Pac-12 Conference Champs, Day Two Finals: Stanford’s Brooke Forde Takes Title in 500 Free

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Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick

Pac-12 Women’s Championships, Day Two Finals: Stanford’s Brooke Forde Takes Title in 500 Free

Day Two Finals, Houston Texas

Coming off a sweep of the relay events on the first day of Pac-12 Conference championship action, Cal-Berkeley and Stanford battled in the first three individual events contested on the second day of the competition. A showdown between Stanford teammates Brooke Forde and Morgan Tankersley kicked off the evening’s action, and Stanford jumped into the team lead off its depth. Here is a look at the Night Two events.

Team Standings

Women - Team Rankings - Through Event 8                      
 
  1. Stanford University               592   2. University of California- Berk  546.5
  3. University of Southern Calif    413.5   4. UC Los Angeles                    389
  5. Utah, University of               369   6. University of Arizona             362
  7. Washington State University       189

500 Freestyle

Because the NCAA Championships were canceled last season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Stanford’s Brooke Forde remains the defending champion from her title in 2019, and she wasn’t about to let the 2021 Pac-12 Conference crown get away. Forde posted a winning time of 4:37.07, and needed every bit of that performance to hold off hard-charging teammate Morgan Tankersley (4:37.11).

Forde led Tankersley from start to finish, but Tankersley did all she could to press her teammate. At the 300-yard mark, Forde led by .77 over Tankersley, with that margin down to .54 at the 400. Although Tankersley ate into her deficit over the last 100, Forde showed grit and got her hand on the wall first.

The Cal duo of Ayla Spitz (4:38.05) and Robin Neumann (4:39.96) placed third and fourth in a final that was made up entirely of Stanford and Cal athletes. Fifth place went to Stanford’s Isabel Gormley in 4:41.34.

 Event 5  Women 500 Yard Freestyle
=========================================================================
         NCAA: N 4:24.06  3/16/2017 Katie Ledecky, Stanford
       PAC-12: M 4:24.06  2017      Katie Ledecky, Stanford
 PAC-12 Champ: P 4:25.15  2017      Katie Ledecky, Stanford
                 4:35.76  A Standard
                 4:47.20  B Standard
    Name           Year School            Prelims     Finals       Points 
=========================================================================
                       === Championship Finals ===                       
 
  1 Forde, Brooke    SR STAN              4:39.86    4:37.07 B       32  
             25.85        53.70 (27.85)
        1:21.50 (27.80)     1:49.68 (28.18)
        2:17.59 (27.91)     2:45.53 (27.94)
        3:13.63 (28.10)     3:41.79 (28.16)
        4:09.81 (28.02)     4:37.07 (27.26)
  2 Tankersley, Mor  JR STAN              4:42.38    4:37.11 B       28  
             25.99        53.93 (27.94)
        1:21.97 (28.04)     1:50.09 (28.12)
        2:18.20 (28.11)     2:46.30 (28.10)
        3:14.48 (28.18)     3:42.33 (27.85)
        4:10.06 (27.73)     4:37.11 (27.05)
  3 Spitz, Ayla      SO CAL               4:40.28    4:38.05 B       27  
             25.57        53.30 (27.73)
        1:21.47 (28.17)     1:49.69 (28.22)
        2:18.01 (28.32)     2:46.12 (28.11)
        3:14.32 (28.20)     3:42.35 (28.03)
        4:10.44 (28.09)     4:38.05 (27.61)
  4 Neumann, Robin   SR CAL               4:39.92    4:39.96 B       26  
             25.60        53.71 (28.11)
        1:22.11 (28.40)     1:50.43 (28.32)
        2:18.69 (28.26)     2:46.64 (27.95)
        3:14.82 (28.18)     3:43.03 (28.21)
        4:11.61 (28.58)     4:39.96 (28.35)
  5 Gormley, Isabel  FR STAN              4:45.65    4:41.34 B       25  
             26.07        54.08 (28.01)
        1:22.54 (28.46)     1:51.15 (28.61)
        2:19.60 (28.45)     2:48.06 (28.46)
        3:16.52 (28.46)     3:44.67 (28.15)
        4:12.98 (28.31)     4:41.34 (28.36)
  6 Dimeco, Sarah    SO CAL               4:44.63    4:41.91 B       24  
             25.70        53.50 (27.80)
        1:21.92 (28.42)     1:50.49 (28.57)
        2:19.06 (28.57)     2:47.48 (28.42)
        3:16.07 (28.59)     3:44.79 (28.72)
        4:13.72 (28.93)     4:41.91 (28.19)
  7 Klinker, Rachel  SO CAL               4:43.86    4:42.99 B       23  
             25.96        53.94 (27.98)
        1:22.11 (28.17)     1:50.74 (28.63)
        2:19.21 (28.47)     2:47.80 (28.59)
        3:16.55 (28.75)     3:45.45 (28.90)
        4:14.35 (28.90)     4:42.99 (28.64)
  8 Pitzer, Lauren   SR STAN              4:46.41    4:48.38         22  
             26.45        55.18 (28.73)
        1:24.49 (29.31)     1:53.71 (29.22)
        2:23.07 (29.36)     2:52.01 (28.94)
        3:21.27 (29.26)     3:50.51 (29.24)
        4:19.76 (29.25)     4:48.38 (28.62)

200 Individual Medley

The head-to-head duel between Cal and Stanford continued in the 200 individual medley as the Bears followed the Cardinal’s one-two finish in the 500 freestyle with a top-two showing of their own. Alicia Wilson turned in a wire-to-wire victory, ultimately stopping the clock in 1:53.65 for a two-plus-second win over Cal freshman Isabelle Stadden (1:55.80).

Wilson opened with a butterfly split of 24.67, the fastest in the field, and never looked back. She went through the midway point in 53.25 and expanded her lead with a 32.92 breaststroke split, which was easily the fastest of the eight finalists. For good measure, she came home in 27.48, recording another split faster than any other athlete in the final.

Stadden, who figures to be a major force later in the meet in the backstroke events, grabbed second place ahead of Southern California’s Isabelle Odgers, who took third in 1:56.51. Stanford continued to pile up the points as Hannah Kukurugya (1:56.67) and Janelle Rudolph (1:58.01) were fourth and fifth.

 Event 6  Women 200 Yard IM
=========================================================================
         NCAA: N 1:50.67  3/15/2018 Ella Eastin, Stanford
       PAC-12: M 1:50.67  2018      Ella Eastin, Stanford
 PAC-12 Champ: P 1:52.26  2012      Katinka Kosszu, USC
                 1:53.66  A Standard
                 1:59.94  B Standard
    Name           Year School            Prelims     Finals       Points 
=========================================================================
                       === Championship Finals ===                       
 
  1 Wilson, Alicia   JR CAL               1:55.97    1:53.65 A       32  
             24.67        53.25 (28.58)
        1:26.17 (32.92)     1:53.65 (27.48)
  2 Stadden, Isabel  FR CAL               1:57.99    1:55.80 B       28  
             25.36        53.58 (28.22)
        1:28.12 (34.54)     1:55.80 (27.68)
  3 Odgers, Isabell  JR USC               1:56.53    1:56.51 B       27  
             25.12        54.82 (29.70)
        1:28.35 (33.53)     1:56.51 (28.16)
  4 Kukurugya, Hann  SR STAN              1:58.71    1:56.67 B       26  
             25.33        55.05 (29.72)
        1:29.03 (33.98)     1:56.67 (27.64)
  5 Rudolph, Janell  FR STAN              1:58.71    1:58.01 B       25  
             26.32        55.35 (29.03)
        1:30.31 (34.96)     1:58.01 (27.70)
  6 Bartel, Zoe      JR STAN              1:58.70    1:58.03 B       24  
             25.79        55.43 (29.64)
        1:29.24 (33.81)     1:58.03 (28.79)
  7 Smith, Delaney   JR UCLA              1:59.29    1:58.47 B       23  
             26.54        56.14 (29.60)
        1:30.29 (34.15)     1:58.47 (28.18)
  8 Kinsey, Hallie   JR USC               1:59.00    2:00.22         22  
             24.81        55.08 (30.27)
        1:30.86 (35.78)     2:00.22 (29.36)

50 Freestyle

At least for one event, the Blue Bloods of the conference, Stanford and Cal, were not the headliners as Washington State’s Chloe Larson emerged victorious in the 50 freestyle. Larson checked in with a winning time of 22.18 and became the first swimmer not from Stanford or Cal to earn a conference crown in 2021.

Claire Grover of UCLA, Eloise Riley of Cal and Kaitlyn Dobler of USC posted a rare, three-way tie for second, as each woman touched in 22.24. There was also a tie for fifth place as Anicka Delgado of USC and Anya Goeders of Stanford had matching times of 22.28.

 Event 7  Women 50 Yard Freestyle
=========================================================================
         NCAA: N 20.90  12/5/2019 Abbey Weitzeil, CAL
       PAC-12: M 20.90  2019      Abbey Weitzeil, CAL
 PAC-12 Champ: P 21.03  2020      Abbey Weitzeil, CAL
                 21.66  A Standard
                 22.76  B Standard
    Name           Year School            Prelims     Finals       Points 
=========================================================================
                       === Championship Finals ===                       
 
  1 Larson, Chloe    SR WSU                 22.16      22.18 B       32  
             10.63        22.18 (11.55)
  2 Grover, Claire   JR UCLA                22.41      22.24 B       27  
             10.60        22.24 (11.64)
  2 Riley, Eloise    SO CAL                 22.09      22.24 B       27  
             10.97        22.24 (11.27)
  2 Dobler, Kaitlyn  FR USC                 22.31      22.24 B       27  
             10.78        22.24 (11.46)
  5 Delgado, Anicka  FR USC                 22.43      22.28 B       24.5
             10.84        22.28 (11.44)
  5 Goeders, Anya    JR STAN                22.26      22.28 B       24.5
             10.69        22.28 (11.59)
  7 Fackenthal, Ama  JR STAN                22.29      22.32 B       22.5
             10.84        22.32 (11.48)
  7 Garcia, Elise    JR CAL                 22.11      22.32 B       22.5
             10.79        22.32 (11.53)

200 Freestyle Relay

Make it three relay victories in as many attempts for Cal, as the Bears easily won the 200 freestyle relay. The quartet of Eloise Riley, Emily Gantriis, Elise Garcia and Isabel Ivey combined for a winning effort of 1:26.84, which was nearly a second quicker than the 1:27.81 mark of Stanford. Ivey, who presumably will attempt an individual double later in the meet, handled the anchor duties in 21.14.

Stanford utilized its depth and a strong all-around day to leap into first place in the team standings, and relied on the team of Anya Goeders, Amalie Fackenthal, Lauren Green and Emma Wheal in the sprint relay. Meanwhile, USC was third with freshman Kaitlyn Dobler leading off in 22.26 for the Trojans.

 Event 8  Women 200 Yard Freestyle Relay
==================================================================================
         NCAA: N 1:24.55  3/21/2019 University of California-Berk
                          M. Murphy, K. McLaughlin, A. Bilquist, A. Weitzel
       PAC-12: M 1:24.55  2019      University of California-Berk
                          M. Murphy, K. McLaughlin, A. Bliquist, A. Weitzel
 PAC-12 Champ: P 1:25.87  2018      University of California-Berk
                          M. Murphy, A Bilquist, K McLaughlin, A Weitzeil
                 1:28.43  A Standard
                 1:29.21  B Standard
    School                           Seed     Finals       Points 
==================================================================================
  1 CAL  'A'                      1:27.57    1:26.84 A       64  
     1) Riley, Eloise SO              2) r:0.36 Gantriis, Emily FR    
     3) r:0.27 Garcia, Elise JR       4) r:0.31 Ivey, Isabel JR       
             22.33        43.98 (21.65)
        1:05.70 (21.72)     1:26.84 (21.14)
  2 STAN  'A'                     1:28.32    1:27.81 A       56  
     1) Goeders, Anya JR              2) r:+0.0 Fackenthal, Amalie JR 
     3) r:0.25 Green, Lauren SR       4) r:0.30 Wheal, Emma SO        
             22.46        44.13 (21.67)
        1:06.24 (22.11)     1:27.81 (21.57)
  3 USC  'A'                      1:29.73    1:28.42 A       54  
     1) Dobler, Kaitlyn FR            2) r:0.33 Schlicht, Jemma SR    
     3) r:0.34 Ciesla, Marta SR       4) r:0.12 Delgado, Anicka FR    
             22.26        44.25 (21.99)
        1:06.61 (22.36)     1:28.42 (21.81)
  4 ARIZ  'A'                     1:29.16    1:29.83         52  
     1) Filipek, Kayla SR             2) r:0.12 Connor, Alayna JR     
     3) r:0.32 Stone, Jamie SR        4) r:0.26 Heimstead, Julia FR   
             22.88        45.06 (22.18)
        1:07.47 (22.41)     1:29.83 (22.36)
  5 UCLA  'A'                     1:30.06    1:30.02         50  
     1) Grover, Claire JR             2) r:0.24 Kosturos, Sophia SO   
     3) r:0.22 Dang, Gabby SO         4) r:0.04 Schaffer, Brooke SO   
             22.27        45.03 (22.76)
        1:07.59 (22.56)     1:30.02 (22.43)
  6 UTAH  'A'                     1:32.23    1:31.30         48  
     1) Woznick, Madeline SO          2) r:0.13 Cathcart, Reagan FR   
     3) Reimer, Audrey JR             4) r:0.28 Miller, Kayla SO      
             22.90        45.63 (22.73)
        1:08.39 (22.76)     1:31.30 (22.91)
  7 WSU  'A'                      1:34.12    1:31.75         46  
     1) Larson, Chloe SR              2) r:0.37 Grotte, Hailey FR     
     3) r:0.17 Gardner, Paige JR      4) r:0.36 Ward, Emily FR        
             22.57        45.69 (23.12)
        1:08.59 (22.90)     1:31.75 (23.16)
 -- CAL  'B'                      1:34.14   x1:29.60        
     1) Davidson, Emma SO             2) r:0.32 Neumann, Robin SR     
     3) r:0.29 Wilson, Alicia JR      4) r:0.34 Stadden, Isabelle FR  
             23.44        45.74 (22.30)
        1:07.68 (21.94)     1:29.60 (21.92)
 -- STAN  'B'                     1:34.14   x1:30.04        
     1) Rudolph, Janelle FR           2) r:0.27 Volpenhein, Ashley SR 
     3) r:0.16 Tankersley, Morgan JR  4) r:0.26 Pitzer, Lauren SR     
             22.87        45.24 (22.37)
        1:07.37 (22.13)     1:30.04 (22.67)
 -- UCLA  'B'                     1:34.26   x1:31.84        
     1) Rhee, Rachel SO               2) r:0.24 Murphy, Crystal FR    
     3) r:0.37 Clarkowski, Nora FR    4) r:0.36 Wright, Madeleine FR  
             23.11        45.81 (22.70)
        1:08.76 (22.95)     1:31.84 (23.08)
 -- ARIZ  'B'                     1:34.13   x1:33.21        
     1) Anderson, Grace FR            2) r:0.25 Burt, Maddy FR        
     3) r:0.39 Neser, Jade SO         4) r:0.40 Dikeman, Skylar FR    
             23.19        46.34 (23.15)
        1:09.92 (23.58)     1:33.21 (23.29)

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