Schroeder Y’s Sam Lorenz Clocks Personal Best 54.91 100 BK on Day 2 of Westmont Sectionals

2024 CZ North Section Summer Sectionals (Westmont)

• Thursday-Sunday, July 11-14th, 2024
• FMC Aquatic Center, Westmont, IL
• LCM (50m)
• Results on MeetMobile (“2024 CZ North Section Summer Sectionals”)
• Day 1 Recap

Day 2 of the 2024 Summer Sectionals meet in Westmont, IL featured the 200 free, 400 IM, and 100 back.

Schroeder Y Swim Team’s Sam Lorenz, 18, won the men’s 100 back in a great race, clocking a 54.91. That performance marks Lorenz’s first time under 55 seconds in the event, dipping under his previous PB of 55.24, which he set at the Olympic Trials last month. A rising freshman at Wisconsin, Lorenz swam a brilliant race last night, clocking a 26.84 on the opening 50m, then coming home in 28.07 to seal the deal.

The University of Iowa’s Kennedy Gilbertson won the women’s 100 back in 1:03.05. She’s been as fast as 1:02.02 in her career, which she swam last May. Sioux Falls Swim Team 17-year-old Lydia Soldatke came in 2nd with a 1:03.35, tying Notre Dame’s Jess Geriane. That swim marks a new personal best for Soldatke, who will be a freshman at Oakland University in the fall, by about half a second, beating her previous top mark of 1:03.85 from March. Meanwhile, Geriane has been as fast as 1:02.75 in her career.

Aquajets 17-year-old Jiarui Xue, a Princeton recruit, won the men’s 400 IM in 4:28.01, marking his first time under 4:30 in the event. His previous best of 4:30.07 was set back in May. Xue is predominantly a distance swimmer, having raced the 1500 free at the US Olympic Trials last month.

Louisville’s Kim Herkle took the women’s 400 IM in 4:55.40, beating out teammate Summer Cardwell, who came in 2nd with a 4:56.60.

Gustavo Saldo, another Louisville swimmer, won the men’s 200 free in 1:50.72, touching first by well over 2 seconds.

The Cardinals picked up yet another event win in the women’s 200 free, where Fernanda Celidonio got her hand on the wall first in a tight race with Wisconsin’s Lily Gardner. Celidonio was out a touch faster, splitting 28.47 on the opening 50 and 31.11 on the 2nd, for a 59.58 on the front half of the race, while Gardner was 28.91/31.01 for a 59.92. The duo was nearly identical on the 3rd 50, where Celidonio split 31.51 to Garnder’s 31.55, which put Celidonio into the final turn about half a second ahead. Gardner had the better closing speed, splitting 31.39 on the way home, while Celidonio was 31.73, however, it wasn’t quite enough and Gardner ended up finishing 2nd in 2:02.86, 0.04 seconds behind Celidonio’s 2:02.82.