Courtney Bartholomew Jumps Into Top 10 All Time in 200 Back

COLUMBUS, Ohio, November 24. WHILE everyone has been putting up some strong times this weekend in Columbus, no one has been on fire quite like Virginia’s Courtney Bartholomew. After posting a 50-point 100 back last night, Bartholomew vaulted into the top 10 all time in the 200 at the Ohio State Invitational.

Virginia’s Courtney Bartholomew skyrocketed to ninth all time in the women’s 200-yard backstroke with a ridiculously fast winning time of 1:50.55. That time beat Gemma Spofforth’s pool mark of 1:50.70 from 2008 and moved her past Kylie Stewart (1:50.66) into ninth ever. Coming into today, Bartholomew’s best time had been a 1:52.72 from last year’s NCAA Championships. Florida’s Sinead Russell raced to second in 1:51.44 as she provided some serious push for Bartholomew. Virginia’s Ellen Williamson claimed third overall in 1:54.73.

Bartholomew split the race 25.93, 28.42, 28.65, 27.55 as she continued her remarkable meet that included a swift 50-point 100 back last night.

Florida’s Alicia Mathieu opened the day by leading a trio of swimmers under the NCAA A cut in the women’s 1650-yard freestyle. Mathieu powered her way to a 15:46.17 for the win, blasting her previous lifetime best of 15:52.88 from the NCAA Championships earlier this year. Teammate Elizabeth Beisel turned in a strong time of 15:56.55 for second, just three seconds back of her lifetime best of 15:53.22 from a dual meet against Florida Atlantic. Virginia’s Leah Smith also cleared the A cut with a third-place time of 15:57.44, just off her best of 15:57.21 from last November.

Florida’s Arthur Frayler posted a B cut with a winning time of 14:52.63 in the men’s 1650-yard free finale. That time cut two seconds off his previous meet record set just last year for the Gators. Fellow Gator Mitch D’Arrigo also cleared 15:00 with a second-place time of 14:56.21. Virginia’s Jan Daniec posted a third-place time of 15:00.90.

OSU’s Connor McDonald beat the NCAA A cut in the men’s 200 back with a winning time of 1:40.83, while Virginia’s Luke Papendick touched second in 1:42.26. OSU’s Steven Zimmerman raced his way to third in 1:42.66.

Florida’s Natalie Hinds ripped off an NCAA A cut in the women’s 100-yard free with a sizzling 47.67. That performance downed her meet record of 48.23 from prelims. Purdue’s Carly Mercer hit the wall in 48.43 for second, while Florida’s Ellese Zalewski touched third in 48.78. Florida’s Brad deBorde followed with a 43.29 to win the men’s 100-yard free. OSU’s Josh Fleagle pocketed second place with a time of 43.59, while teammate Michael Disalle claimed third in 43.61.

In a close contest just off the NCAA A cut, Florida’s Hilda Luthersdottir clipped Virginia’s Laura Simon, 2:08.37 to 2:08.47, in the women’s 200-yard breast. Purdue’s Francesca Marr rounded out the top three with a time of 2:12.97. Florida’s Eduardo Solaeche-Gomez then just missed the NCAA A cut with a 1:54.69 to win the men’s 200 breast. Florida’s Matt Elliott took second in 1:55.69, while Virginia’s Yannick Kaeser placed third in 1:57.66.

Kentucky’s Tina Bechtel locked down another swim at the NCAA Championships with an automatic qualifier in the women’s 200 fly as the Wildcat clocked a 1:54.21. Teammate Abby Myers placed second in 1:56.59, while Purdue’s Rhiannon Sheets earned third in 1:56.98. Florida’s Sebastien Rousseau snared the NCAA A cut in the men’s 200-yard fly with a 1:42.88, while teammate Marcin Cieslak just missed it with a second-place 1:43.29. OSU’s Tamas Gercsak wound up third in 1:45.24.

Florida’s Sinead Russell (48.70), Natalie Hinds (47.01), Ellese Zalewski (48.95) and Ashlee Linn (50.09) eclipsed the NCAA A cut in the women’s 400-yard free relay with a winning 3:14.75. Ohio State’s Michelle Williams, Aliena Schmidtke, Alex Norris and Phoebe Cater took second in 3:17.42, while Virginia’s Kaitlyn Jones, Courtney Bartholomew, Rachel Naurath and Emily Lloyd placed third in 3:18.61.

The Gators picked up another NCAA A cut as Brad deBorde (43.72), Corey Main (43.18), Sebastien Rousseau (42.95) and Marcin Cieslak (43.38) stopped the men’s 400-yard free relay clock in 2:53.23. OSU’s Josh Fleagle, Steffen Hillmer, Vlad Komarov and Michael Disalle just missed the A cut with a 2:53.85, while Virginia’s Parker Camp, Luke Papendick, Brad Phillips and Kyle Dudzinski picked up third in 2:57.01.

In diving, Kentucky’s Christa Cabot won the women’s platform with a 283.50 point tally, while Purdue’s Nathan Cox took home the men’s platform crown with 355.80 points.

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