Bella Sims Downs SEC Record in 200 Fly with 1:51.45 to Kick off Day 4 Finals

2024 SEC Swimming & Diving Championships

• February 19 – February 24, 2024
• James E. Martin Aquatic Center — Auburn, AL
• Defending Champions:
  • Women: Florida (1x)
  • Men: Florida (11x)
• Start Times (ET): 9:30 am prelims/5:30 pm finals
  • Day 1 (diving only): 11 am prelims/4:20 pm finals
  • Day 2: 11 am prelims (diving only)/ 5 pm (relays only)
• Championship Central
• 2023 SEC Championships Box Score
• Major Conference Roster Limits and Scoring Rules
• Psych Sheets
• Women’s Fan Guide
• Men’s Fan Guide
• Live Results
• Live Video (SEC+ Network)
• Day 1 Diving Recap
• Day 1 Finals Live Recap
• Day 2 Prelims Live Recap | Day 2 Finals Live Recap
• Day 3 Prelims Live Recap| Day 3 Finals Live Recap
• Day 4 Prelims Live Recap| Day 4 Finals Live Recap

WOMEN’S 200 BUTTERFLY – FINAL

• NCAA Record: 1:49.51 – Ella Eastin, Stanford (2018)
• SEC Record: 1:51.51 – Riley Gaines, Kentucky (2022)
• SEC Championship Record: 1:51.51 – Riley Gaines, Kentucky (2022)
• Pool Record: 1:51.32 – Katinka Hosszu, USC (2012)
• 2024 NCAA ‘A’ Standard: 1:52.86
• 2023 NCAA Invited Time: 1:59.23

Final:

1. Bella Sims (FLOR) — 1:51.45
2. Greta Pelzek (SCAR) — 1:53.43
3. Sara Stotler (TENN) — 1:54.87
4. Zoe Dixon (FLOR) — 1:54.99
5. Olivia Theall (TAMU) — 1:55.01
6. Meghan Lee (AUB) — 1:55.96
7. Lainy Kruger (FLOR) — 1:56.09
8. Sofia Sartori (LSU) — 1:57.00

Bella Sims blasted a season-best 1:51.45 to win the 200 fly final on Friday night, taking down the SEC Championship meet, SEC conference, and Florida program records in the process. She fell just .13 of breaking the Auburn pool record, set by Katinka Hosszu in 2012.

Sims came into the meet seeded 1st in the 200 fly with 1:54.05. Her lifetime best is a 1:51.06 from Winter Juniors West in December 2022. In prelims this morning, she went 1:52.93 to move from 3rd to 2nd on the Gators’ all-time performance list, sitting just ahead of Teresa Crippen (1:53.90, 2010) and just behind Jemma Lowe (1:52.53, 2009).

In finals tonight, she went out like a rocket, already more than half a body ahead of the field at the 50 wall. She extended her lead to about 1.4 seconds at the halfway point, then outsplit the field by another second over the second half.

With her 1:51.45, Sims knocked Kentucky’s Riley Gaines off the mantle; her 1:51.51 had stood as the SEC conference and meet record since 2022.

Comparative splits:

Sims’s second half was very controlled with only a .10 fade between the third and fourth 50. If she’s out like at Winter Juniors West, and home like she was tonight, Sims will be in the 1:50 territory in no time.