Maya DiRado breaks down double-crown in 2Back/2IM (Video)

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ARENA PRO SWIM SERIES AT MESA

• Thursday, April 14 – Saturday, April 16, 2016
• Skyline Aquatic Center
• Mesa, Arizona (same as Pacific Daylight Time, GMT -7 hours)
• Prelims 9AM / Finals 5PM (12PM/8PM Eastern Daylight Time)
• Psych Sheet
• Live Stream
• Live Results
• Meet Central
• Saturday AM Program

WOMEN’S 200 METER INDIVIDUAL MEDLEY – FINAL

• FINA A: 2:14.26
• S. Olympic Trials: 2:18.69

Top Three:

1. Maya DiRado, Stanford Swimming, 2:11.09
2. Ella Eastin, Unattached, 2:11.35
3. Melanie Margalis, Saint Petersburg, 2:12.22

Only a few minutes separated two very different races, as this one was as close as the 800 was not.  Katinka Hosszuwas in the lead after the fly leg, only to surender it briefly to Maya DiRado after the backstroke leg, then regain after breaststroker.  But DiRado outsplit Hosszu 30.23 to 31.80 over the final 50, during which it looked like any of four or five women could win the race, and DiRado took the win in 2:11.09.  Ella Eastin was in 2nd or 3rd the whole race, and touched just behind DiRado in 2:11.35.

The next three finishers were all bunched together, but it was Melanie Margalis who took 3rd in 2:12.22.  Madisyn Cox had the 2nd-fastest free split and nearly ran down Margalis, and settled for 4th in 2:12.35.  She just touched out Hosszu (2:12.37).  Caitlyn Leverenz was 2nd at the first wall, but quickly faded to 7th over the next two legs before moving up once spot to take 6th in 2:14.70, just ahead of Kirsty Coventry (2:14.76).  Sarah Henry placed 8th in 2:15.45.

WOMEN’S 200 METER BACKSTROKE – FINAL

• FINA A: 2:10.60
• S. Olympic Trials: 2:16.59

Top Three:

1. Maya DiRado, Stanford Swimming, 2:08.61
2. Kirsty Coventry, SwimMAC Carolina, 2:10.04
3. Kaitlin Harty, YMCA of the North Shore, 2:10.23

We’ve gotten so used to seeing Hosszu swim faster at seemingly every meet, and often win multiple events in the same session, so it’s a bit unusual to not only see Hosszu not win either event in an evening, but to see her lose both events to the same swimmer.  Yet, tonight, it was DiRado who pulled off the double, leading from almost beginning to end and taking the win in 2:08.61.

It was Hosszu who was out first at the 50, with a 30.59, but DiRado was right being at 30.68, and quickly took the lead over the next length.  Hosszu stayed in 2nd place through the halfway point, but Kaitlyn Harty and Kirsty Coventrymoved ahead over the third length, hitting the final turn almost simultaneously.  Coventry out split Harty over that final length to take 2nd in 2:10.04 to Harty’s 2:10.23.

Matea Samardzic was dead last at the first turn, but moved up on the rest of the field from that point on to touch 4th in 2:13.46.  Hosszu plaed 5th in 2:13.91, holding off Melanie Klaren who finished 6th in 2:14.24.  Erin Earleyplaced 7th in 2:15.98, followed by Ally Howe in 2:16.57.