Leon Marchand Clocks 1:57.76 LCM 200 IM, Splits 59.90 100 BR in Dual Meet with Georgia

ARIZONA STATE vs GEORGIA (DAY 1 – LCM)

• Friday, September 22, 2023
• Mona Plummer Aquatic Center, Tempe, AZ
• LCM (50m)
• Results on MeetMobile
  • “ASU vs UGA”

TEAM SCORES

MEN

1. Arizona State – 89.5
2. Georgia – 49.5

WOMEN

1. Georgia – 87
2. Arizona State – 48

Arizona State is hosting Georgia this weekend to kick off the 2023-24 season for both teams. The Sun Devils and Bulldogs are competing in two separate dual meets, the first of which took place on Friday afternoon and was competed in long course meters, the second of which is on Saturday and will be a traditional yards college dual.

In the LCM dual on Friday, ASU and UGA split, seeing the Sun Devil men prevail in an 89.5-49.5 decision, while the Bulldog women’s team came out on top 87-48. And before anyone gets all flustered in the comments…yes, both teams were suited.

MEN’S RECAP

It was clear we were going to be in for an awesome meet as soon as the ASU men’s 400 medley relay popped off with a 3:34.37 in the first event of the day. Hubert Kos posted a speedy 54.29 leading off, then Leon Marchand in his season debut threw down a 59.90 breast split. Freshman Ilya Kharun made his collegiate debut with a 51.58 on the fly leg, while Patrick Sammon clocked a 48.60 on the anchor.

Leon Marchand‘s 59.90 breast split was just the warmup act for the French phenom. He went on to post a dominant win in the men’s 200 IM, throwing down an astonishing 1:57.76. For context on just how fast that time is for a college dual in September, Marchand set the European Record in the event with a 1:54.82 this summer, which he also swam to win gold at Worlds. Yesterday, Marchand was out in 26.26 on fly, then put up a sizzling 28.95 back split, went 33.73 on breast, and brought it home in 28.82. Marchand won the event by over 6 seconds.

Marchand would go on to win the men’s 150 breast as well. He clocked a 1:36.12, winning the event by nearly 6 seconds. Unfortunately, splits are not available for that race.

Hubert Kos and Georgia’s Ian Grum had a great race in the men’s 150 back. Kos would win in 1:26.55, while Grum was right behind in 1:26.95.

Freshman Ilya Kharun would go on from the medley relay to win the men’s 150 fly handily, clocking a 1:24.52. Kharun tied for 4th in the 200 fly at the World Championships, setting the Canadian Record with a 1:53.82. While it’s not an apples to apples comparison, we can tell you that Kharun’s 150m split in his 200 fly at Worlds was 1:24.67.

Patrick Sammon would go on to win the men’s 150 free in a very quick 1:18.60. Splits are also unavailable for that race.

In a non-traditional LCM event, Georgia’s Jake Magahey won the men’s 500 free in 4:58.05. It was a really solid first race for Magahey, who came home in a quick 58.31 on the final 100m of the race. ASU’s Daniel Matheson wasn’t far behind, taking 2nd in 5:00.91. Magahey would go on to take second in the 150 free with a 1:19.76.

Arizona State’s Jonny Kulow was excellent in the men’s 50 free, winning the race in 22.27. It was a great performance for Kulow, who has a personal best of 21.87 in the event.

Kulow was also phenomenal on Arizona State’s ‘A’ 200 free relay, splitting a sizzling 21.72 on the 2nd leg. However, Arizona State came in 2nd in the event (1:30.00). The Georgia squad of Miles Simon (22.60), Dillon Downing (22.59), Reese Branzell (21.81), and Ruard Van Renen (22.71) teamed up to swim a 1:29.71 for victory.

The 200 medley relay saw Arizona State win in 1:39.35. Jack Dolan led off in 25.65, John Heaphy split 28.26 on breast, Kharun was 22.98 on the fly leg, and 5th year Cam Peel clocked a 22.46 on the anchor.

Arizona State also came out on top in the 400 free relay, where Filip SencSamarzic, Sammon, Owen McDonald, and Tiago Behar combined for a 3:19.31. Unfortunately, there’s an error on the splits on that race, so all we know is that SencSamarzic led off in 50.31.

WOMEN’S RECAP

Georgia’s Zoie Hartman was one of the stars of the women’s meet yesterday. Hartman won the women’s 200 IM in 2:14.98, taking the event by over 2 seconds. The swim comes in less than 3 seconds off Hartman’s personal best of 2:12.04.

Hartman also went on to win the women’s 150 breast convincingly with a 1:51.97. She also helped Georgia’s 400 medley relay to victory thanks to a very quick 1:07.73 breast split. Eboni McCarty led the relay off in 1:03.17, Elizabeth Tilt split 1:02.60 on fly, and Sloane Reinstein posted a 55.17 on the anchor leg. The UGA squad combined to clock a 4:08.67 to win the event. Hartman’s 1:07.73 breast split is particularly notable, as she has a personal best of 1:07.37 in the 100 breast.

Fellow Bulldog Rachel Stege would win a pair of events on the day as well. Stege first won the women’s 500 free in 5:18.95, putting up a great swim, as her lifetime best in the 400 free stands at 4:08.30. Stege would also go on to win the women’s 150 free, where she swam a 1:29.81. She won the race by a razor’s edge, touching out teammate Jillian Barczyk by just 0.01 seconds.

The Bulldogs also put up a good performance in the women’s 50 free, where Bri Roberson won in 26.20. She touched just ahead of teammate Helena Jones, who was 2nd in 26.25. Jones was also a member of Georgia’s ‘A’ 200 free relay, which won in 1:43.15. Eboni McCarty (26.48), Emma Norton (25.63), Jones (25.82), and Sloane Reinstein (25.22) teamed up to earn that win.

The 200 medley relay went to Georgia as well. McCarty (29.05), Elizabeth Isakson (33.02), Norton (26.98), and Elizabeth Tilt (26.11) combined for a 1:55.16.

Arizona State picked up wins in a pair of individual events on the day. Fly star Lindsay Looney won the women’s 150 fly in 1:36.49. Looney is a 2:07.25 LCM 200 flyer, so her swim in a 150 last night was pretty great for a September dual meet. Sun Devil Charli Brown took the 150 back in 1:39.30.

The final women’s event of the day, the 400 free relay, was incredibly close, seeing Georgia win in 3:45.43, while ASU touched 2nd with a 3:45.51. The Sun Devils actually led the relay through the first 3 legs, where Erin Milligan clocked a 56.55, Molly Batchelor split 56.58, and Lindsay Looney was 56.69. The Bulldogs were led off by Jillian Barczyk in 57.20, then Helena Jones split 56.27, and Dune Coetzee clocked a 56.66. That put Arizona State into the final exchange about a quarter-of-a-second ahead of Georgia. Sloane Reinstein then came up big for Georgia, splitting a speedy 55.30 on the anchor. ASU anchor Ieva Maluka was also great, splitting 55.69, but Reinstein was able to get her hand on the wall first.