SDSU Transfer Christiana Williams Clears Mountain West Record (But It Won’t Count)

2023 MOUNTAIN WEST CHAMPIONSHIPS

• Wednesday, February 15 – Saturday, February 18, 2023
• CRWC Natatorium, Houston, Texas
• Defending Champion: San Diego State
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• DAY 1 RESULTS
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San Diego State junior Christiana Williams has not yet begun the scoring portion of her Mountain West Conference Championship meet, but she has none-the-less already cleared a conference record.

Swimming in a time trial on Wednesday, Williams swam 2:08.23, which undercuts the old conference record of 2:08.30 that was set in 2020 by SDSU’s Klara Thormalm. Williams’ swim, however, won’t count as a conference record unless she repeats it in the regular event.

While the NCAA recognizes and accepts times swum in time trials for things like NCAA Championship qualifying, NCAA rules don’t allow records to be set in time trials races. The league office confirmed on Thursday that the swim would not count as a record.

With most Division I conference championship meets yet to hold their 200 breaststroke races, that ranks Williams 14th in the NCAA so far this season, and should lock up an invite to the NCAA Championships.

Williams is a first year transfer from Tulane. She left the Green Wave after finishing 2nd in both the 100 and 200 yard breaststrokes last season at the AAC Championships.

Her best time upon leaving Tulena in the 200 breaststroke was 2:12.37. She already cleared that at the mid-season SMU Invitational, posting a 2:11.84, and now has gone well-under her previous personal best.

The Aztecs have a long-standing reputation for developing breaststrokers Of their 15 individual swimming All-America awards since 2009, eight have been in breaststroke races. That includes the now-graduated Swede Thormalm, who finished 16th in the 100 breast and 22nd in the 200 breast at last year’s NCAA Championship meet.

Williams is scheduled to kick her meet off individually on Thursday morning in the 200 IM. She also has individual entries in the 100 and 200 breaststrokes.