Early season NCAA rankings are already getting a hatchet taken to them as the first round of major invitationals are getting underway. If the 12-team Georgia Tech Invitational is any indication, we are going to see those rankings get chopped to pieces this weekend as the first prelim session in Atlanta has produced four times in the top 5 so far.
The first preliminary event of the weekend landed not just one, but three Lady Razorback upperclassmen under the current #10 ranked time in the nation for the 500 freestyle. Arkansas Senior Anna Mayfield led the pack of Hawgs with the #2 ranked time so far this year at 4:41.57. Teammates Aiden Lister and Rachel Stoehr took the second and third spots right behind Mayfield to claim all of the middle lanes for the final heat at 4:47.60 and 4:47.94 respectively, with Stoehr’s time just missing the NCAA B cut.
The womens’ 200 IM featured six B cuts in the preliminary, led by Arkansas’ Chelsea Tatlow at 1:58.88. Tatlow was the only preliminary swim below the two-minute mark and was good enough to move her up to #5 in the NCAA ranking so far. Alabama senior Emma Saunders (2:00.17) and Florida Gulf Coasts’ Barb Caraballo (2:00.53) will be in the second and third seeded positions heading into tonight’s final.
FGCU’s Katie Latham landed the top seed in the final session for the 50 free in 22.59, which is good enough to tie Ohio State’s Liz Li and Auburn’s Allyx Purcell for the #9 NCAA ranking. Another B cut and sub-23 second time was turned in by UNLV senior Julia Fehervari at 22.74 to claim the second highest spot going into finals.
The men’s meet is shaping up to be just as strong. The 500 free featured three NCAA B cuts in the prelim, led by Alabama’s Anton McKee. McKee’s time of 4:22.14 is good enough for third place in the current NCAA rankings. He is followed by three from South Carolina, with Akaram Mahmoud at the #5 ranked 4:22.46, Tom Peribonio at 4:24.74, and Cody Bekemeier at 4:25.13.
The 200 IM landed two B cuts, with the top seeds tonight being Alabama’s Christopher Reid at 1:47.51 and South Carolina’s Nils Wich-Glasen at 1:48.35. The 50 free landed three B cuts, led by UNLV senior Dillon Virva at 20.03.
Finals begin tonight at 6pm. You can find video at this link.