Without Ryan Lochte to push him in the final, Bolles swimmer Ryan Murphy didn’t scare a National Age Group Record in the 200 back like he did in the 100 on Monday evening, but he still put up a great time of 1:59.12 to win the event on the final evening of the 2012 Gator Swim Club Summmer Invite.
Murphy has done a 1:57.82 in this race, but this is still a good mark for him in the longer race headed into Trials. Lochte swam the event in prelims, where he had the top seed in 2:00.43, but scratched the final leaving him with no races in the last session. Conor Dwyer was 2nd in 2:02.52 – again showing more focus on his weakest stroke. Sarasota YMCA 16-year old Alexander Katz had a great swim of 2:02.77 (in most other races, that looks like a dominant time for a 16-year old), which tied him with Sebastien Rousseau for 3rd.
In the women’s 200 back, T2’s Liz Pelton was also well-out in front. She won with a 2:09.35 – 10 seconds better than her next-closest competitor, and her best time since January. Florida’s Elizabeth Beisel, the only swimmer in the field with a hope of challenging her, swam the 200 fly instead on this day, and won that in 2:11.45 – a best time for her in that race.
Bolles’ Joseph Schooling won the men’s race in 2:00.70.
In the women’s 100 free, T2’s Erika Erndl won in 55.52, bettering teammate Katie Hoff (56.46). That’s an outstanding time for Erndl under the circumstances – already just half-a-second away from her textile-best time. She’s due fora 54-mid at the Olympic Trials.
Other Winners
- Florida sophomore-to-be Rebecca Ranier won the 200 breaststroke in 2:35.61. Her classmate Matthew Elliott won the men’s race in 2:17.16.
- The Davie Nadadores’ Yoelvis Pedraza won the men’s 1650 in 16:03.14.
Full Meet Results available here, courtesy of the folks at the Florida Swim Network.
