2023 Futures – Ocala: Owen Ekk Hits 1:53.15 200 FR To Move To 4th All-Time For 13-14s

2023 FUTURES — OCALA

• July 26 to 29, 2023
• LCM (50m)
• Florida Aquatics Swimming & Training, Ocala, Florida
• Meet Central
• Livestream
• Results on Meet Mobile: “2023 Futures Championships – OCALA”

The 2023 USA Futures Championships got underway across all five sites this evening. The Region 2 meet is being held in Ocala, Florida this year and is hosted by the FAST Falcons. Today’s lineup featured the 200 freestyle, 100 breaststroke, 200 fly, men’s 1500, and women’s 800.

Sienna Angove got things started with a decisive victory in the 200 freestyle. The 16-year-old dropped over two seconds to hit a huge best time of 2:00.50, beating runner-up Amy Riordan by almost a second (2:01.31). Angove represents Canada internationally but currently trains with the Sarasota YMCA Sharks. This spring she announced her verbal commitment to Ohio State for the 2024-2025 season.

The men’s race was much closer, with the top three swimmers finishing within half a second of each other. Davidson’s Dylan Felt got his hand on the wall first at 1:49.10, dipping him below the 1:50 barrier for the first time. Nick Caruso found himself under 1:50 for the second time today with a 1:49.39, while Jacob Hamlin rounded out the podium in 3rd, also clocking a best time (1:49.54). With their swims, all three secured a 2024 Olympic Trials standard in the event.

Another notable swim in the 200 freestyle was done by 9th place finisher Owen Ekk from the Area Tallahassee Aquatic Club. Ekk, 14, dropped over a second from his entry time to go a 1:53.15, making him the 4th-fastest performer in the 13-14 age group nationally.

The women’s 100 breaststroke went to 15-year-old Danica Aten from the Sarasota Sharks, who stopped the clock 1:10.69 for a best time by three-tenths of a second. Finishing just behind Aten was Dynamo’s Evelyn Entrekin (1:10.78), while Georgia Johnson snagged 3rd (1:10.91).

Liam Kerns from the University of South Carolina picked up his first 2024 Olympic Trials cut with a winning time of 1:01.78 in the men’s 100 breaststroke. This was his first improvement in the event in nearly three years, with his previous best standing at 1:03.54 from the 2020 U.S. Open.

Jordan Agliano threw down a 2:11.99 to win the 200 fly. Agliano’s swim marked a personal best time by over a second, and put her well under the 2024 Trials cut of 2:13.69. Finishing 2nd with a 2:13.13 at night was USC commit Addison Sauickie. Sauickie had a huge swim in the morning where she posted a 2:12.76, putting her three and a half seconds under her previous best time.

Stanford’s Joshua Zuchowski absolutely dominated the men’s 200 fly. He was the only swimmer to crack 2:00 with a final time of 1:59.64, putting him nearly two seconds ahead of the rest of the field. Zuchowski’s time also marked a personal best by a few tenths, with his previous best time standing at 1:59.84 from last summer.

Winning the 800 with a time of 8:44.87 was Michaela Mattes from the Sarasota Sharks. Though it was not a personal best time for Mattes, her swim was four seconds quicker than the time she posted at U.S. Nationals in July. Taking 2nd with a big best time of 8:47.45 was Brinkleigh Hansen from St. Petersburg Aquatics. Hansen, 13, now ranks 53rd in the 13-14 age group.

The men’s 1500 freestyle saw four athletes get below the Olympic Trials standard of 15:39.89. Kyler Heffner from Swim Atlanta won the event handily in 15:34.94, while Felt came out on top of a tight race for 2nd at 15:38.35. Andrew Taylor and Ryan Erisman were the other two swimmers to break 15:40, as they clocked personal best times of 15:38.83 and 15:39.86, respectively.