16-Year-Old Mike Rice Drops 19.62 in the 50 Free at Best of the South Meet

2025 Swim Atlanta Best of the South

• Atlanta, Georgia
• March 14-16, 2025
• SCY (Short Course yards)
• Meet Central
• Day 1 Meet Results | Day 1 Recap
• Day 2 Meet Results
  • Also available on Meet Mobile at “2025 Swim Atlanta Best of the South

The boys stole the show on day 2 of the Swim Atlanta-hosted Best of the South Meet on Saturday, a big Sectionals replacement event for teams from across the Southeastern United States.

That included in the 50 free final, where 19-year-old Bahamian Marvin Johnson from the McCallie School in Chattanooga won in 19.55, followed by a 19.62 runner-up finish from Mecklenburg Swim Association’s Mike Rice. Rice now ranks 9th all-time in the 50 free in the 15-16 age group, tied with Jack Dolan from the Rockwood Swim Club in Missouri.

The two have many matchups ahead of them, as Johnson will swim for Florida starting next fall and Rice will head to Auburn a year later: two SEC rival schools.

Johnson won the Tennessee High School State Championship in February in 19.24, while Rice finished 2nd at the North Carolina 4A (big school) state championship meet the same weekend. Rice’s previous best time was 19.79. He would rank 5th in a rebuilding Auburn sprint group this season.

Rice also won the 100 fly (47.46) on Thursday, dropping more than a second off his previous best time.

Among the other top performers of the session was Ian Stutts, who won the 200 breaststroke in 1:56.60. That took 1.2 seconds off his best time, and may not have even been the most impressive part of his meet; later in the session, he swam 48.00 in the 100 backstroke to flex his versatility, placing 3rd. He is the top qualifier for finals of the 200 IM as well.

That 100 back was full of big swims, including Collin Holgerson winning in 46.87 and Granger Bartee placing 2nd in 47.42. Holgerson’s previous best time was a 48.28 from November, meaning he dropped almost a second-and-a-half with this result.

Holgerson is only a sophomore in high school, and now ranks 15th all-time in the 15-16 age group in the 100 backstroke.

In the 11-12 age group, Parker Wheeler from the hosts SwimAtlanta won two more races, dominating the field in the 200 fly (2:06.27), 100 back (55.34), and placing 47th in the open age 500 free (4:50.91). He has been on a tear this season, and the 200 fly and 100 back times add two more personal bests to his resume after winning the 200 free (1:47.69), 100 fly (55.58), and 400 IM (4:26.14) on Thursday.

Other Highlight Performances:

• MSA’s Shaelyn Shields won the 100 backstroke in 54.43, a come-from-behind victory over Ally Frame, splitting 26.82/27.61. That’s Shields’ lifetime best, clearing her mark from Winter Juniors – East in December.
• In the girls’ 13-14 age group, Erin Weaver from the Carolina Aquatic Team, not one of the state’s mega-clubs, won the 100 back in 55.27, knocking almost seven-tenths of a second off her best time. That makes her the second-fastest 13-year old in the country this season behind only Julia Bak, who swam 55.12 in November.
• Max Wolk from the North Carolina Aquatic Club won the 50 free in 21.62, beating out 13-year-old Andre Bell (21.82). Those were best times by a few tenths for both swimmers.
• Isaiah Cowles won the 13-14 200 fly in 1:54.11, which knocked almost two seconds off his best time from December. An 8th grader, he entered this season with a best time of 2:00.75 in the 200 fly.
• Kayda Geyer, a class of 2026 commit to Colorado State, won the girls’ 200 breast in 2:11.00 – which whacked 2.77 seconds off her previous best time in the event. Geyer, daughter of former LSU head coach Dave Geyer, recently began adding two-a-day practices to her routine, which already appears to be paying off. She also swam a best times in the 100 breast (1:00.66) on Thursday. Those times would both rank her 2nd all-time in Colorado State program history – and she is still 18 months away from her first meet for the Rams.

Team Scores After Saturday

Boys’ Top 5:

1. SwimMAC – 1951.5
2. SwimAtlanta – 1204
3. MSA – 812
4. NCAC – 741.5
5. Marlins of Raleigh – 472

Girls’ Top 5:

1. SwimMAC – 2101
2. MSA – 1388.5
3. SwimAtlanta – 1172.5
4. NCAC – 1160
5. Lifetime Southeast Swim Team – 282

Combined Top 5:

1. SwimMAC – 4438.5
2. SwimAtlanta – 2840.5
3. MSA – 2670.5
4. NCAC – 2025.5
5. Team Greenville – 692.5