Fazio Gets OT Cut; Conger, Osman, Tadder Win Multiple Events at Tide Showcase

2021 TIDE Spring Showcase

• April 8-11, 2021
• Princess Anne YMCA, Virginia Beach, VA
• LCM
• Prelims/Finals Format
• Psych Sheet
• Live Stream Link
• Full Results

Olympians, college swimmers, and some of the top age group swimmers in the country faced off last weekend at the Tide Spring Showcase meet in Virginia Beach, VA. The meet, held at Tide’s 50m outdoor pool at the Princess Anne YMCA, featured a relatively small field, but with a prelims/finals that led to some great racing. Additionally, the meet was live-streamed with some local former college swimmers providing on-site commentary and interviews, helping create a fun atmosphere for those in attendance and those who were watching from home.

Tide’s Samantha Tadder, who’s committed to Stanford for next season, led the women with five individual wins, setting a couple new personal bests in the process. She won the 400 free  4:17. 82, setting a new lifetime best by over three seconds, and she also won the 100 breast in 1:11.19, also a new best. In the 400 IM, she touched first in 4:50.75, finishing nearly 18 seconds ahead of the rest of the field, and she also took the 200 fly with a 2:14.76, hitting a new PR by over four seconds, as well as the 800 free in 8:52.48, just off her best. Tadder wrapped up the meet with a 1:03.84 time trial in the 100 fly, setting a new best time.

Egyptian Olympian Farida Osman, who trains with Virginia Tech head coach Sergio Lopez’s Pinnacle Racing after having competed for Cal collegiately, won two events. She won the 100 fly with a 59.82, the only woman under 1:02, and then closed out the meet with a 25.67 win in the 50 free. She also took 2nd in the 100 free with a 57.01, finishing behind Tide’s Kayla Wilson (56.46).

While we couldn’t squeeze everyone into the headline, several swimmers got multiple wins on the men’s side of the competition as well. US Olympian Jack Conger came out on top in a narrow win the 200 free, where he touched first in 1:52.20, followed by Jonathan Rutter in 1:52.43, then Jospeh Schooling in 1:52.58. All three men also train with Lopez and Pinnacle Racing.

Conger also won the 100 fly with a 52.90, with Schooling taking 2nd in 53.78. Conger was in line to win a third event after putting up a 2:00.70 in the 200 fly prelims, before scratching the event Sunday night. Conger’s times in the 100 fly and 200 fly were faster than his times a couple weeks earlier at the ISCA Senior Cup, where he went 53.05 and 2:01.93, in those two events.

Beside the 200 free and the 100 fly, Schooling took third in the 100 free with a 54.81 after going 52.77 in prelims. He also swam in the finals of the 100 breast, but drew a disqualification. Schooling was bit off of his times from the ISCA Senior Cup, where he went 52.93 in the 100 fly and 51.35 in the 100 free.

Rutter, a former Yale swimmer who represents New Zealand, won the 200 breast with a 2:15.72, and also took the 400 IM with a time of 4:33.14.

Another duel occurred in the 100 breast, where Pinnacle’s Alexander Lebed just touched out Towson’s Brian Benzing, 1:04.24 to 1:04.29. Benzing was named the CAA swimmer of the meet last week after helping the Tigers to their first-ever CAA title. Lebed also won the 200 IM in 2:02.94.

One of the most exciting swims of the meet came in the very last session, where Towson’s Michael Fazio nabbed his Olympic Trials cut with a 23.19 win in the 50 free, leading to celebratory cheers from fellow swimmers and fans alike. That was also Fazio’s second win of the meet, having earlier won the 100 free with a 52.09.