2023 Texas Invitational: Day 2 Finals Live Recap

2023 TEXAS INVITATIONAL

• November 15-18, 2023 (10am/6pm CT)
• Austin, Texas
• Lee & Joe Jamail Texas Swimming Center
• SCY (25 Yards)
• Prelims: 10am (CT) / 6pm (CT)
• Results
• Day 1 Finals Live Recap
• Day 2 Prelims Live Recap

The USC and Stanford women continued their hot start to the season on Thursday at the Texas Invitational, including a Justina Kozan 4:39 in the 500 free in prelims for the Trojans and another for Aurora Roghair of Stanford.

There were lots of best times in the heats, while some big names (including Kelly Pash and Emma Sticklen from Texas, Phoebe Bacon from Wisconsin, Rex Maurer form Stanford) might have something held back for finals.

Women’s 500-Yard Freestyle — Finals

• NCAA Record: 4:24.06 — Katie Ledecky, Stanford (2017)
• 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 4:37.89
• 2023 NCAA Invited Time: 4:41.09

Top 8:

1. Aurora Roghair, Stanford – 4:37.10
2. Justina Kozan, USC – 4:38.47
3. Natalie Mannion, Stanford – 4:39.18
4. Abby Carlson, Wisconsin – 4:39.50
5. Maddie Waggoner, Wisconsin – 4:41.47
6. Claire Tuggle, USC – 4:43.10
7. Erica Sullivan, Texas – 4:43.66
8. Macky Hodges, USC – 4:43.76

Two programs that needed a shot of lightning right now got just that in the finals of the women’s 500 free on Thursday.

Stanford junior Aurora Roghair swam 4:37.10 to win, crushing her personal best of 4:39.77 from last year’s Pac-12s (and a 4:39.47 from prelims), while Natalie Mannion did the same with a 4:39.18 for 3rd (her previous best was a 4:40.54 from NCAAs last year).

For both swimmers, but especially Roghair, the difference is closing pace, even after being six-tenths off the mark after 200 yards.

Aurora Roghair Split Comparison:

While this event has already been much better this year than it has in the past nationwide, those times should both qualify for the NCAA Championships in March. Roghair’s time would have placed 4th at NCAAs last year.

Stanford’s women have been off to a hot start this year, and while they lack the vault of superstars that they’ve had in the past, the team as a whole seems to be performing much better through the fall semester.

USC is another team that received criticism last season after missing their taper at NCAAs, but early this year, they’ve gotten more positive signs – especially from Justina Kozan. The Standout sophomore was 2nd on Thursday in 4:38.47, bettering her personal best of 4:41.09 from last year’s early-season Trojan Invite.

She’ll now have a choice to make in the spring about whether to focus on this 500 free or the 200 IM, which was her best event coming out of high school (she was the 2019 World Junior Champion by almost two seconds).

Wisconsin’s Abby Carlson, the NCAA Championship runner-up last year, was 4th on Thursday in 4:39.50, about two-and-a-half seconds shy of her personal best, though her teammate Maddie Waggoner dropped four seconds through two rounds of racing to place 5th.

USC’s Claire Tuggle, who entered invite season with the NCAA leader in the 500 free, settled into a pair of 4:43s on Thursday, with her NCAA invite likely locked up already.

Texas’ Erica Sullivan, who was 4th at NCAAs, was just 7th here.

Men’s 500-Yard Freestyle — Finals

• NCAA Record: 4:06.32 — Kieran Smith, Florida (2020)
• 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 4:10.74
• 2023 NCAA Invited Time: 4:14.36

Top 8:

1. Rex Maurer, Stanford – 4:11.88
2. Krzysztof Chmielewski, USC – 4:13.84
3. Luke Hobson, Texas – 4:15.56
4. Coby Carrozza, Texas/Henry McFadden, Stanford – 4:17.52
6. Yigit Aslan, Wisconsin – 4:19.84
7. Zach Ward, Wisconsin – 4:22.73
8. Lukaas Vainio, Wisconsin – 4:23.17

Rex Maurer, the ultimate Stanford legacy, son of a pair of Stanford champions Lea and Erik, and younger brother of Stanford All-American Luke, put his first big stamp on Stanford with a win in the 500 free in 4:11.88.

One of the best high school 500 freestylers ever, he came to Stanford with a best time of 4:12.33. With the drop, he’s now the 3rd-fastest swimmer in program history behind only Grant Shoults (4:10.02) and Preston Forst (4:11.56).

He’ll also take an emotional boost out of beating the defending NCAA Champion Luke Hobson of Texas. Hobson was 4:15.56 for 3rd place on Friday.

Women’s 200-Yard IM — Finals

• NCAA Record: 1:48.37 — Kate Douglass, Virginia (2023)
• 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 1:53.66
• 2023 NCAA Invited Time: 1:56.90

Top 8:

1. Kelly Pash, Texas – 1:53.18
2. Emma Sticklen, Texas – 1:54.94
3. Phoebe Bacon, Wisconsin – 1:55.14
4. Caroline Brickel, Stanford – 1:55.49
5. Lucy Bell, Stanford – 1:56.58
6. Charlotte Hook, Stanford – 1:58.33
7. Alicia Wilson, Texas – 1:58.96
8. Macky Hodges, USC – 2:05.10 (back-to-back events)

Texas 5th year Kelly Pash took a step back in the 200 IM last year, but after not swimming the event in any of the Longhorns’ fall dual meets, she’s roaring forward again. The 1:53.18 she swam on Thursday is a new lifetime best, beating out the 1:53.31 that she swam at the 2022 NCAA Championships.

That time would have placed Pash 5th at the 2023 championship.

She took on a new pacing in the event, backing off a little on the front-half (her strength of the race) to erupt on the breaststroke leg, which has historically been her weakest of the four strokes.

Splits Comparison:

Her teammate and 200 fly compadre Emma Sticklen finished 2nd in 1:54.94, almost a second shy of her best time. Unlike Pash, Sticklen pushed full-speed on the first 100 yards of this race, out in a blazing 51.73, but she paid for it on the breaststroke leg. Only Macky Hodges, who was hurting after the 500 free final, had a slower breaststroke split in the A-final or B-Final.

Phoebe Bacon of Wisconsin was 3rd in 1:55.14.

Stanford got another boost from freshman Caroline Bricker. She placed 4th in 1:55.49; between prelims and finals, she dropped almost two seconds off her personal best. She already has a personal best in the 200 breaststroke from earlier this year in the team’s dual meet against Arkansas, which is the top time in the NCAA so far.

Texas’ Alicia Wilson, a bigtime offseason transfer from Cal, was 7th in 1:58.96. She swam 1:56.58 in prelims. Her best time at Cal was in 2021 in a dual meet, where she swam 1:53.58.

Men’s 200-Yard IM — Finals

• NCAA Record: 1:36.34 — Léon Marchand, Arizona State (2023)
• 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 1:41.03
• 2023 NCAA Invited Time: 1:43.14

Top 8:

1. Will Modglin, Texas – 1:41.84
2. Luke Maurer, Stanford – 1:42.89
3. Nate Germonprez, Texas – 1:43.14
4. Ben Dillard, USC – 1:43.24
5. Spencer Aurnou-Reese, Texas – 1:44.14
6. Rick Mihm, Stanford – 1:44.86
7. Dominik Mark Torok, Wisconsin – 1:45.30
8. Holden Smith, Texas – 1:45.60

The Texas men are counting on big performances from freshmen this season, and those freshmen are coming through big so far.

Case in point: Will Modglin won the 200 IM on Thursday in 1:41.84, which smashes his high school personal best of 1:43.37 by a second-and-a-half.

That time moves him to 7th all-time in Texas history. It also makes him the 11th-best freshman in NCAA history, jumping ahead of Cal legend Ryan Murphy.

Updated Freshman Rankings:

1. Leon Marchand, Arizona State 1:39.65 (2022)
2. Destin Lasco, Cal,1:40.01 (2021)
3. Hugo Gonzalez, Auburn, 1:40.67 (2018)
4. Ron Polonsky, Stanford, 1:40.71 (2022)
5. Baylor Nelson, Texas A&M, 1:40.86 (2023)
6. Carson Foster, Texas 1:40.99 (2021)
7. Gal Cohen-Groumi, Michigan, 1:41.54 (2022)
8. Owen McDonald, Arizona State, 1:41.60 (2023)
9. Hubert Kos, Arizona State, 1:41.51 (2023
10. Andrew Seliskar, Cal, 1:41.65 (2016)
11. Will Modglin, Texas, 1:41.84 (2023)

Nate Germonprez, another Texas freshman, was 3rd in 1:43.14, about three-tenths from his personal best from Winter Juniors in December.

Stanford’s Luke Maurer was in between in 2nd place in 1:42.89, which crushes his best time. He was 1:45.28 at the team’s mid-season invite in November 2022.

He didn’t swim that race at Pac-12s last year, but given that time would have made the A-final, he’ll have to consider it this year.

USC’s Ben Dillard was 4th in 1:43.24, a best time for him by over a second. Stanford’s Aaron Sequeira swam 1:43.94 out of the B Final.

Women’s 50-Yard Freestyle — Finals

• NCAA Record: 20.79 — Maggie MacNeil, Louisiana State (2023)/Gretchen Walsh, Virginia (2023)
• 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 21.63
• 2023 NCAA Invited Time: 22.15

Top 8:

1. Vasilissa Buina, USC – 22.01
2. Anicka Delgado, USC – 22.05
3. Grace Cooper, Texas – 22.07
4. Hailey Tierney, Wisconsin – 22.11
5. Ava Longi, Texas – 22.18
6. Kaitlyn Dobler, USC – 22.29
7. Emma Davidson, Texas – 22.31
8. Caroline Famous, USC – 22.34

The USC Trojans crushed a 1-2-6-8 finish in the women’s 50 free, giving them a big shot at upsetting Texas in the 200 free relay later in the meet. That was led by a 22.01 from freshman Vasiliana Buinaia, who was 22.08 a few weeks ago at the Trojan Invitational.

Without relay starts, USC’s aggregate time in those 50s was 1:28.69. That’s only .78 seconds slower than they swam at NCAAs last year, with relay starts.

Men’s 50-Yard Freestyle — Finals

• NCAA Record: 17.63 — Caeleb Dressel, Florida (2018)
• 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 18.82
• 2023 NCAA Invited Time: 19.21

Top 8:

1. Artem Selin, USC – 19.27
2. Taiko Torepe-Ormsby, Wisconsin – 19.36
3. Jonathan Tan, Stanford – 19.44
4. Rafael Gu, Stanford – 19.47
5. Bryson Huey, UNLV – 19.64
6. George Ratiu, UNLV – 19.65
7. Luke Maurer, Stanford – 19.82
8. Ben Wiegand, Wisconsin – 19.84

USC’s Artem Selin swam 19.27 to win the 50 free, the last individual event of the night. While not a best time, it is faster than he was at both Pac-12s (19.46) and NCAAs (19.35) last season.

The Wisconsin men, meanwhile, were searching for a lead sprinter, and Taiko Torepe-Ormsby emerged as just that on Thursday. His 19.36 in finals was three-tenths better than he swam at last year’s Big Ten Championships. In a Big Ten Conference that is light on sprinters, that puts him in position to make the A-Final at this year’s conference championship meet.

Stanford’s Rafael Gu was 4th in 19.47; he was 19.20 in prelims. Both swims were better than his previous best time of 19.53.

Women’s 400-Yard Medley Relay — Finals

• NCAA Record: 3:21.80 — Virginia (G. Walsh, A. Walsh, K. Douglass, A. Canny) (2023)
• 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 3:31.38
• 2024 NCAA ‘B’ Standard: 3:33.48

Top 8:

1. Texas (Berit Berglund, Anna Elendt, Emma Sticklen, Kelly Pash) – 3:25.25
2. USC (Caroline Famous, Kaitlyn Dobler, Emma Sticklen, Kelly Pash) – 3:26.90
3. Texas ‘B’ (Olivia Bray, Channing Hanley, Ava Longi, Erin Gemmell) – 3:30.30
4. Wisconsin ‘A’ – 3:30.47
5. Texas ‘C’ – 3:32.20
6. Stanford ‘B’ – 3:33.41
7. USC ‘B’ – 3:37.64
8. Wisconsin ‘B’ – 3:39.73

The top four relays all locked up their NCAA Championship invites, led by the Texas women in 3:25.25. That is almost as fast as the 3:25.18 that they swam to finish 3rd at last year’s NCAA Championship meet.

While breaststroker Anna Elendt (57.71) was off in the race, the other three legs were electric and better than they were at NCAA’s last year. Berit Berglund split 50.77 on backstroke, Emma Sticklen split 49.90 on the fly leg, and Kelly Pash split 46.87 on the anchor free leg. Pash was half-a-second faster than her split from NCAAs.

If Lydia Jacoby, who’s not racing at this meet, can repeat the 56.78 that she was at NCAAs, then this relay becomes a big favorite for #2 at NCAAs behind only the dominant Virginia women.

While USC didn’t have the four legs to compete with Texas, they did get a huge 56.38 split from Kaitlyn Dobler on the breaststroke leg and a 47.49 anchor from Buinaia on the freestyle leg. Only Lilly King has been faster than that (55.66).

Men’s 400-Yard Medley Relay — Finals

• NCAA Record: 2:58.32 — Florida (A. Chaney, D. Hillis, J. Liendo, M. McDuff) (2023)
• 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 3:04.96
• 2024 NCAA ‘B’ Standard: 3:06.84

Top 8:

1. Stanford – 3:06.13 (Rex Maurer, Ethan Dang, Rafael Gu, Andres Dupont Cabrera)
2. USC – 3:06.61 (Vaggelis Makrygiannis, Benn Dillard, Krzysztof Chmielewski, Artem Selin)
3. UNLV – 3:08.07 (Wikus Potgieter, Danny Beji, George Ratiu, Bryson Huey)
4. Texas – 3:08.11
5. Wisconsin – 3:09.74
6. Stanford ‘B’ – 3:10.27
7. Wisconsin ‘B’ – 3:13.51
8. UNLV ‘B’ – 3:13.68

The Stanford men won the 400 medley relay thanks to a come-from-behind split from anchor Andres Dupont Cabrera, a sophomore.

He split 42.02, six-tenths better than USC’s anchor Artem Selin (42.62).

Dupont Cabrera has had big anchor legs before. At NCAAs last year, he split 41.94 on the anchor of the Stanford 400 free relay to push them into the top 8. That race came at the end of the meet, but if it had been earlier, he would have been the anchor on the 400 medley relay as well.

Day 1 Team Scores

Team Scores not reported.