Katie Ledecky Sizzles in Opening Night of IU Bucceto Open

Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick

Katie Ledecky opened the 2015 IU visitbloomington.com Bucceto Open with a sizzling 8:16.40 in the women’s 800-meter free, putting her only 5.19 seconds off her world best of 8:11.21 for the 2015 season. Only she has posted a time faster than this this season with Jessica Ashwood ranked second in the world with an 8:21.33.

Ledecky posted quick splits at the 200-meter mark (2:02.27) and 400-meter mark (4:06.03). With the World Championships right around the corner Ledecky is a sure favorite in the 400, 800, and 1500-meter freestyle events, but will also be chasing her world record of 8:11.00 in an attempt to become the first woman to post a sub-8:10 performance.

800 Free World Rankings

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Ledecky finished almost an entire 30 seconds ahead of teammate Isabella Rongione, the second-place finisher. Rongione touched with an 8:46.32, while Emily Meckstroth grabbed third with an 8:54.28.

Also from Nation’s Capitol Swim Club, Andrew Gemmell opened the men’s 1500-meter free with a swift 15:24.85. Teammate Matthew Hirschberger claimed second with a time of 15:35.19, while Glen Brown finished third with a 16:07.55.

Claire Adams of Carmel Swim Club dazzled in the women’s 50-meter back with a 29.25, dropping .39 seconds from her seed time. Lauren Miller succeeded in shaving off .17 seconds from her seed time to grab second with a 31.02. Shelly Drozda was third with a 31.08.

Bob Glover dropped a .60 seconds off his seed time of 27.62 to claim first with a 27.02 in the men’s 50-meter back. Ali Khalafalla and Blake Pieroni raced for second and third with Khalafalla touching in 27.64 to grab second. Prone was third with a 27.67.

Kendall Smith soared to first in the women’s 50-meter breaststroke with a time of 33.58, dropping a whopping 2.62 seconds from her seed time of 36.20. Alex Clarke claimed second with a 35.07, while Grace Estabrook took third with a 35.32.

The men’s 50-meter breaststroke was a tight race with the top three finishers touching within .41 seconds of one another. Pieroni grabbed the win with a 30.10, dropping .24 seconds off his seed time of 30.34. Jack Waller finished second with a 30.40, while Sam Lorentz grabbed third with a 30.51 and an astonishing 4.05 seconds off his seed time of 34.56.

In the women’s 50-meter fly Gia Dalesandro was not only first, but the only woman to go under 28 seconds. Dalesandro finished with a time of 27.62. Vanna Krause grabbed second with a 28.18, while Ali Rockett finished third in 28.57.

Pieroni claimed his second win of the night in the men’s 50-meter fly with a time of 25.07. Khalafalla was close behind with a 25.11 to grab second, while Max Irwin rounded out the top three with a 26.14.

Kaitlin Kitchens took gold in the women’s 50-meter free with a 27.17, dropping an impressive .87 seconds from her seed time of 28.04. Rockett shaved .79 seconds off her seed time of 28.27 to finish second with a time of 27.48. Ariana Bullard was third with a 27.57.

Daniel Kanorr soared to first in the men’s 50-meter free with a 23.28, while Khalafalla grabbed second with a 23.58. Kyle DeCoursey rounded out the top three with a time of 23.67.

All results can be found on Meet Mobile.

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