Georgia Sets Amer. Rec. in 400m free relay

4 x 100m freestyle relay

With just one event to go, the Dawgs were holding on to a slim 12-point lead over upstart Arizona. In prelims, Georgia had qualified first, Arizona sixth. But only 7-tenths of a second separated the top six relay squads. To win the team championship, Arizona would have to win the relay–and Georgia finish sixth or lower. It was still possible…but unlikely.
Courtney Shealey made it more unlikely when she led off for the Dawgs in 53.70–faster than her winning time in the 100. Emily Mastin's 55.44 put Arizona in third. Sarah Tolar came roaring back for the Wildcats with her 54.41 to Stefanie Williams' 55.00, and Arizona was second. On the third leg, Jenny Vanker split 54.88 for the Cats to Jennifer Mihalik's 55.45 for the Dawgs. Arizona was less than six-tenths back as the anchor swimmers made the final exchange very conservatively. Denali Knapp came through with a 54.16 anchor leg for the Cats, but Georgia's freshman sensation, Maritza Correia, responded with a 53.52.
Georgia touched home in 3:37.67 as the crowd erupted. Arizona followed in 3:38.89, as both teams destroyed the American record of 3:40.40 set by the US National Team in 1993.
The Dawgs were national champions for the second straight year!
How 'bout them Dawgs!

Colleen Lanne had a 53.86 split for Texas. Other fast splits included: Joscelin Yeo (Cal), 54.12; Catherine Fox (Stan), 54.19; and Jen Woolf (Aub), 54.68.

Subscribe
Notify of
guest

Welcome to our community. We invite you to join our discussion. Our community guidelines are simple: be respectful and constructive, keep on topic, and support your fellow commenters. Commenting signifies that you agree to our Terms of Use

0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
0
Would love your thoughts, please comment.x
()
x