ISL Match Five, Day Two Recap: Tom Shields Takes MVP Honors, But London Roar Edges L.A. Current

Photo Courtesy: Mine Kasapoglu / ISL

ISL Match Five, Day Two Recap: Tom Shields Takes MVP Honors, But London Roar Edges L.A. Current

The London Roar, coming off a lengthy layoff following their first International Swimming League meet of the season, won their second meet in as many outings as Mel Marshall’s club tallied 499 points and rode the breaststroke exploits of Alia Atkinson to the triumph. The Roar put up 499 points and, despite a strong showing from the L.A. Current in the men’s Skins, held off the Current, who placed second with 478.5 points. The Tokyo Frog Kings scored 446.5 points for third, and the D.C. Trident scored 287 points for fourth.

Alia Atkinson London Roar ISL by Mike Lewis D5D_8308

Photo Courtesy: Mike Lewis / ISL

Given the task of carrying the Roar in the women’s Skins, Atkinson rewarded Marshall’s faith in her charge by prevailing in all three rounds, including a final win over the Current’s Anastasia Gorbenko. Atkinson also won the 100 breaststroke during Saturday’s action, but the 100 backstroke played just as big a role in the Roar’s decision. Kira Toussaint and Guillherme Guido collected victories in the 100 back, and those points went a long way in ensuring the Roar stayed on top of the team standings.

For the Current, Tom Shields walked away with MVP honors after two days that included wins in the 100 butterfly, 200 fly and the Skins version of the 50 fly. Trailing by more than 60 points after the first day of the meet, the Current made a considerable dent in the Roar’s margin, finishing 20.5 points back at the meet’s conclusion. In Shields, the Current have a performer whose versatility is a major weapon, along with his ability to race under pressure.

RESULTS

Match Five Team Scores:

London Roar, 499
LA Current, 478.5
Tokyo Frog Kings, 446.5
DC Trident, 287

MVP Scoring:

Tom Shields, L.A. Current – 62.5 points
Beryl Gastaldello, L.A. Current – 54
Alia Atkinson, London Roar – 40.5
Kira Toussaint, London Roar – 36
Freya Anderson, London Roar – 35.5

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Here is an event-by-event look at the Day Two action:

Women’s 100 Freestyle

The L.A. Current put together a superb start in the first event of the second session as Beryl Gastaldello and Abbey Weitzeil finished first and third, with Gastaldello fending off the London Roar’s Freya Anderson, who was second. Gastaldello touched in 51.30 and managed to steal three points through the Jackpot system. Marie Wattel was fourth for the Roar.

Men’s 100 Freestyle

Photo Courtesy: Mine Kasapoglu / ISL

Although well behind in the team standings, the D.C. Trident received a boost from Zach Apple, who topped the field in 46.53 to defeat the Roar’s Duncan Scott. Apple has been a steady bright spot for the Trident, who largely have struggled in the ISL setup. Brazilian Marco Ferreira checked in with third-place points for the Current.

Women’s 200 Butterfly

Although not surprising, the Frog Kings came through with a major performance as Suzuka Hasegawa and Sakiko Shimizu went 1-2 and combined for 26 points. Hasegawa took the win in 2:03.38, and that time allowed the Japanese standout to claim Jackpot points from four of her foes. Bethany Galat placed third for the Trident.

Men’s 200 Butterfly

Continuing his strong showings during ISL action, Tom Shields once again delivered for the Current, as he prevailed in 1:50.28 and took home 19 points behind four Jackpots. Shields added to his win in the 100 fly from Day One and was followed to the wall by Vini Lanza of the Roar and Tomoru Honda of the Frog Kings.

Women’s 100 Backstroke

Using her raw speed to build a big advantage, Kira Toussaint handed the Roar their first victory of the session. Toussaint stopped the clock in 56.38 and was followed in second by the Trident’s Amy Bilquist, who won the 200 backstroke in Friday action. Tokyo’s Simona Kubova supplied third-place points to the Frog Kings.

Men’s 100 Backstroke

Kira Toussaint London Roar ISL by Mike Lewis D5D_7671

Photo Courtesy: Mike Lewis / ISL

In an event featuring one of the deepest fields of the meet, London’s Guilherme Guido came through with a crucual victory for his squad. Guido went out quickly and held on to win in 49.57 over the Current’s Ryan Murphy, who has enjoyed a superb second season in the ISL. Murphy was closing at the finish, but came up just short. The Frog Kings’ Ryosuke Irie was third.

Women’s 100 Individual Medley

Runa Imai of the Frog Kings earned the victory in the new event to the ISL schedule this season. Imai posted a winning mark of 58.02. Los Angeles benefited from a 2-3 finish as Anastasia Gorbenko and Abbey Weitzeil enabled the Current to chip away at the Roar’s lead in the team standings.

Men’s Individual Medley

A late charge by Tomoe Hvas provided a big – and surprise – victory for the L.A. Current, as Hvas touched the wall in 51.83 and was able to rally ahead of Tokyo’s Vladimir Morozov by .15. Athird-place finish for London came from Andreas Vazaios.

Women’s 200 Freestyle

Andi Murez pushed the pace from the start and registered a big win for the L.A. Current, which continued to make a dent into the lead of the Roar. Murez posted a personal best of 1:53.58 and finished ahead of London’s Freya Anderson, who used a strong back half to rally into second place. The Frog Kings received a third-place showing from Chichiro Igarashi.

Men’s 200 Freestyle

The Tokyo Frog Kings Katsuhiro Matsumoto utilized a blazing finish to track down London’s Duncan Scott at the wall. Matsumoto recorded the fastest time of the ISL campaign with a mark of 1:41.77. Scott had the lead for the majority of the race, but faltered down the stretch. Third place went to the Trident’s Zach Apple.

Women’s 50 Butterfly

Beryl Gastaldello LA Current International Swim League (photo: Mike Lewis)

Photo Courtesy: Mike Lewis/ISL

One of the most valuable swimmers in the league through the first five meets of the season, the Current’s Beryl Gastaldello continued her winnings ways with a triumph in 24.95. Ting Wen Quah of the D.C. Trident was second, with Marie Wattel of the Roar rounding out the top three.

Men’s 50 Butterfly

In what has been a largely quiet day to this point for the Frog Kings, Takeshi Kawamoto zipped to a time of 22.38 and prevented the Current’s Tom Shields from securing a butterfly sweep for the meet. Shields had already won the 100 fly and 200 fly. Marius Kusch managed third place for the London Road.

Women’s 100 Breaststroke

Before the second day began, this event looked like a turning point for the London Roar, and that is exactly what transpired as Alia Atkinson and Annie Lazor checked in with a 1-2 finish, with Atkinson taking the top spot in 1:03.75. The Roar gained 10 points over the Current in the event to stymie some of Los Angeles’ momentum. Third place went to Lindsey Kozelsky of the Trident.

Men’s 100 Breaststroke

The Frog Kings received a stellar showing from Yasuhiro Koseki, as the Japanese star turned back Olympic champion Adam Peaty of the London Roar. Koseki managed the fastest time of the season in 56.11, with Peaty next. Felipe Silva Franca of the Current gave his team a much-needed third-place effort.

Mixed 400 Freestyle Relay

During her days as a Cal Bear, Abbey Weitzeil was known for giving her squad a real boost in relay competition, and that is exactly what she did for the L.A. Current in this event. Weitzeil produced a superb anchor leg to keep the Roar’s Anna Hopkin at bay and Los Angeles won in 3:17.19. Weizteil, who closed in 51.12, was joined by Marco Ferreira, Kristian Gkolomeev and Beryl Gastaldello. Third place went to the Trident.

Women’s 400 Individual Medley

Photo Courtesy: Mine Kasapoglu/ISL

The Tokyo Frog Kings turned to a strength and received a 1-2 finish from Yui Ohashi and Sakiko Shimizu to bank considerable points. Ohashi covered the distance in 4:26.48 and was never challenged. As impressive as the Frog Kings were, London came through in a big way as Aimee Willmott and Sydney Pickrem finished third and fourth to give the Roar key scoring in the team battle.

Men’s 400 Individual Medley

Reigning Olympic champion Kosuke Hagino had no trouble beating the field in his best event. The Japanese star built an early advantage and never looked back en route to a time of 4:01.52. The D.C. Trident watched Abrahm Devine and Tommy Cope secure second and third-place finishes.

Women’s 50 Breaststroke (Skins)

First Round

London’s Alia Atkinson had no trouble winning the opening round and was followed by Lindsey Koselzky of the Trident and Reona Aoki of the Frog Kings. Annie Lazor of the Roar and Anastasia Gorbenko tied for the fourth spot, which enabled five athletes to advance to the semifinal round.

Semifinals

As expected, Atkinson advanced to the final comfortably, but it was the second-place finish of Gorbenko for the Current that was the big surprise. The Current seemed iffy to have an athlete even advance to the semifinal round, let alone get someone through to the final.

Final

Facing pressure, Atkinson dug deep and got the job done to win the Skins competition for the Roar. The Jamaican standout faced a late charge from Gorbenko, who produced a valiant effort to give the Current a chance at the Skins points.

Men’s 50 Butterfly (Skins)

First Round

Los Angeles Current coach David Marsh had to be smiling as Tom Shields went a career-best of 21.32 to win the opening round, and the Current’s Maxime Rooney tying with the Frog Kings’ Takeshi Kawamoto for second place. Tokyo’s Kosuke Matsui rounded out the field for the semifinals as London was shut out.

Semifinals

Kawamoto had no difficulty advancing to the final as the top seed, with Shields rallying over the second lap to ensure himself a place in the final duel. Rooney was third, with Matsui fourth. By advancing to the final, Shields locked up MVP accolades for Match Five.

Final

Wrapping up a terrific two days at the Duna Arena in Budapest, Shields got the best of Kawamoto in the 50 fly and put the icing on his MVP status for the meet. In addition to winning the Skins competition, Shields also prevailed in the 100 butterfly and 200 fly, and was the runnerup in the 50 fly during the regular portion of the meet.

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