Cards Shine on Day Two of 2017 Winter National Championships

Thursday, November 30

Columbus, Ohio

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University of Louisville

USA Winter Nationals

Cards Shine on Day Two of 2017 Winter National Championships

November 30, 2017 | Swimming & Diving

UofL earned seven podium finishes on the second night of competition.

By: Kylie Klotzbach

The University of Louisville men's and women's swimming teams continued to build momentum throughout the second day of competition at the 2017 Winter National Championships, racing their way to seven podium finishes and two automatic NCAA qualifying times.

To kick off the evening, Mallory Comerford earned her third individual automatic NCAA qualifying time of the season with a second place finish in the 500 free in a time of 4:35.78. Sophie Cattermole also swam in the championship final in the 500 free, racing to a fourth place finish with a time of 4:40.99. In the consolation final, freshman Arina Openysheva had a strong showing for the Cards, placing 11th with a 4:47.22.

Marcelo Acosta was the top finisher for the Cards in the men's 500 free, earning a fourth place finish with a 4:16.35. In the consolation final, the trio of Jarrett Jones (4:21.22), Zach Harting (4:21.41), and T.C. Smith (4:22.01) posted a 1-2-3 finish, all dropping considerable time from their morning swims. Samuel Steele (4:23.31) and Spencer Carl (4:34.10) also earned spots in the 500 free finals, placing 17th and 24th respectively.

Freshman standout Mariia Astashkina swam her way to a podium finish in the 200 IM, taking third in a 1:57.06. Rachael Bradford-Feldman was just behind in fifth with a 1:57.62, while Andrea Cottrell touched eighth (1:59.01). Three Cardinals swam in the 200 IM consolation final, led by Alina Kendzior (1:59.40) in 10th. Grace Oglesby followed in 11th with a time of 1:59.92, and Morgan Friesen was 15th in a 2:01.88. In the bonus final, Gracie Long dropped nearly two seconds from her morning swim to win in a time of 2:00.63, while Carley Lowe was 22nd with a 2:03.26.

On the men's side, Carlos Claverie touched seventh in the championship final of the 200 IM in a time of 1:45.70. The Cards once again swept the top three spots in the consolation final as Nicolas Albiero (1:46.55), Jonathan Zoucha (1:46.63), and Etay Gurevich (1:46.95) placed ninth, 10th, and 11th overall.

The women's 50 free championship final featured four Cardinals in eight of the available lanes. Comerford continued her stellar performance with her second podium finish of the evening, placing third with a 21.88. Kelsi Worrell Dahlia (21.98), Casey Fanz (22.04), and Lainey Visscher (22.22) took the fourth, fifth, and sixth spots of the event. In her second swim of the finals session, Openysheva was 12th in the 50 free with a time of 22.75, and Avery Braunecker touched the wall in 18th with a 22.82.

Andrej Barna posted the highest finish for the Cards in the men's 50 free, taking third and eclipsing the 20-second barried with a time of 19.44. Rounding out the 50 free competitors for UofL were Grigory Tarasevich in 12th (20.15), Mate Kovacs in 21st (20.44), and Abel Aulbach in 23rd (20.59).

In the final event of the evening, the Lady Cards once again went 1-2 in the 400 Medley Relay. The 'A' team of Alina Kendzior (53.26), Astashkina (1:00.32), Oglesby (51.83), and Comerford (46.51) sprinted to the top spot with an automatic NCAA qualifying time of 3:31.92. With a time of 3:33.94, Ashlyn Schoof (53.38), Friesen (1:00.51), Nastja Govejsek (52.22), and Fanz (47.83) placed second.

The men's 400 medley relay team of Albiero (47.59), Claverie (51.96), Harting (46.51), and Barna (42.67) finished second to an all-Olympian California Aquatics squad with a time of 3:08.73. Nikkos Sofianidis (47.10), Zoucha (54.44), Carl (50.06), and Kovacs (44.13) took fifth in a 3:15.73.

The 2017 Winter National Championships will resume competition tomorrow morning at 9 a.m. ET with the prelims of the 400 IM, 100 fly, 200 free, 100 breast, and 100 back.