2019 Speedo Junior National Championships: Day 4 Prelims Preview

2019 USA Swimming Speedo Junior National Championships

Friday morning heat sheets

The morning session on Day Four of the 2019 U.S. Junior National Championships will consist of ten heats of women’s 200 freestyle, twelve heats of men’s 200 freestyle, ten heats of women’s 200 breaststroke, thirteen heats of men’s 200 breaststroke, seventeen heats of women’s 100 backstroke, and sixteen heats of men’s 100 backstroke.

DAY 4 MORNING RACES:

  • Women’s 200 Freestyle – Prelims
  • Men’s 200 Freestyle – Prelims
  • Women’s 200 Breaststroke – Prelims
  • Men’s 200 Breaststroke – Prelims
  • Women’s 100 Backstroke – Prelims
  • Men’s 100 Backstroke – Prelims

With a total of 78 heats, today’s events are scheduled to take a total of three hours and seven minutes, beginning at 9:00 am and finishing at 12:07 pm.

DAY 4 MORNING STORYLINES TO WATCH:

  • 200 fly champion Justina Kozan is back after scratching out of the 400 IM and 100 fly on Days 2 and 3. She is top seed in the 200 free with the only sub-2:00 entry time in the field. Kozan is having a busy August; she swam at U.S. Nationals last week and is headed off to World Junior Championships in two weeks. Jillian Cox, who won the 400 free on Thursday night, as well as second- and third-place finishers Miranda Heckman and Ellie Marquardt, will also be contenders for the title. The top 8 seeds all came in with the Trials cut of 2:01.69.
  • With very few scratches from heats of the men’s 200 free, swimmers will have to bring their A games in the morning to make the A final. Jack Walker, who won the 400 free and placed fourth in the 100 free, is top seed. He’ll be joined by Ian Grum, 200 back and 400 IM champ and 100 free runner-up; Colby Mefford, bronze medalist in the 200 back and B-final winner in the 400 free; and James Plage, winner in the 800 free and runner-up in the 400 free. The Trials cut is 1:50.79; only Walker is entered with a faster time.
  • Now that top-seeded Anna Keating has scratched out of the 200 breast, a handful of challengers will fight for the top spot. Lydia Jacoby, who won the 100 breast, 400 IM champion Samantha Tadder, Grace Rainey, Chase Davison, and Brynn Curtis are all contenders. The Trials standard is 2:33.29; the eight fastest seeds already have the cut.
  • Maxwell Reich, who took fourth in the 100 breast on Tuesday, is top seed in the 200. Dylan Rhee and Ethan Dang are seeded second and third, but watch for big performances from Ben Dillard and Liam Bell, the latter of whom won the 100 breast. Rhee and Dillard were C-finalists last week at U.S. Nationals; Reich was in the D final. The top seven seeds all come in with Trials cuts under the 2:17.89 standard.
  • Top-seeded Alexandra Crisera is looking to repeat her 2018 junior national crown in the 100 back. But this is her second consecutive week in Palo Alto and her fatigue is beginning to show. She’ll be challenged by Felicia Pasadyn, Kennedy Noble, and Maggie Wanezek, who went 1-2-3 in the 200 back, and by Abby Kapeller and Tristen Ulett. Fully seventeen swimmers are entered with times under the Trials standard of 1:02.69.
  • Tim Connery is the number one seed in the men’s 100 back but the favorite will be Ian Grum, who set the meet record in the 200 back on Wednesday night. Hunter Armstrong, Colby Mefford, Aaron Sequeira, Nathan Hayes, and Jake Marcum are among the top seeds who will be gunning for Connery and Grum. The top five entrants all have Trials cuts of 56.59 or better.

 

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About Anne Lepesant

Anne Lepesant

Anne Lepesant is the mother of four daughters, all of whom swam in college. With an undergraduate degree from Princeton (where she was an all-Ivy tennis player) and an MBA from INSEAD, she worked for many years in the financial industry, both in France and the U.S. Anne is currently …

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