Courtesy: American Athletic Conference
IRVING, Texas – For the second straight season SMU will serve as the host of the American Athletic Conference Swimming and Diving Championships, with the 2022 version of the conference meet set for Feb. 16-19 at the Robson & Lindley Aquatics Center and Barr-McMillion Natatorium in Dallas. The Mustangs welcome the conference championship meet for the third time overall, with the 2018 and 2021 American championships having previously been contested on the SMU campus.
Live coverage of the American Swimming and Diving Championships will be available on ESPN+ all four days, with prelim competition beginning at 11 a.m. (CT) on Wednesday and 10 a.m. (CT) the remainder of the meet. Finals on Thursday and Friday will start at 6 p.m. (CT), and Wednesday’s opening night and championship Saturday are slated to commence at 5 p.m. (CT). Brendan Gulick and Smacker Miles will be on the call for each finals session, with The American’s Morgan Uber on deck with analysis and interviews.
SMU MEN ATTEMPTING TO DEFEND AMERICAN TITLE AT HOME
SMU picked up its first men’s American Swimming and Diving Championship in 2021 at the Robson & Lindley Aquatics Center, outpointing Cincinnati to hoist the conference hardware. The Mustangs will attempt to join Cincinnati (2018 and 2019) and the discontinued men’s program from East Carolina (2015-17, 2020) as winners of multiple American championship meets in the men’s competition.
SMU claimed 10 individual conference event wins during the 2021 American meet, with Caleb Rhodenbaugh (1:53.98 in the 200 breaststroke final) and Colin Feehery (1:45.14 in the 200 IM prelims) establishing meet records during the Mustang victory. Five individual gold medalists from SMU’s 2021 championship run are expected to compete for the Mustangs this week at the 2022 conference meet.
NEW HEAD COACH TANICA JAMISON LOOKS TO GUIDE HOUSTON WOMEN TO SIXTH CHAMPIONSHIP
Head coach Tanica Jamison enters her first American Swimming and Diving Championships at the helm of five-time defending champion Houston, and the Cougars are looking to extend their dominance at the conference meet in 2022. Houston has not only won every American women’s championship dating back to the 2017 season, but the Cougars have outscored the opposition by 100 or more points on the final team leaderboard in four straight championship starts.
A strong youth movement has taken hold for Houston this season after several key team members have graduated in the past two years. In fact, the only past conference individual champions on the current Houston roster are divers Katie Deininger (2019 platform, 2021 3-meter), Hedda Grelz (2021 platform) and Chase Farris (2020 platform).
WELCOME BACK EAST CAROLINA
Following a one-year absence from the women’s portion of the American Swimming and Diving Championships, the East Carolina program was reinstated in February 2021 and returns to the field this season. Head coach Matthew Jabs guided the Pirates to the 2020 American men’s championship following a pair of men’s runner-up showings in 2018 and 2019 and a third-place women’s result in his first season at the helm of East Carolina in 2018.
NCAA B-CUT TIMES DURING THE REGULAR SEASON
American athletes combined to register 29 NCAA B-cut times in regular season meets. On the men’s side, SMU’s Justin Baker clocked a :19.31 in the 50 freestyle at the SMU Invitational for an NCAA standard time. Cincinnati’s Blake Hanna (:47.24, Ohio State Invitational) and SMU’s Jack Easton (:47.50, SMU Invitational), Riley Hill (:47.60, SMU Invitational) and Cole Bruns (:47.73 relay split, SMU Invitational) each posted NCAA B-cuts in the 100 backstroke, with Easton (1:43.07) and Cotton Fields (1:43.78) adding 200 backstroke B-cuts at the SMU Invitational alongside Cincinnati’s Hunter Gubeno (1:43.43, Ohio State Invitational). Seven different SMU men’s swimmers posted 100 breaststroke NCAA B-cuts, led by Colin Feehery at :53.61. Feehery also was the top-ranked conference competitor in the 200 breaststroke with a B-cut effort of 1:55.78. Cincinnati’s Michael Balcerak (:46.71) and SMU’s Easton (:46.93) registered 100 butterfly NCAA B-cut swims, with Balcerak adding an additional standard time in the 200 butterfly (1:45.17). Easton (1:44.57), Feehery (1:44.58) and Fields (1:46.61) all logged B-cut swims in the 200 IM and Feehery (3:44.27), Fields (3:46.49) and Cincinnati’s Spencer Selhorst (3:50.37) turned in NCAA B-cuts in the 400 IM.
On the women’s performance list, SMU’s Ilektra Lebl (4:45.10, SMU Invitational) and Tulane’s Lilly Byrne (4:47.05, Phill Hansel Invitational) posted NCAA B-cut times in the 500 freestyle, and Cincinnati’s Sydney St Rose-Finear (16:28.46, dual vs. Louisville) and SMU’s Frederica Kizek (16:28.98, SMU Invitational) clocked B-cuts in the 1,650 freestyle. SMU’s Gabi Grobler (1:01.83, time trial) threw down an NCAA B-cut in the 100 breaststroke to go along with a 200 breaststroke (2:12.97) qualifying standard. Tulane’s Christiana Williams (2:13.55) also posted a 200 breaststroke B-cut swim. Valentina Becerra from SMU bested the 100 butterfly NCAA B-cut standard (:53.36, SMU Classic) and narrowly missed the mark in the 200 butterfly. Grobler added 200 IM (1:59.12, SMU Classic) and 400 IM (4:16.09, SMU Invitational) NCAA B-cuts for SMU during the year and was joined by teammate Lebl (4:16.13) below the 400 IM qualifying standard.
2022 American Athletic Conference Swimming And Diving Championships
CHAMPIONSHIPS SCHEDULE
Wednesday, February 16 (ESPN+)
Diving Prelims: 11 A.M. (CT) (ESPN+) | Swimming Relays/Diving Finals: 5:00 P.M. (CT) (ESPN+)
Event #1 1-Meter Diving PRELIM Men
Event #2 3-Meter Diving PRELIM Women
Event #1 1-Meter Diving CONSOLS Men
Event #2 3-Meter Diving CONSOLS Women
Event #1 1-Meter Diving FINALS Men
Event #3 800 Yard Freestyle Relay Women
Event #4 800 Yard Freestyle Relay Men
Event #2 3-Meter Diving FINALS Women
Event #5 200 Yard Medley Relay Women
Event #6 200 Yard Medley Relay Men
Thursday, February 17 (ESPN+)
Swimming Prelims: 10 A.M. (CT) (ESPN+) | Diving Prelims: 12:30 P.M. (CT) | Finals: 6:00 P.M. (CT) (ESPN+)
Event #7 1-Meter Diving PRELIM Women
Event #7 1-Meter Diving CONSOLS Women
Event #8 500 Yard Freestyle Women
Event #9 500 Yard Freestyle Men
Event #10 200 Yard IM Women
Event #11 200 Yard IM Men
Event #12 50 Yard Freestyle Women
Event #13 50 Yard Freestyle Men
Event #7 1-Meter Diving FINALS Women
Event #14 200 Yard Freestyle Relay Women
Event #15 200 Yard Freestyle Relay Men
Friday, February 18 (ESPN+)
Swimming Prelims: 10 A.M. (CT) (ESPN+) | Diving Prelims: 12:30 P.M. (CT) | Finals: 6:00 P.M. (CT) (ESPN+)
Event #16 3-Meter Diving PRELIM Men
Event #16 3-Meter Diving CONSOLS Men
Event #17 400 Yard IM Women
Event #18 400 Yard IM Men
Event #19 100 Yard Butterfly Women
Event #20 100 Yard Butterfly Men
Event #21 200 Yard Freestyle Women
Event #22 200 Yard Freestyle Men
Event #23 100 Yard Breaststroke Women
Event #24 100 Yard Breaststroke Men
Event #25 100 Yard Backstroke Women
Event #26 100 Yard Backstroke Men
Event #16 3-Meter Diving FINALS Men
Event #27 400 Yard Medley Relay Women
Event #28 400 Yard Medley Relay Men
Saturday, February 19 (ESPN+)
Swimming Prelims: 10 A.M. (CT) (ESPN+) | Diving Prelims: 12:30 P.M. (CT) | Finals: 5:00 P.M. (CT) (ESPN+)
Event #30 Platform Diving PRELIMS Women
Event #29 Platform Diving PRELIMS Men
Event #31 1,650 Yard Freestyle Women
Event #32 1,650 Yard Freestyle Men
Event #30 Platform Diving FINALS Women
Event #33 200 Yard Backstroke Women
Event #34 200 Yard Backstroke Men
Event #35 100 Yard Freestyle Women
Event #36 100 Yard Freestyle Men
Event #37 200 Yard Breaststroke Women
Event #38 200 Yard Breaststroke Men
Event #39 200 Yard Butterfly Women
Event #40 200 Yard Butterfly Men
Event #29 Platform Diving FINALS Men
Event #41 400 Yard Freestyle Relay Women
Event #42 400 Yard Freestyle Relay Men
“conference championship” aka SMU/Cincinnati dual meet