2021 Mizzou Invite Day 1 Finals: Sarah Thompson Drops 21.8 50 Free

2021 Mizzou Invite

• November 17-19, 2021
• Mizzou Aquatic Center, Columbia, Missouri
• SCY (25y)
• Live Results
• Results on Meet Mobile: “2021 Mizzou Invitational”
• Live Stream (Prelims)
• Live Stream (Finals)

After having the swim of the morning, Sarah Thompson improved on her 50 free prelims time to finish number one in finals with a 21.81. Also showcasing some impressive swims were Rémi Fabiani, who broke the CBU school record with his 50 free time of 19.46, and Danny Kovac, Mizzou’s 200 IMer whose time puts him at the top of the country.

At the end of Day 1 of the Invite, Missouri has a significant lead on both sides with 473.5 points for the men and 429.5 points for the women. Nebraska is second for the women with 244 points, and CBU is second for the men with 232 points.

Women’s 200 Free Relay

Top finishers:

1. Missouri A: 1:27.87
2. Missouri B: 1:30.72
3. Nebraska A: 1:31.79

After initially being DQ’d, the Missouri A team earned an NCAA qualifying time of 1:27.87, finishing first. The team consists of Amy Feddersen (22.40), Megan Keil (21.76), Sierra Smith (22.20), and Sarah Thompson (21.51). The team dropped .91 off their seed time, and it’s currently the second-fastest in the country.

Missouri’s B team took second. The B team consisted of Ashley Gill (23.07), Molly Gowans (22.56), Colleen Duffy (22.76), and Meredith Rees (22.33), who put up a total time of 1:30.72, slightly slower than their seed time of 1:29.99.

The Nebraska team rocketed to third place after being initially ranked eighth with a time of 1:36.66. Autumn Haebig, who had the top prelims time in the 500 free, swam the fastest split with 22.45.

Men’s 200 Free Relay

Top finishers:

1. Missouri A: 1:17.19
2. Missouri B: 1:18.95
3. California Baptist A: 1:19.09

Earning an NCAA provisional cut but coming .12 short of a qualifying cut, the Missouri A team won the event by over a second and swam the fastest time in the country so far. Jack Dahlgren, who was SEC men’s swimmer of the week earlier in the month after swimming the fastest times in the nation at that point in the backstroke event and as part of a winning 400 free relay, swam the fastest split at 19.17. He was joined by Kevin Hammer (19.58), Danny Kovac (19.21), and Alex Moore (19.23).

The Missouri B team followed close behind but missed out on an NCAA provisional cut, while CBU ousted Mizzou’s C team to take third. CBU’s Jacob Leahy had the fastest split at 19.43.

Women’s 500 Free

Top finishers:

1. Autumn Haebig: 4:44.04
2. Allison Bloebaum: 4:44.67
3. Abbey Taute: 4:45.54

Only two non-Mizzou swimmers earned top seeds in prelims, and Nebraska’s Autumn Haebig was one of them. She dropped from her prelims time of 4:45.35 to stay in first, edging closer to her personal best of 4:41.83 from the 2020 Big Ten championships. She also negative split the race, swimming 2:22.79 in the first 250, and 2:21.25 in the second 250. 

Bloebaum, who swam 4:47.09, significantly closed the gap between first and second, finishing just .63 behind Haebig. The Mizzou swimmer led the majority of the race — it wasn’t until the last 50 that Haebig was able to finish ahead of Bloebaum.

Missouri’s Taute had the biggest drop from prelims to make the podium, dropping 3.23 off her prelims time of 4:48.77. This race is by far her fastest of the season, having previously swum the event in 4:51.16 at the Purdue/Michigan/Missouri tri-meet.

Men’s 500 Free

Top finishers:

1. Jack Dubois: 4:18.08
2. Calvin Windle: 4:24.77
3. Mikolaj Malec: 4:24.87

Mizzou’s Jack Dubois was ranked first heading into finals, and he dropped .89 and kept his spot by over six seconds. This time is currently the second-fastest in the SEC.

But the real race was between Calvin Windle and Mikolaj Malec, and Windle won second by just .10. The two hit the wall at the same time at the 450-mark (3:59.53), but it was Windle who was able to out-touch Malec for second place. This was the freshman’s fastest time so far this season.

Malec, for his part, dropped almost four seconds from his prelims time, and is the fastest 500 free time of his college career.

Women’s 200 IM

Top finishers:

1. CJ Kovac: 2:00.03
2. Katrina Brathwaite: 2:00.07
3. Brecken Merkel: 2:02.26

Katrina Brathwaite, the top seed from prelims, was out-touched by teammate CJ Kovac in a tight finals race that came down to the last 50. Brathwaite led by a second heading into the free leg, but her 29.79 wasn’t enough to beat Kovac’s 28.64. The senior’s top time was 2:01.03, from last season’s SEC Championships, and she beat it by exactly one second at the 2021 Invite.

Brathwaite missed her top time, set at last year’s Mizzou Invite, by 2.33 seconds. 

Brecken Merkel was remarkably consistent, adding just .01 to her prelims time in finals, and maintaining her third place spot.

Men’s 200 IM

Top finishers:

1. Danny Kovac: 1:42.39
2. Ben Patton: 1:44.22
3. Will Goodwin: 1:45.59

Kovac led a blisteringly fast 200 IM that saw Missouri sweep the top seven spots. Kovac dropped over two seconds from his prelims time, which is also the fastest time in the NCAA. He’s also a second off his top time ever, 1:41.35, swum at the 2021 SEC Championships. 

Patton, who had the third-fastest time in the NCAA after his morning swim, dropped over half a second to maintain his second place. His top time ever is 1:44.15, from last season’s SEC Championships.

Will Goodwin is the only Mizzou top-7 finisher to add to his prelims time, but he just added .18, staying solidly in third with a total time of 1:45.59.

Women’s 50 Free

Top finishers:

1. Sarah Thompson: 21.81
2. Megan Keil: 22.11
3. Amy Feddersen: 22.30

Fifth-year Thompson stayed under 22 for the second time today, swimming 21.81 in finals, just faster than her prelims time of 21.95. She led a top-5 sweep of the race for the Tigers, and her time is currently the second-fastest in the country, behind Michigan’s Maggie MacNeil. Thompson’s best time, set last year at NCAAs (where she placed third), is 21.42, which is also Mizzou’s record in the event. 

Feddersen, who placed second in prelims, lost the final silver to teammate Keil. Keil’s time is her fastest this season, and Feddersen’s time is also her fastest this season.

All three Tigers walk away with an NCAA B-cut in the event, and Thompson is .15 away from an A-cut.

Men’s 50 Free

Top finishers:

1. Rémi Fabiani: 19.46
2. Jack Dahlgren: 19.48
3. Kevin Hammer: 19.68

Fabiani, the other non-Mizzou swimmer after Haebig to earn a top seed in prelims, broke CBU’s 50 free record with his time of 19.46. The old record, 19.53, was set by Jerome Heidrich in 2019. Fabiani is a freshman for CBU, and currently has the fastest time in the country in the 50 free by .01.

Dahlgren and Kevin Hammer both dropped time to take second and third, respectively. Dahlgren’s time is the third-fastest in the country, and Hammer’s is the sixth-fastest.

Women’s 400 Medley Relay

Top finishers:

1. Missouri A: 3:33.50
2. Missouri B: 3:40.96
3. Nebraska A: 3:41.46

Missouri’s A team won by over seven seconds, earning an NCAA provisional cut. The team consisted of Meredith Rees on back (52.28), Kayla Jones on breast (1:00.68), Sarah Thompson on fly (52.07), and Amy Feddersen on free (48.47). The team is currently the fifth-fastest in the country.

The B team added two seconds to its seed time, but still came in second. Nebraska, mirroring the women’s 200 free relay, jumped up through the rankings, initially seeded fifth but finishing third. The team dropped over four seconds from its seed time.

Men’s 400 Medley Relay

Top finishers:

1. Missouri A: 3:06.78
2. CBU A: 3:12.52
3. Missouri B: 3:13.02

The Missouri A team won the event and earned an NCAA provisional cut. Jack Dahlgren swam backstroke (46.47), Ben Patton swam breaststroke (51.62), Danny Kovac swam fly (45.59), and Grant Bochenski swam free (43.10). This is currently the fastest time in the country.

CBU dropped five seconds from its seed time to come in second, and the Missouri B team, just .03 off its seed time, took third.

Women’s 3-meter Diving

Top finishers:

1. Kennedy Cribbs: 333.00
2. Melissa Mirafuentes Santilon: 329.80
3. Aranza Vazquez Montano: 326.85

Kennedy Cribbs earned a top score in the 3-meter boards, ahead of her previous best of 315.60, earned at the 2020 MPSF Championships. She’s historically better in the 1-meter, but her first place finish shows she can compete in both events.

Men’s 1-meter Diving

Top finishers:

1. Anton Down Jenkins: 396.05
2. Alexander Hart: 329.90
3. Takuto Endo: 315.90

Number-one seed Anton Down Jenkins improved his prelims score by 28.60, taking first place well-ahead of teammate Alexander Hart. He’s some serious NCAA scoring potential, which helped inform our November power rankings.