Nate Germonprez Blasts 1:44 200 Yard IM, #50 in 17-18 Age Group at NCSA’s Day 5

2022 NCSA JUNIOR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS

• March 15-19, 2022
• Rosen Aquatic and Fitness Center, Orlando, Florida
• Short Course Yards (25 yards), Prelims/Finals
• Meet Central
• Psych Sheets
• Live Stream
• Results on Meet Mobile: “2022 NCSA Spring Swimming Championships

The final prelims session of the NCSA Spring Swimming Championships kicked off Saturday morning in Florida with the 50 butterfly, followed by the 200 IM, and 50 freestyle. There will be a distance session of the men’s 1000 freestyle and women’s 1650 free style later in the afternoon.

Women’s Highlights

16-year-old Campbell Stoll of Elmbrook Swim Club won the 50 fly with a time of 23.99, coming within .23 of her lifetime best from March 2021. She out touched second-place finisher Carly Novelline of NASA Wildcat Aquatics, a UVA commit, by .02. This was a lifetime best time for Novelline by one-third of a second, crushing her previous best from March 2021.

15-year-old Levenia Sim of TNT hit the 24.50 barrier on the dot to place 4th, one-third of a second behind Aquajets’ Emma Kern (a Texas commit) who finished in 3rd place with a time of 24.20.

Stoll then won the next event, the 200 IM, with a time of 1:59.14. She was just off her lifetime best, 1:58.19 from November, which ranks her as the #65 all-time fastest 15-16 year-old in the event.

Stoll was followed by Nova of Virginia Aquatic’s Zoe Dixon at 1:59.55, and then Sim with a time of 1:59.86. Dixon was about 3 seconds off her lifetime best from February while Sim was within .10 of hers from December

16-year-old Campbell Chase of Cor Swimming got to the wall 4th (2:00.10) ahead of Tennessee commit Camille Spink of Nation’s Capital who placed 5th (2:00.37). Spink has a chance to rival Dixon and Sim in finals, though, she has a lifetime best time of 1:58.84 from December.

Spink turned around and won the 50 free with a time of 22.62, about .4 off her lifetime best time. She was closely followed by 2nd place finisher Lucy Thomas of Elmbrook Swim Club (22.64.) 

This was a huge swim for 16-year-old Thomas, taking .08 off her lifetime best to rank herself #78 out of the all-time fastest 15-16 year-olds in the event in a tie amongst American record-holder Regan Smith, Louisville’s Gabi Albiero, Florida’s Talia Bates, and Cal’s Elise Garcia. Thomas has two event wins under her belt at this meet – the 50 breast and then the 100 breast last night.

15-year-old Caroline Larsen of Foxjets placed 3rd with a time of 22.76 while New Albany’s Carly Meeting took 4th (22.96). Larsen’s best time of 22.50 from December already ranks her #46 out of the all-time fastest swimmers in her age group.

Men’s Highlights

One of the fastest races of the morning was the men’s 200 IM where Inspire Swim Team’s Nate Germonprez blasted a lifetime best time of 1:44.70 to win the event, the 50th all-time fastest time in the 17-18 age group. His previous best, 1:44.92 from Winter Juniors in December, had ranked him #59. One of the biggest names he surpassed in this 10-spot jump was Tokyo Olympian Nic Fink at #55.

Germonprez, a Texas commit, is ranked #3 in the high school class of 2023. His prelims time today would have placed 4th in the ‘B’ final at the 2022 SEC Championships (Texas will join the SEC in 2025).

He has already won two events at this meet – the 200 breast and then the 100 breast last night.

Germonprez touched the wall nearly 3 seconds ahead of all other finishers in the 200 IM prelims. New Albany Aquatic Club’s Spencer Aurnou Rhee, who is also a Texas commit, took 2nd place (1:47.84) while his 16-year-old teammate Hudson Williams, an NC State commit, out touched Team Greenville’s Nils Bognar to place 3rd with a time of 1:48.02. Bognar, a Georgia Tech commit, finished with a time of 1:48.13, taking 1.6 seconds off his lifetime best time from February.

In the 50 fly, Greater Toledo Aquatic Club’s Scott Buff, a high school junior and the Ohio State champion in the 100 fly, touched the wall first with a .36 lead over the field. He finished with a time of 21.08, taking .28 off his recent lifetime best from the Ohio State Championships in February.

Nation’s Capital Swim Club’s Landon Gentry snagged 2nd place (21.44) while it was a tight battle for 3rd place between Mid Wisconsin Wave Makers teammates Samuel Bork, a high school senior, and William Hayon, a Virginia Tech commit. Bork hit the wall at 21.63, out touching fourth-place finisher Hayon by .06.

16-year-olds Chase Swearingen of New Albany Aquatic Club and Stephen Hitchcock of Baylor Swim Club also joined them under the 22.00 mark at 21.82 and 21.94, respectively.

Buff then swept the sprint events of day 5, claiming 1st place in the 50 free with a time of 19.95, right on his lifetime best time of 19.90 from earlier this month.

18-year-old Charlie Crosby of Hurricanes Swim Team snagged 2nd place with a time of 20.26, .01 ahead of 3rd place finisher Alan Cherches of Eagle Swim Team, a Pennsylvania commit. 

It is shaping up to be an exciting 50 free final; Williams took 4th close behind them at 20.31. His lifetime best of 20.09 from when he won the event at the Ohio State Championships in February already ranks him #40 out of the all-time fastest 15-16 year-olds in the event.