2020 CCSA Championships: FGCU’s Halmai Ties 100 Breast CCSA Record on Day 3

2020 CCSA SWIMMING AND DIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS

• Wednesday, February 19 – Saturday, February 22
• Knoxville, Tennessee
• Defending Champion: Incarnate Word men (2x), Liberty women (1x)
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The Liberty women held their lead through day 3 of the 2020 CCSA Championships, while the Incarnate Word men remain ahead as both teams look to repeat as champions. FGCU’s Petra Halmai tied the CCSA Record with her victory in the 100 breast. Halmai repeated as champion in a lifetime best 1:00.01, matching the mark set by Liberty’s Emilie Kaufman in 2014. Halmai dominated the race, as Liberty freshman Jessica Schellenboom took silver in 1:02.06. Her winning time is a tenth shy of what it took to make NCAAs last season.

Liberty’s Mikayla Herich completed the IM sweep as she won the 400 IM. Herich narrowly missed the CCSA Record, dropping 3 seconds in 4:13.29. FGCU’s Liz Zeiger was 2nd in 4:20.21 as she held off Incarnate Word freshman Ximena Conde (4:20.82), the 500 free champion. Zeiger set the CCSA Record back in 2018 when she won the CCSA title in 4:13.06.

Teammate Payton Keiner repeated as the 100 back champion for Liberty in a lifetime best 52.60. She clipped 2 tenths off her previous best from the 400 medley relay leadoff at the 2019 CCSA meet. That’s just over a tenth off what it took to make NCAAs in 2019. She was just off it again as she led off the 400 medley relay in 52.68.

Liberty freshman Eva Suggs, the 500 free silver medalist, came away with a victory in the 200 free. Suggs had a breakthrough swim, lowering her best for the first time since 2018. Her 1:47.82 was a best by half a second. Teammate Hannah Baker swam her fastest time since 2018 with a 1:48.48 for silver. They swept the podium with Emma Hazel (1:49.75) taking 3rd.

In the men’s 100 fly, FAU freshman Rateb Hussein turned with a 21.97 lead halfway. Old Dominion’s Filip Svedberg kicked it into gear on the back half, however, and won the race in 47.35. Hussein held on for 2nd as he tied Gardner-Webb’s Cullen Fields for silver in 47.58. That was a big scoring event for GWU, as they also had Tim Bennett (47.86), Seggio Bernardi (48.92), and Brady Fields (51.74) score in the championship heat. Fields swam a double as he went on to win the 100 back in 48.23.

Incarnate Word’s Leonardo Sanchez was just 2 tenths away from the CCSA Record in the 200 free. Sanchez dropped a second and a half to win it in 1:36.00, repeating as champion. Gardner-Webb’s Zach Dingfield made a huge drop with his first times under 1:40. He took the silver in 1:37.43. Sanchez has one more year to go after the CCA Record of 1:35.77 set by Incarnate Word’s Evandro Silva in 2014.

Teammate Oleksandr Karpenko was also tenths shy of a record as he won the 100 breast in 53.44. That’s his fastest swim since 2018, when he set his lifetime best 53.07. The CCSA Record is a 53.00 done by Incarnate Word’s Thiago Parravicini at the 2014 CCSA meet.

ADDITIONAL DAY 3 WINNERS

• We saw another freshman champion in the women’s 100 fly, as FGCU’s Julia Rodriguez broke 54 to take the title in 53.57.
• Gardner-Webb’s Chase Mattingly, who took silver in the 200 IM, raced to 400 IM victory in 3:53.52.
• Liberty won the women’s 400 medley relay in 3:36.96. Keiner led off in 52.68. Herich put up a 1:01.32 breast split, Brittany Weiss clocked a 53.94 on the fly, and Baker anchored in 49.02.
• The men’s 400 medley relay went to Incarnate Word (3:13.80). Karpenko split a 53.49 breast leg. Erek Nelson (back- 48.48), Jared Wallace (fly- 47.46), and Christopher Lestage (free- 44.37) joined him for the win.

TEAM SCORES THROUGH DAY 3 – WOMEN

  1. Liberty University               1023   2. Florida Gulf Coast University     889
  3. University of Incarnate Word    664.5   4. Univ North Carolina Asheville     515
  5. Gardner-Webb University           483   6. Campbell University             461.5
  7. University of North Florida       452   8. Georgia Southern University       326
  9. Howard University                 219

TEAM SCORES THROUGH DAY 3 – MEN

  1. University of Incarnate Word    587.5   2. Gardner-Webb University           478
  3. Florida Atlantic University     465.5   4. Old Dominion University           277
  5. New Jersey Institute of Techno    238   6. Howard University                 162
  7. Mount Saint Mary's                125