Women’s NCAA Championships Pre-Cut Psych Sheet; Regan Smith Top Seed in Three Events, Lia Thomas Tops in Two

Regan Smith -- Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick

Pre-Cut Psych Sheet Released for Women’s NCAA Championships; Regan Smith Top Seed in Three Events

The pre-cut psych sheets for the upcoming women’s NCAA Championships were released Tuesday morning. These are not the final entry lists for the meet, which will be held March 16-19 at McAuley Aquatic Center in Atlanta, as only a select number of athletes will be invited to compete in each event, but the top seeds for each event will remain unchanged.

Typically, that number of swimmers invited for each event is somewhere between 36 and 41 invitees, depending on the number of swimmers entered above the cut-line in more than one event, and swimmers invited in one event may compete in other races where they have B-cuts. The official psych sheet (including cut-lines in each event and a list of alternates in order of priority) will be released Wednesday.

The only swimmer to earn the No. 1 seed in three individual events is Stanford freshman Regan Smith, who leads the way in the 100 backstroke, 200 backstroke and 200 butterfly. Smith will go for the grueling 200 back-200 fly double on the final day of the meet, and she looks to be in strong form as she barely missed her own American record in the 100 back by just seven hundredths at the Pac-12 Championships last week.

The unofficial psych sheet includes Penn’s Lia Thomas, a transgender female swimmer who has been the subject of controversy this season as those around the sport have debated the fairness of her competing against cisgender females. Thomas ranks first in the nation entering the meet in the 200 and 500 freestyle, and she is 10th in the 100 free.

• Pre-Cut Psych Sheet

Versatile Virginia swimmers Kate Douglass and Alex Walsh had numerous events to choose from given their range across a wide variety of strokes and distances, and with entries finalized, each will be skipping at least one event in which they have the top time in the nation. Douglass will compete in the 50 free (seeded first), 100 fly (fourth) and 200 breast (first), while Walsh will swim the 200 IM (first), 400 IM (second) and 200 fly (fifth).

Walsh became the second-fastest swimmer in the 200 breast at the ACC Championships, but without her in the field at NCAAs, Douglass will be the favorite to win the title in that event. Similarly, Douglass is ranked first in the country in both the 200 IM and 100 free, but her absence from the 200 IM will allow teammate Walsh to enter as the favorite, while another UVA swimmer, Gretchen Walsh, will be seeded first in the 100 free.

U.S. Olympian and Stanford freshman Torri Huske will enter her first NCAA Championships seeded first in the 100 fly, second in the 200 IM and third in the 100 free, while 100-meter fly Olympic gold medalist Maggie Mac Neil is slated to swim the 100 fly (seeded second), 50 free (seeded third) and 100 free (seeded first). Mac Neil is the reigning NCAA champion in the 100 fly and 100 free, and the showdown between Mac Neil, Huske and Douglass in the 100 fly could be one of the best races of the meet.

Other defending champions entered in the meet include Stanford’s Brooke Forde in the 400 IM and NC State’s Sophie Hansson in both breaststroke events. Out of 13 individual events, a Stanford swimmer is the top seed in five, while Virginia holds pole position in four, along with four of the five relays (with Stanford ranked first in the fifth relay).

Schedule of Events and Top-Seeded Swimmers

Wednesday, March 16

200 Medley Relay: Virginia, 1:31.81
800 Freestyle Relay: Stanford, 6:50.21

Thursday, March 17

500 Freestyle: Lia Thomas (Penn), 4:34.06
200 IM: Alex Walsh (Virginia), 1:52.38
50 Freestyle: Kate Douglass (Virginia), 21.00
200 Freestyle Relay: Virginia, 1:24.47

Friday, March 18

400 IM: Brooke Forde (Stanford), 4:00.76
100 Butterfly: Torri Huske (Stanford), 49.43
200 Freestyle: Lia Thomas (Penn), 1:41.93
100 Breaststroke: Sophie Hansson (NC State), 56.72
100 Backstroke: Regan Smith (Stanford), 49.23
400 Medley Relay: Virginia, 3:22.34

Saturday, March 19

1650 Freestyle: Kristen Stege (Tennessee), 15:42.37
200 Backstroke: Regan Smith (Stanford), 1:48.91
100 Freestyle: Gretchen Walsh (Virginia), 46.86
200 Breaststroke: Kate Douglass (Virginia), 2:03.14
200 Butterfly: Regan Smith (Stanford), 1:50.99
400 Freestyle Relay: Virginia, 3:08.22

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Veritas

2 years ago

Do you know if this means Lia Thomas has submitted test results showing compliance with NCAA rules?

Ginny Johnston

2 years ago

Lia Thomas should not be competing. This is just wrong.

Veritas

2 years ago

Reply to Ginny Johnston

I agree, but my current question is just whether anyone knows if Lia has submitted test results in addition to times.

Danielle

2 years ago

Reply to Veritas

She isn’t required to meet the new guidelines, since they came out mid season. She has met the old requirements. The recent update starts next season. Otherwise Lia Thomas wouldn’t be eligible to compete

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John Lohn - Editor-in-Chief

2 years ago

Reply to Danielle

Danielle, according to the NCAA, there is a threshold that must be met for 2022 winter championships. Here is a link. The NCAA declined to answer questions today as to whether Lia Thomas will participate and whether she met the threshold.

https://ncaaorg.s3.amazonaws.com/inclusion/lgbtq/SSI_TransgenderSADeadlinesAndThresholds.pdf