2024 NCSA Champs: 17-Year-Old Jacob Johnson Drops 1:42.29 200 Fly At Day 3 Prelims

2024 NCSA SPRING CHAMPIONSHIPS

• March 19-23, 2024
• Rosen Aquatic and Fitness Center, Orlando, Florida
• Short Course Yards Prelims (25 yards)/Long Course Meters (50 meters)
• Live Stream
• Meet Central
• Live Results on Meet Mobile: “2024 NCSA Spring Swimming Championships”
• Day 1 Recap
• Day 2 Prelims Recap | Day 2 Finals Recap
• Day 3 Girls Prelims Results | Day 3 Boys Prelims Results

The third day of the 2024 NCSA Spring Championships kicked off with some noteworthy swims and several lifetime bests during the short course prelims before tonight’s long course finals session at the Rosen Aquatic and Fitness Center in Orlando.

GIRLS RECAP

Coming off a win last night in the 200 fly, Lilla Bognar got the girls’ session underway by claiming the top seed in the 400 IM, producing a time of 4:14.01 to lead Campbell Chase (4:15.72) and Emma Sayers (4:16.59).

Bognar, the 17-year-old Team Greenville member who represented the U.S. at the 2024 World Championships in this event, owns the NCSA Meet Record of 4:05.50 set in 2022, which is also her personal best time.

Qualifying 5th in the 400 IM was 14-year-old Sadie Buckley, who dropped three seconds from her personal best time to touch in 4:19.64, ranking her 10th this season in the girls’ 13-14 age group.

Another 14-year-old, Laker Swim’s Rylee Erisman, some inroads in the all-time rankings in the 100 back, bringing her best time down from 53.22 to 53.03 to move up three spots into 16th all-time in the girls’ 13-14 age group, qualifying 4th for the final.

The event was led by Elmbrook’s Maggie Wanezek, who clocked 51.69 after setting a best time of 50.97 in November at the Wisconsin High School Championships.

Taking 2nd was 16-year-old Tierney Lenahan, who chipped four one-hundredths off her personal best time in 52.78 to move from 53rd into tied for 52nd all-time among 15-16 girls.

Other Highlights

• Foxjets’ Caroline Larsen paced the 50 breast in a time of 28.22, sitting over a half-second clear of the next fastest swimmer. Larsen owns a best time of 27.35.
• Qualifying 3rd in the 50 breast was 13-year-old standout Grace Koenig-Song, who was three one-hundredths shy of her best time in 28.84.
• The Waukesha Express Swim Team made it two for two in the relays, topping the 800 free relay with the quartet of Olivia Wanner (1:48.52), Emerson Meyer (1:51.41), Ella Antoniewski (1:48.43) and Aspen Whowell (1:51.45) combining for a time of 7:19.81, edging out the Academy Bullets (7:19.95).
• Wanner had the fastest lead-off in the field, just shy of the best time she said yesterday in the individual race (1:48.35).
• The fastest flying split came from the Academy Bullets’ Rebecca Rentz, who went 1:47.69 swimming second.

BOYS RECAP

Suburban Seahawks’ Jacob Johnson made some noise on the boys’ side, dropping a big best time in the 200 fly.

Johnson, 17, clocked 1:42.29 to move up to 20th all-time in the 17-18 age group, improving on his previous best of 1:43.46 set in December. The Minnesota commit had a hot start, turning in 48.90 at the 100 with no one else in the field sub-50.

New Wave Swim Team’s Matt Marsteiner (18) advanced 2nd in 1:44.25, dropping more than a second from his PB to rank 78th all-time in the 17-18 age group.

His younger brother, 16-year-old Sam Marsteiner, was 5th in 1:45.69, four-tenths off his best time, while LIAC’s Ethan Silver, also 16, advanced in 7th in 1:45.95 to drop more than a second and a half off his PB and move to 36th all-time in the 15-16 age group.

In the 200 free, the top three qualifiers all set personal bests, as LIAC’s Martin Perecinsky led the field in 1:36.53 and M. Marsteiner (1:36.65) and Nova of Virginia’s Nathan Szobota (1:36.93) were 2nd and 3rd.

Perecinsky, 17, dropped just over two-tenths, Marsteiner took off 1.1 seconds, and Szobota, 16, improved by nearly four-tenths, ranking him 77th all-time in the 15-16 age group—one spot ahead of Michael Phelps.

Other Highlights

• Suburban Seahawks’ Jake Wang, last night’s runner-up in the 100 breast, led the 50 breast in a time of 24.82, an official new best time though slower than what he opened his 100 PB with earlier this month (24.63). FMC Aquatics’ Brady Johnson was 2nd in 24.83.
• Nation’s Capital pulled out the win in the 200 free relay with Rian Graham (20.60), JT Schmid (20.12), Simon Bermudez (19.88) and Josh Howat (19.90) combining for a time of 1:20.40, topping the Aquajets (1:20.93) who had a sizzling anchor of 19.36 from Conner Hogan.
• Kyle Peck (19.43), Luke Bedsole (19.73) and Jacob Johnson (19.83) joined Hogan, Bermudez and Howat with sub-20 splits, while Devin Dilger had the only sub-20 lead-off in 19.99. The 18-year-old Dilger, who dropped a 49.6 in the 100 free (LC) last night, owns a best time of 19.69 from December’s Winter Juniors – East.