NCSA All-American Meet Completes First Night of Action; Updated With Complete Results

By Jason Marsteller

HONOLULU, Hawaii, June 8. AFTER a bit of technical difficulties with getting results from the National Club Swimming Association's All-American meet, SwimmingWorldMagazine.com is able to report on the rest of the first night of swimming.

We also had the chance to chat with each titlist immediately after their races.

Women's 50 freestyle
Katherine Raatz of the West team started off the meet strong for the West women when she clocked a 26.84 in the splash-and-dash. The time sat just .05 seconds off the senior cut. It also stood just a bit off Raatz' personal-best time of 26.01 set at the 2006 USA Swimming Junior Nationals.

"It feels great to get that first win," Raatz said. "I did what I needed to do for the team, and also what I wanted to do individually. I think it is a great start."

Hannah Davis touched in 26.90 for second place from the East, while West's Sarah Sargent took third in 26.96.

Men's 50 freestyle
The West took their second event in a row when Jake Grosser clocked a time of 24.19 to earn the top points for his squad. The time was just a bit off his previous best time of 23.77 set at the 2006 Minnesota Speedo Sectionals.

"That was a good start," Grosser said. "The team was really jacked up, and that got me excited. It was good to get those points for my team by performing on this big stage."

Martin Kata placed second for the East in 24.20, while Jeff Daniels finished third in 24.24 for the West.

Women's 200 breaststroke
Colleen Haase broke up the West party with a win for the East when she hit the wall in 2:34.88, which surpassed the Olympic Trials cut by more than a second. Haase, however, already had a 2:33.89 to her credit from last year's Summer National Championships.

"That was just a second off my personal best," Haase said. "I feel awesome about the swim, and am glad I picked up some points for my team. I'm just glad everyone swam so well, and that I get to train with the East squad."

Haase led a 1-2-3 for the East as teammates Lauren Norberg (2:37.27) and Melanie Roberts (2:37.58) took second and third, respectively.

Men's 200 breaststroke
Adam Klein countered for the West when he clocked a 2:23.10 to claim the 200 breaststroke crown. The effort stood a bit off the 2:22.79 that is the senior national cut.

"That is my best in-season time in that event," Klein said. "I am excited about that time especially after going through some of the hardest training in my life. I am ecstatic to get the win, and just want to focus on beating the East team."

East claimed the second and third spots as Eric Friedland went 2:25.32 for second and Justin Davidson took third in 2:26.03.

Women's 100 butterfly
Dana Christ built on the momentum created by Klein's win with a time of 1:02.43, which stood just .04 seconds off the Olympic Trial cut.

"I'm pretty sure that was my best in-season time," Christ said. "It felt awesome out there. I was not expecting that, but I got so pumped up from this meet and from seeing Adam Klein win right before me."

The West dominated the event with a 1-2-3-4. Megan Braun (1:03.63), Alexis Grothe (1:03.84) and Abbie Fish (1:04.17) captured the 2-4 spots.

Men's 100 butterfly
Garth Summers kept the ball rolling for the West when he touched in 56.67. The effort sat just .23 seconds off Summers' personal-best time of 56.44 set at the 2006 Oregon 11&Over Championships.

"I took that out easy and saved some to come back home," Summers said. "I just tried to stay in control and win on my way back in for my best in-season time."

Cory Chitwood provided the West with second in 57.85, while Andrew Brake took third in 58.47 for the East.

Women's 800 freestyle
Joanna Thomas came through with a win for the East in 9:02.98, which is 10 seconds off her personal-best time of 8:52.94 set at the 2005 Summer National Championships.

"That wasn't a bad mid-season time for me," Thomas said. "It felt great to swim against this talent tonight. I don't get to swim against this many talented swimmers in one pool at a lot of meets. I'm just happy I scored some points for my team."

East' Katura Harvey finished second in 9:04.28, while Tristin Baxter placed third for the West in 9:04.34.

Men's 800 freestyle
Rikiya Yano represented the West team with a dominant victory in the 800 free when he clocked in at 8:13.61. The performance chopped six seconds off his previous personal-best time of 8:19.61 set at the 2006 Speedo Sectionals.

"I just started out with a great first 50 and saw that I was way ahead," Yano said. "I just kept thinking the rest of the way that I needed to stay ahead by executing my race plan."

Shane Lichtenberg gave the West a 1-2 punch with a second-place time of 8:28.34, while East's Brady Fox took third in 8:31.55.

Women's 50 breaststroke
East's Lauren Norberg provided some outside smoke when she ripped off a 32.96 to win the 50 breast from lane nine. Amazingly, the swim knocked more than two seconds off her previous personal-best time of 34.24 set June 2006 at an age group meet.

"That race usually doesn't turn out that way," Lauren Norberg said. "I usually get touched out by my sister. That was a really good time for me."

Lauren's twin sister Lindsey finished second in 33.01 for the East, while teammates Ellyn Baumgardner (33.38) and Colleen Haase (33.65) wound up in third and fourth, respectively.

Men's 50 breaststroke
James Ridgeway, whose last recorded competitive 50 breaststroke event came with a 35.02 in 2001, popped a 30.66 to pick up the title for the West.

"With the way we have been training out here, I am really happy with that time," Ridgeway said. "It feels great to help the team toward beating the East. The points mattered more to me than my time."

East's Justin Davidson touched second in 30.71, while West's Dan Forsythe took third in 31.14.

Women's 400 IM
East's Jamie Marks completed the grueling 400 IM in style with a time of 5:02.22. The mid-season time fell 10 seconds shy of her personal-best time of 4:52.52 set at the 2005 Summer National Championships.

"That was a good time and I am happy with it," Marks said. "Everyone really had some good swims and it was tough out there. I am just excited to win."

East's Emily Creran came in a close second in 5:02.67, while West's Taylor Zafir finished third in 5:03.71.

Men's 400 IM
Cory Chitwood touched in 4:35.03 to give the West another win. The performance came up about seven seconds short of his personal-best time of 4:28.53 set at the 2006 Summer National Championships.

"It felt pretty good considering it was my first chance to train long course all summer," Chitwood said. "There were some good breaststrokers out there, so I have to bring it during the freestyle and trust my training."

East went 2-3 as Andrew Brake placed second in 4:36.69 and Bill Cregar took third in 4:36.88.

Women's 100 backstroke
East's Cara Chuang clocked a personal-best time of 1:05.10 to cut .07 seconds from her previous personal standard of 1:05.17 set at the 2006 U.S. Open. It also improved her senior national cut.

"That was a really good time for me," Chuang said. "I can improve on that time, so I feel pretty good about it. Also, it felt amazing to win over some of these really tall swimmers when I am just 5-4. Size doesn't always equal speed."

Cindy Tran finished second in 1:07.35 for the West, while Suzanne Schwee took third in 1:08.15 for the East.

Men's 100 backstroke
Brady Fox, swimming for the East, stopped the clock in 58.98. The effort came close to his personal-best time of 58.44 set at the 2006 PV Senior Championships.

"That was right around my best time in the 100 back," Fox said. "It feels good to win here. I didn't know I was winning until I looked up at the scoreboard."

East's Josh Hafkin went 59.61 for second, while West's Andrew Saeta took third in 1:00.28 for the West.

Women's 200 freestyle
East gained another victory when Rebecca Jones touched in 2:05.20. The performance cleared her previous personal best of 2:05.50 set at the 2006 Virginia Senior Championships.

"That was my best time by three tenths," Jones said. "It is really motivating for me for the rest of the season. Those girls out there are really fast. It is encouraging me to keep up with my training."

Katherine Raatz (2:06.84) and Abbie Fish (2:07.82) picked up second and third, respectively, for the West.

Men's 200 freestyle
Matt McLean concluded individual scoring for the night when he went 1:55.52. That eclipsed his record personal-best time of 1:55.79 set at the 2005 U.S. Open.

"I felt good out there considering the point of my training right now," McLean said. "There were a great bunch of guys racing out there. I think this meet is just a big opportunity for everyone to compete. It makes all those meters in training worthwhile."

Edward Leblanc, McLean's teammate on the East, finished second in 1:57.45, while West's Curt Carlson took third in 1:57.62.

Relays
Megan Waters, Katy Hinkle, Hannah Davis and Lindsey Norberg won the women's 200 freestyle in 1:47.03 for the East, while Cara Chuang, Colleen Haase, Suzanne Schwee and Rebecca Jones claimed the 400 medley in 4:22.13 for the East as well.

Meanwhile, Jake Grosser, Jeff Daniels, Curt Carlson and Buddy Turner won the men's 200 free in 1:35.27 for the West, while Cory Chitwood, Adam Klein, Garth Summers and Buddy Turner owned the 400 medley for the West in 3:55.37.

In the women's 800 free, Katherine Raatz, Kristina Kontrimas, Abbie Fish and Ellie Doran won for the West in 8:36.75, while the men's 800 free was postponed until the second day due to a facility delay.

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