benefiting tremendously from training with the Texas pro-team and maybe honing her LCM 200 free to match her SCY level to open her relay potential up.
Atta girl Emma!
Typical Texas athletes swimming PBs at all the wrong meets
Typical 🤓
Sticklen went best times in both of her events at trials. I don’t know how it would be anything other than good that she dropped time 4 weeks later.
2024 USA Swimming Olympic Team Trials
W 100 FL
Semifinals
Shackell, Alex – 56.78
Sticklen, Emma – 57.77
W 200 FL
Final
Shackell, Alex – 2:06.69
Sticklen, Emma – 2:08.07
W 200 FL
Semifinals
Shackell, Alex – 2:06.10
Sticklen, Emma – 2:07.44
Someone’s feeling insecure today. Awww. Sad.
So your only point is that some swimmers are faster than Emma? Wow, that’s deep
And? Yes, Alex Shackell is faster than Emma Sticklen.
How about we look at Sticklen’s progression since arriving at UT?
PBs out of high school in 2020 1:00.35 2:14.23
2021 59.54 2:10.03
2022 58.64 2:08.41
2023 58.17 2:08.28
2024 57.74 2:07.44
Not many people can claim they improved every year in college, especially women, but Emma Sticklen can.
Even if she could’ve gone two seconds faster at trials, she still would not qualify for Olympic team – she did a best time, good for her — she’s young and can certainly climb up the ranks in the next Olympic cycle.