Thomas Heilman Headlines 2022 SC YMCA Nationals this Week (Preview)

2022 Short Course YMCA Nationals

• March 28 – April 1, 2022
• Greensboro Aquatic Center, Greensboro, NC
• SCY (25 yards)
• Meet Central
• Psych Sheet
• Live Results

The 2022 Short Course YMCA Nationals meet kicks off in Greensboro, NC Monday at the Greensboro Aquatic Center. The 5 day meet features many of the top swimmers from Y teams across the country.

One of the swimmers highlighting the meet is Thomas Heilman, the phenom out of Piedmont Family YMCA (Cavalier Aquatics). Heilman is entered in the 50 free, 100 fly, 200 fly, and 400 IM. The now-15-year-old has been on fire for months, at one point breaking 13 National Age Group Records in the span of 11 days last December. This will be Heilman’s first “championship meet” since he swam at the Speedo Winter Junior Championships in December.

Heilman will definitely be one to watch this week in Greensboro, not just because he’s the top seed in all 4 of his events, but because he’s likely to begin making his mark on the 15-16 all-time rankings as well. His personal bests from when he was 14 would already rank him in the 15-16 age group #3 in the 100 fly, #5 in the 200 fly, #14 in the 50 free, and #62 in the 400 IM.

Greater Somerset County Y 16-year-old Anna Moesch is the top seed in the women’s 50, 100, and 200 free. Moesch is already a top performer all-time among 15-16 girls, and we’ll be looking for her to move up the ranks this week. Moesch’s personal best of 47.90 in the 100 free puts her at #6 all-time in the 15-16 100 free.

Cumberland Y’s Daniel Diehl, 16, will be in Greensboro fresh off finishing up at the Speedo Sectionals meet in Buffalo tonight. Diehl was racing LCM this past weekend, littering the 15-16 all-time rankings, and even breaking the Ryan Murphy’s 15-16 NAG in the 100 back. He’ll be racing the SCY 100 back this week, where he is the top seed. That may be one of the most exciting races of the meet, as the 53.59 LCM he swam a few nights ago could mean he has something special in store in the yards version of the race. Diehl is also the top seed in the 100 free and 200 free, and the #3 seed in the 50 free.

Blair Y 15-year-old Leah Shackley is the top seed in both women’s backstroke events. In the 100 back, Shackley has a personal best of 52.42, which already ranks her #33 all-time in the 15-16 age group. She’s seeded at 1:55.48 in the 200 back, not too far ahead of North Jersey Y’s Sarah Rodrigues, also 15.