2019 SPEEDO SECTIONALS – ROCHESTER, MN
- Thurs. March 14 – Sun. March 17, 2019
- Rochester Rec Center, Rochester, MN
- Long course meters (50m)
- Live Stream
- Meet results available on Meet Mobile
After a big relay split on Thursday evening in the 800 free relay, 15-year old Natalie Mannion of the Commonwealth Current added an individual win to her tally on Friday evening in Rochester, Minnesota. Already an Olympic Trials qualifier in January at age 14 in the 100 backstroke, Mannion swam a 1:03.18 in the final of the same event on Friday to win the Ssectionals title.
That’s her fastest time since turning 15, though her January swim of 1:02.30 is still her personal best.
Mannion also placed 2nd in the 400 free on Friday, swimming a 4:22.10. That’s a best time by 2.75 seconds (over a time done at the same January meet as her backstroke). That race was won by Ashley Strouse of the Scottsdale Aquatic Club in Arizona in 4:15.75. It was a big best time by Strouse as well: her previous fastest swim was a 4:17.1 done at her summer Sectionals meet last summer. Strouse won’t swim at the NCSA Junior National Championships next weekend – in spite of last year earning a spot on the NCSA junior team that traveled to compete in Ireland.
Later in the session, Strouse showed off her range by winning the 100 free in 57.36, though this time she was short of her lifetime best. Unsurprisingly given her 400 time, she had the fastest closing 50 of the field in the 100.
On the boys’ side of the racing, the biggest performer was Ryan Purdy of the Glenview Swim Club. The Iowa commit, to this point of his career, has been a much better short course swimmer than long course swimmer, but this meet is lining out as his long course breakthrough. He won the 100 back in 57.37, which cut 1.7 seconds off his previous lifetime best; and a 2:07.07 in the 200 IM, which cut nearly 6 seconds off his previous lifetime best. That 100 back swim is 8-tenths short of the Olympic Trials qualifying standard.
Other Day 2 Winners:
- Gillian Davey of Central Iowa Aquatics won the girls’ 200 IM in 2:21.39, using a huge margin in the breaststroke to overcome Eliza Brown (2:21.84) for the title.
- Davey also won the girls’ 100 breaststroke in 1:12.51. She split the race 34.75/37.76, which pulled her from 4th to 1st on the return trip home. Ava Franks finished 2nd in 1:12.97 and, by comparison, split 33.70/39.27.
- Christian Hedeen from Fond du Lac in Wisconsin, a UIndy commit, won the boys’ 400 free in 4:05.27. The finish was a nail-biter, with Hedeen coming back from a half-second deficit on the finish to beat out Iowan Dylan Moffatt (4:05.41) for the win.
- Max Iida, another Glenview swimmer (along with Purdy), won the boys’ 100 breaststroke in 1:04.39 – more than a second-and-a-half clear of the field. John Kelly took 2nd in 1:05.98.
- Garrett Clasen won the boys’ 100 free in 53.03. His prelims time of 52.76 is a new personal best.
