Texas Men, USC Women Claim Team Victories To Close Out 2022 SMU Classic

2022 SMU CLASSIC

• Friday, October 7 – Saturday, October 8, 2022
• Robson & Lindley Aquatics Center and Barr-McMillion Natatorium
• Dallas, Texas
• Start Times
  • Friday: 6 pm ET
  • Saturday: 11 am ET
• SCY (25 yards)
• SMU Preview
• Live Results
• Live Stream (PonyUp TV)

On Saturday, the second half of the SMU Classic took place, with the 200 medley relay, 500 free, 200 breast, 200 back, 100 free, 200 fly, 200 IM, and 200 free all being contested. This meet features eight of the top teams in the country, and follows a unique format in which each team can only send eight swimmers and one diver. In addition, each event has an ‘A’ final and a ‘B’ final where all the teams are allowed one swimmer in each final. Swimmers can swim up to three events per day.

The Texas men won the men’s competition in dominant fashion, beating out runners-up Texas A&M by 42 points. On the women’s side the race was much closer, as USC women but Michigan and Louisville (which was negatively impacted by a DQ in the 200 medley relay) were not far behind.

Carson Foster‘s 64 points made him the top individual scorer on the men’s side, whereas Isabelle Odgers‘ 52 points have her leading the women’s side.

Final Team Scores:

Men:

1. Texas — 348
2. Texas A&M — 306
3. Missouri — 298
4. Michigan — 280
5. Louisville — 220
6. SMU — 196

Women: 

1. USC — 325
2. Michigan — 311
3. Louisville — 304
4. Missouri — 255
5. Miami — 223
6. SMU – 203

Men’s Recap

It was a DQ galore in the 200 medley relay, as both Louisville’s Denis Petrashov and SMU’s Lance Feehery had their teams DQed due to early takeoffs. Petrashov’s reaction time was -0.03, whereas Butler’s was -0.02. Texas A&M ended up taking the win in this race, as Ethan Gogulski (21.71), Andres Bustamente (23.84), Connor Foote (20.23), and Kaloyan Bratanov (19.67) combined for a time of 1:25.45. Michigan’s Bence Szabados went 19.08 on anchor, the fastest freestyle split of the field, but his team was still last out of all the teams that did not get DQed. Also notable was the fact that Carson Foster was swimming backstroke for Texas, leading off in a 21.72. Caspar Corbeau, also on the Texas team, clocked the fastest breaststroke split in the field at 23.62.

Texas’s Luke Hobson then won the 500 free in a time of 4:15.88, opening in 23.69 and consistently holding 25-point splits for the rest of his race. He broke Jake Mitchell‘s pool record time of 4:17.94 from last year and Connor Jaeger’s meet record time of 4:16.54 with his race, being the only man in the field under the 4:20-point barrier. Hobson finished third at NCAAs last year in this event, clocking a 4:08.42 to break the national age group record.

Bustamente then won the 200 breast with a 1:54.68, beating out Corbeau who put up a 1:55.26 for second. Bustamente’s best time is 1:52.20, which he swam to qualify for the ‘B’ finals at NCCAs. Texas’ Jake Foster went a 1:54.98 to win the ‘B’ final, although he would have been faster than everyone in the ‘A’ final aside from Bustamente.

Next, Carson Foster had a huge swim in the 200 back, taking first in 1:40.90—a time that would have been just 0.53 seconds away from making the ‘B’ final at NCAAs. Foster has been as fast as 1:38.00 in the event, and finished second at last year’s NCAAs in it. Texas A&M had a strong showing in this race as well; Gogulski, the 2022 SEC runner-up in the 200 back, was second to Foster with a 1:42.84 whereas Thomas Shomper won the ‘B’ final with a 1:42.96.

Texas’s Noah Duperre won the 3-meter diving event, scoring 354.45 points.

In the 100 free, Texas’ Danny Krueger won with a 42.69, being the only man in the field under 43 seconds. Missouri’s Jack Dahlgren and Michigan’s 50 free champion Szabados were second and third with times of 43.39 and 43.41 respectivley, whereas Foote put up a strong 43.56 to win the ‘A’ final. Foote was less than half a second off his personal best of 43.19, which he set at Winter Juniors last year.

Hobson, Bustamente, Foster, and Krueger’s winning times are all now the fastest times in the country for their respective events.

Missouri’s Clement Secchi, yesterday’s 100 fly champion, won the 200 fly in a time of 1:43.98. He was the fastest in the field by 1.48 seconds, and took over half a second off his best time of 1:44.69 set Missouri’s dual meet against Georgia and Arizona State last week. Secchi’s teammate Noah Scheuermann took the ‘B’ final of the event, clocking a 1:46.66.

Carson Foster took yet again another win when he went 1:42.68 in the 200 IM, breaking his brother Jake’s pool record of 1:43.78 and Eduardo Solaeche-Gomez’s meet record of 1:44.61. He closed his race in 24.83—exactly how fast he closed his 3:38.79 400 IM from yesterday. Foster was slightly faster than the 1:42.94 he put up at the Texas intrasquad two weeks ago. Texas A&M’s Baylor Nelson was second with a 1:43.32, a time that is also under the previous meet and pool record. He was just over a second slower than his best time of 1:42.01. Both Foster and Nelson’s time overtake Leon Marchand’s 1:44.32 from last week, which was the fastest time in the nation.  Jake Foster won the 200 IM ‘B’ final, clocking a 1:44.79.

Texas A&M made it a day 2 relay sweep when they took victory in the 200 free relay. Foote (20.11), Kaloyan Bratanov (19.65), Gogulski (19.44), and Nelson (19.46) combined for a 1:18.66 to break USC’s meet record time of 1:19.08, although Missouri put up a 1:18.77 for second and was also under the meet record. The fastest split in the field was from Texas’s Corbeau, who went a 19.07 to help his team finish third.

Women’s Recap

Like the men’s race, the women’s 200 medley relay also saw several DQs. Louisville’s Cecilia Viberg, Missouri’s Taylor Williams, and SMU’s Luezia Napoletano were all flagged for being early take-off swimmers, posing reaction times of -0.04, -0.05, and -0.08 respectively. The DQ for Louisville was a major points loss, as their combined time of 1:37.94 would have finished second. In addition, Gabi Albiero‘s 21.59 anchor leg would have been the fastest freestyle split in the field by over half a second.

USC wound up winning the 200 medley relay, as Hanna Henderson (25.07), Kaitlyn Dobler (26.85), Anicka Delgado (23.40), and Elise Garcia (22.46) combined for a time of 1:37.78. Especially eye-popping was Dobler’s breaststroke split, which was the only 50 breast time under 27 seconds in the field.

In the 500 free, USC’s Marlene Kahler won the ‘A’ final with a 4:46.14, but Michigan swimmer Katie Crom‘s 4:45.47 in the ‘B’ final was faster. Crom put up an incredible race, closing in a scintillating 26.95 final 50. She was just over a second off of her best time of 4:44.39, which was set last November. USC’s Justina Kozan, SwimSwam’s #5 ranked recruit in the high school class of 2022, dropped nearly nine seconds from her best time of 4:56.16 to go 4:47.96.

There was a tight battle between USC’s Isabelle Odgers and Michigan’s Letitia Sim in the 200 breast ‘A’ final, as Sim was first at the 100-yard mark to clock a split of 1:01.80 compared to Odgers’ 1:03.79, but Odgers closed in 1:06.78 compared to Sim’s 1:08.91 en route to winning with a time of 2:10.52. Sim ended up being less than a tenth behind for second, putting up a 2:10.61. However, Dobler was faster than both swimmers out of the ‘B’ final, going 2:10.07.

The 200 back was won by Louisville’s Paige Hetrick, who took the ‘A’ final by over a second in 1:55.63. USC’s Hanna Henderson swam well in the ‘B’ final as well, putting up a 1:55.90 that would have been first in the ‘A’ final. This swim marked Henderson’s first short course yards 200 back, and her first 200 back race in general since 2018.

The 1-meter diving event was won by USC’s Lina Sculti, who scored 293.95 points and beat out Mia Vallee, who is the defending NCAA champion in the event. Vallee was second with 287.45.

Albiero put up a 48.08 to win the 100 free by a significant margin, swimming a time that would have made the ‘B’ final at NCAAs last year. Her personal best time is less than second faster at 47.32. Also getting under the 49-second barrier was Michigan’s Linsday Flynn who went 48.82, and Louisville’s Christiana Regenauer who went 48.85 in the ‘B’ final.

Crom backed up her 500 free performance with a win in the 200 fly, putting up a 1:56.79. Her best time of 1:56.00, which she set back in 2018, is just 0.79 seconds faster.

Like in the 200 breast, Sim and Odgers once again had a close race in the 200 IM. However, this time it was Sim who came out on top, going 1:58.46 compared to Odgers’ 1:58.64. Michigan’s Devon Kitchel posted a faster time in the ‘B’ final though, going 1:58.28.

The fastest times in the 500 free, 200 breast, 200 fly, and 200 IM are all now the fastest times in the nation.

Things concluded with the 200 free relay, where Albiero (22.64), Regenauer (22.12), Ulett (22.50), and Hetrick (22.45) won for Louisville in a time of 1:29.71. However, the only 21-point split in the field was done by Dobler, who anchored in 21.96 to help USC finish second. Her split was just 0.11 seconds off her split of 21.85 anchoring USC’s 200 free relay at NCAAs.