JACKSONVILLE, Florida, October 1. THE always digitally aware head coach of Bolles, Sergio Lopez, made sure the world could see the amazing swims put down by Clay High School’s Caeleb Dressel during the weekend at the FSPA Invitational.
Lopez keeps up one of the stronger coach-posted blogs in the world of swimming, and he wrote about the FSPA Invite this weekend, posting the amazing videos.
Dressel surged to a 19.36 to claim victory in the splash-and-dash finale. That performance bettered the national and public high school record previously held by Vlad Morozov of Torrance High with a 19.43 relay leadoff in May 2010. Ryan Murphy still owns the independent school mark with a 19.54 relay leadoff from last November’s Bolles School onslaught on all the national high school records.
Notably, Dressel also took down the U.S. 17-18 National Age Group record in the event. Seth Stubblefield had previously held that record with a 19.41 since 2012.
50 free Caeleb Dressel 19.36
Just one event later, Dressel scorched the 100-yard fly with the first sub-46 in high school swimming history. He blasted the finale in 45.89, splitting the race 21.60 out and 24.29 back. That performance but nearly a second off the national public school record of 46.71 set by Connor Black of Mundelein in February of this year. His swim also beat Bolles’ Joseph Schooling’s overall and independent school mark of 46.50.
Before coming into today, Dressel’s previous best in the 100 fly had been a 47.77 at the 2013 NCSA Junior Nationals. That’s nearly a two second drop today as the sizzling swimmer continues to develop into one of the scariest young swimmers coming out of the United States. His time today is the fastest by a 17-and-under ever, and is the second-fastest swim by an 18-and-under ever.
Only Tom Shields has been faster with a 44.91 17-18 U.S. National Age Group record from the 2010 NCAA Division I Championships. Only Olympian Ian Crocker has also cleared 46 seconds as a teenager, having posted a 45.96 for Texas at the 2001 NCAA Division I Championships.
Notably, Schooling lowered his independent school mark with a second-place 46.20 tonight behind Dressel. He split the swim 21.72 out and 24.48 coming back.
100 fly Caeleb Dressel 45.89, Joseph Schooling 46.20