OKLAHOMA CITY – Aggie’s Breeja Larson and Badger’s Cody Miller both shined in the 100-yard breast at the American Energy Elite Pro-Am tonight.
Aggie’s Breeja Larson blasted the women’s 100-yard breast with a sizzling time of 57.76. That’s not quite her American record of 57.23 from the 2014 NCAA Championships, but it is among the top 10 times ever. It actually ties Larson’s 2014 SEC time as well as Emily McClellan’s 57.76 from NCAAs earlier this year for ninth all time.
Pinecrest’s Martha McCabe took second tonight in 1:00.21 with McClellan taking third in 1:01.07.
Badger’s Cody Miller followed with his own impressive swim in the men’s 100-yard breast. He scorched the finale in 51.14. That’s well under his personal best of 51.50 from the 2013 Big Ten Championships for Indiana. That puts him third all time in the event behind only Kevin Cordes (50.04) and Damir Dugonjic (50.86).
GPAC’s Brendan McHugh also turned up the heat in the finale with a 51.68. That’s his first time under 52 seconds as he crushed his previous best of 52.53 to move to seventh all time. Scottsdale’s Carl Mickelson placed third overall in 52.63.
Club Wolverine’s Miguel Ortiz moved into the top 15 all time in the men’s 100-yard fly with a 45.17 for the win. That swim put him 14th on the list, clearing his 45.28 from the Minneapolis stop of the Arena Grand Prix.
Dax Hill finished second in 46.55 with 15-year-old pro Michael Andrew clocking a third-place 47.87. Andrew has been faster with a 46.95 as a 14-year-old to set the 13-14 U.S. National Age Group record. Since then, he’s been looking for a second 46-second performance.
Stanford’s Maya DiRado downed her lifetime best in the women’s 200-yard free with a time of 1:43.76 for the win. That swim cleared her 2012 personal best of 1:44.27 set as a relay leadoff for Stanford during the NCAA Championships. Megan Romano, now representing New York Athletics, took second in 1:44.43 with Ohio State’s Sam Cheverton taking second in 1:47.72.
DiRado doubled up with a 4:03.26 in the women’s 400-yard IM for the win. She’s been much faster in season with a 4:00.88 at the Art Adamson meet in 2013, but she had more than enough for the win tonight.
St. Petersburg’s Melanie Margalis finished second tonight in 4:05.56 with Club Wolverine’s Emily Brunemann placing third in 4:18.23.
Dax Hill, swimming unattached, won a head-to-head battle with California’s Nathan Adrian in the men’s 200-yard free. Hill clocked a 1:33.15 for the win, a bit off the 1:32.56 he clocked here last year. Adrian, more focused as a sprinter but who has been dabbling in the 200 free recently, took second in 1:33.18. That’s just off his winning time of 1:32.83 at Winter Nationals. Club Wolverine’s Bobby Hurley took third overall in 1:33.51.
Stanford’s Felicia Lee won the women’s 100-yard fly by nearly a second with a 51.57. That’s an in-season best by a long shot, better than the 52.46 she clocked at the Art Adamson Invitational in 2013. Longhorn’s Lisa Boyce touched second in 52.28 with Auburn’s Lara Jackson taking third in 53.06.
Darian Townsend, repping New York Athletics, took the men’s 400-yard IM crown with a time of 3:40.98. Club Wolverine’s Kyle Whitaker took second in 3:41.33 with The Woodlands’ Mike McBroom racing to third in 3:49.57.
The 400-yard free relays closed out the night.
Charger’s Sarah Lott (51.90), Chrysten Pacheco (53.54), Jacqueline Matsko (54.25) and Natalie Jones (51.86) won the women’s 400-yard free relay in 3:31.55.
Razorback’s Eun Sol Chon (53.96), Hayley Pike (54.21), Carly Holland (52.65) and Martina Thomas (51.00) placed second in 3:31.82, while Central Arkansas’ Kimberly Ernhart (52.39), Isabella Gati (52.94), Andrea Bond (55.64) and Lindsey Butler (54.03) placed third in 3:35.00.
American Energy’s Jonathan Ye (47.73), Josh Davis (45.89), Joseph Short (47.82), and Alan Tran (49.19) claimed the men’s 400-yard free relay with a 3:10.63.
Badger’s Liu Haofeng (50.35), Liam Egan (47.88), Josh Hendell (48.59) and Ian Bidwell (48.65) finished second in 3:15.47. Central Arkansas’ Joshua Sorvillo (48.61), Joseph Sullivan (49.19), Jacob Toland (49.07) and Charlie Taylor (49.26) picked up third in 3:16.13.
Editor’s Note: The meet is one of two dueling Oklahoma City-based Elite Pro-Ams this weekend. John Brown, the original head coach and founder of the meet when it began more than 20 years ago, has since moved on from the Kerr-McGee, then Chesapeake, and now American Energy Swim Club to the King Marlin Swim Club. He is hosting an alternate version of the meet at the Oklahoma City Community College, the historic hosts of the fun winter-based short course yard professional event. Meanwhile, the meet’s founding club, American Energy is hosting this meet of the 23rd annual Oklahoma Elite Pro-Am at the Mitch Park YMCA with Josh Davis at the forefront of the event.
Results: American Energy Elite Pro-Am