2020 ART ADAMSON INVITE
- Wednesday, November 18-Friday, November 20
- Teams: Texas A&M, LSU, Incarnate Word
- Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas
- Prelims/Finals
- Format: Short Course Yards (SCY)
- Prelims @10AM Central, Finals @6PM Central
- 2021 NCAA Championship Qualifying Times
- Results Available on Meet Mobile: “Art Adamson Invitational”
- Live Results
Night 2 of the 2020 Art Adamson Invite in College Station was historic for the Aggies. Shaine Casas got things started with the fastest-ever 50 backstroke lead-off in Texas A&M program history, registering a 20.82, which was followed by the fastest-ever 50 breaststroke split in program history by Tanner Olson who blasted a 23.04. Despite what must have been the fastest opening 100 of the 200 medley relay in A&M history, the team did not achieve a new program record, though Jace Brown (20.94) and Mark Theall (19.36) were still fast enough to help the team achieve an automatic NCAA time with a 1:24.21. The Texas A&M ‘B’ team managed a 2nd place finish in 1:27.84 leaving 3rd and 4th to the ‘A’ teams from LSU and Incarnate Word, respectively. Though Casas, Olson, and Brown all produced the fastest splits in the field in their respective disciplines, LSU’s Brooks Curry produced the fastest 50 freestyle with an 18.84, the only man to break 19 this evening.
Each of the Aggie men went on to dominate in their respective individual races. First, Brown won the 100 fly in a 47.54, coming within 0.2 of his lifetime best. Olson won the 100 breaststroke in a commanding 51.39, lowering his hours-old school record from this morning. Andres Puente Bustamante posted a 52.38 for 2nd and an NCAA ‘B’ cut, and LSU freshman Mitchell Mason produced a 53.69 for third, also a ‘B’ cut.
Theall won the 200 freestyle in 1:32.98, about half a second off his lifetime best. Teammate Kaloyan Bratanov placed 2nd in 1:33.70, a new lifetime best by nearly half a second. Theall and Bratanov, along with Clayton Bobo and Elijah Sohn would also swim on the A&M ‘A’ 800 freestyle relay which won by 15 seconds, posting an NCAA provisional time of 6:21.18. Theall led off in a 1:33.99, making him the only lead-off swimmer in the field under 1:40.
Casas stole the show when he produced a 43.87 in the 100 backstroke to become the 3rd-fastest performer all-time and destroy his own school and pool records, set just Wednesday in 44.25 with his 400 medley relay lead-off. Casas is now also the SEC Record holder in the 100 backstroke as he takes down Zane Waddell‘s 44.10 from February 2020.
In the 400 IM, Texas A&M took the top-4 spots and earned 3 NCAA ‘B’ cuts, granted Puente Bustamante and Vincent Ribeiro, who placed 1st and 2nd tonight, had already achieved ‘B’ cuts in prelims, they are now joined by Hudson Smith. Puente won the race in 3:45.46, cutting more than 3.5 from his prelims swim and lowering his lifetime best from this meet last year by 0.3. Ribeiro, meanwhile, shaved a total of 5.3 seconds from his previous lifetime best today, touching 2nd in 3:46.83.
The Texas A&M women were also dominant in their 200 medley relay with the ‘A’ and ‘B’ teams finishing in 1st and second place, leaving 3rd and 4th to LSU’s ‘A’ and ‘B’ teams while the A&M ‘C’ team and Incarnate Word ‘A’ team tied for 5th.
The A&M ‘A’ team of Emma Carlton (25.25), Kylie Powers (28.26), Olivia Theall (23.87), and Chloe Stepanek (21.75)posted a time of 1:39.13. Carlton, Theall, and Stepanek all had the fastest splits in the field in their respective disciplines while the fastest breaststroke split went to Emilie Boll swimming on LSU’s ‘A’ team with a 27.72, though A&M’s Alaya Smith on the ‘B’ team was also sub-28 with a 27.91.
Stepanek had another big night as she came away with the victory in the 200 freestyle, posting a 1:44.40 to lower her hours-old PB from this morning by another 48/100ths and swim under the NCAA ‘B’ cut for the second time today. LSU was dominant in this race and swept places 2nd through 7th. Stepanek took her first loss of the competition later in the 100 backstroke where she placed 2nd to teammate Emma Carlton who won in 53.56 to Stepanek’s 53.96, making them the only women sub-54 in the final.
Jing Quah won the women’s 400 IM in 4:09.09, a comfortable margin over teammate Camryn Toney who touched 2nd in 4:10.47 though nearly 3 seconds off her best time. Toney was also about 3 seconds removed from her lifetime best but still more than 6 seconds ahead of 3rd-place finisher Jess Pryne of LSU who produced a 4:16.68 to come within 0.4 of her PB. Ximena Conde of Incarnate Word put up a 4:16.92 to cut over 3 seconds from her new lifetime best set this morning which itself was nearly a second faster than her best time before this weekend. Each of the top-4 finishers in the women’s 400 IM earned NCAA ‘B’ cuts.
Taylor Pike held onto her #1 position from prelims to win the 100 fly in 53.16. Freshman Olivia Theall placed 2nd in a new lifetime best of 53.43, just ahead of Incarnate Word’s Cassie Phillips who placed 3rd in 53.65, each woman backing up their prelims ‘B’ cuts by swimming under the standard again in finals. Carlton, the champion in the 100 back, placed 5th in 53.95.
The women’s 100 breaststroke saw the most NCAA ‘B’ cuts of the night with 5. Boll from LSU won the race in 1:00.57, just getting ahead of A&M’s Kylie Powers who touched 2nd in 1:00.84 and A&M freshman Alaya Smith with a 1:00.86. Charlotte Longbottom and Bobbi Kennett, both also from A&M, placed 4th and 5th in 1:01.46 and 1:01.79. Of the 8 swimmers in the ‘A’ final of the women’s 100 breaststroke, 6 were freshmen, only Boll and Powers are not freshman.
The women’s 800 free relay was again dominated by A&M with the Aggies claiming both 1st and 2nd. The ‘A team of Haley Yelle, Jing Quah, Toney, and Stepanek produced a time of 7:11.00 to win by over 12 seconds. Quah produced the fastest split in the field with a 1:46.44.
TOMORROW. NOVEMBER 20TH. RECORD WATCH IN MENS 200 YARD BACKSTROKE
He may do it in a swimoff of all things. He must really love to play with his competition.
He’s 10th no swim off.
Looks like he’s 10th and missed the A final. So he’ll be going for the record from the B final
Potentially dogged it so he could get the cleanest water possible for the record.
Breaking the record in a B final at a random invite…massive BDE