Grothe Swaps 200 FL for 400 FR in San Antonio, Bumps Shields Into A-Final

2021 PRO SWIM SERIES – SAN ANTONIO

• January 14-17, 2021
• North East ISD Blossom Athletic Complex, San Antonio, Texas
• LCM (50m)
• Meet Info (Both Sites)
• Psych Sheet
• Live Results
• Session Timelines
• How To Watch
• Live Stream (USA Swimming)
• Live Stream (Olympic Channel)
• Start Times (Central Time): Women’s Prelims: 9:00 a.m. / Men’s Prelims: 90 minutes after women’s prelims (between 11:30-12:00) / Finals: 6:00 p.m.

Saturday Finals Heat Sheet

Boulder City’s Zane Grothe will be seen in the 400 free final tonight in San Antonio, where he is ranked 3rd. Grothe decided to scratch out of the 200 fly A-final after ranking 6th this morning at 2:01.48, which was 0.05s off his lifetime best from the 2012 Olympic Trials. Grothe’s scratch has bumped Olympian Tom Shields into the A-final after a slower morning swim.

Shields posted a 2:04.28 this morning to originally rank 9th. 19-year-old Carson Foster holds tonight’s 200 fly top seed at 1:59.55. Shields’ Pro Swim Series season best hails from the January 2019 series stop in Knoxville, which rests at 1:59.86. Shields’ 2019-2020 season best is 1:56.12 from the 2019 US Nationals. During yesterday’s 100 fly final, Shields placed 6th at 53.57.

After placing second in yesterday’s 200 free final, Texas alum Townley Haas scratched out of tonight’s finals session. During the prelims of the 400 free this morning, Haas finished in 8th place with a 4:03.18, well off his 2019-2020 season best of 3:54.86 from the 2019 U.S. Open. Leading the men’s 400 free final tonight is Florida’s Kieran Smith (3:55.76), who was last night’s 200 free champion.

Also preferring the 400 free over the 200 fly this evening is another distance ace, Erica Sullivan of the Sandpipers of Nevada. Sullivan placed 9th in the 200 fly prelims at 2:19.86, which is roughly 5 seconds off her 2019 lifetime best. Leading the women’s 200 fly this evening is backstroke ace Regan Smith (2:12.06). Sullivan will instead focus on the 400 free final, where she is seeded 6th at 4:20.08. Sullivan swam this event at the 2020 U.S. Open in Irvine, posting a 4:12.13. Leading the women’s 400 free final tonight is 19-year-old Emma Weyant (4:13.80).

Texas Longhorn Maxime Rooney has also focused on his usual discipline events tonight, opting out of the 100 back B-final for the 50 free A-final. Rooney swam to a 23.41 during this morning’s 50 free prelims, good enough for 8th. Rooney’s last swim in this event was from June 2018 at the Mel Zajac Jr. International, where he posted a 23.31. Tonight’s top seed in the men’s 50 free final is 23-year-old Zach Apple (22.78).

More top seeds this evening include Abbey Weitzeil (50 free), Lilly King (200 breast), Cody Miller (200 breast), Olivia Smoliga (100 back), and Shaine Casas (100 back).

All Notable San Antonio Day 3 Finals Scratches:

• Women’s 200 Fly: #9 Erica Sullivan
• Men’s 200 Fly: #6 Zane Grothe, #12 Jack Dahlgren
• Women’s 50 Free: #11 Olivia Bray
• Men’s 50 Free: #9 Brett Pinfold, #12 Mark Theall
• Women’s 200 Breast: —
• Men’s 200 Breast: —
• Women’s 100 Back: —
• Men’s 100 Back: #10 Maxime Rooney, #11 Ethan Harder
• Women’s 400 Free: —
• Men’s 400 Free: #8 Townley Haas, #9 Jack Collins, #11 Yaseen el Demerdash