AUSTIN, Texas, July 13. BEST known for his wide array of backstroke accomplishments, ranging from Olympic titles to world records to world championships, Aaron Peirsol put on a show in another realm Friday night. Competing at the Texas Senior Circuit Championships, Peirsol cracked the two-minute barrier in the 200 butterfly.
The reigning Olympic champ in the 100 and 200 backstroke events and the only man in history to crack the 53-second barrier in the 100 back, Peirsol clocked 1:59.66 in the 200 butterfly. The swim supplied a win over Longhorn Aquatics teammate Michael Klueh, who registered a fine performance of 2:00.53. More, the effort was proof of Peirsol's versatility, which sometimes goes overlooked. Should he desire, there's little doubt Peirsol could be an international player in the 200 freestyle and 200 individual medley.
While Peirsol wowed the crowd in the 200 fly, Neil Walker led a Longhorn sweep of the top four places in the men's 50 freestyle. The Olympian clocked in at 22.65, faster than the 22.95 of Garrett Weber-Gale and the 23.00 of Ian Crocker. Matt Lowe went 23.75 for fourth place. In the 200 breaststroke events, Micah Lawrence (Texas Gold) was the female winner behind a performance of 2:33.98, slightly quicker than the 2:34.47 of Alexi Spann (Longhorn). For the men, Lowe covered his four laps in 2:19.82.
Longhorn Aquatics' Matt McGinnis and Sean Patton battled it out in the men's 400 freestyle, with McGinnis prevailing in 3:56.06. McGinnis led Patton from the start, but was forced to hold off his hard-charging teammate, who touched in 3:56.12. Meanwhile, Cammile Adams won the 400 freestyle (4:19.09) and the 200 butterfly (2:14.18). The women's 50 free went to Triin Aljand (Aggie) in 25.84.