COLUMBUS, Ohio, March 21. STANFORD's Julia Smit improved upon her standing as the third-fastest 400-yard IMer in history at the NCAA Division I Women's Championships.
Smit came within a whisker of wiping Summer Sanders from the NCAA record book with a time of 4:02.41. Smit had previously owned a best time of 4:04.02 to stand as the third-fastest of all time. She improved her lot with a 4:02.41 to stand behind only Katie Hoff's American-record 4:00.66 and Sanders' NCAA-record 4:02.28.
That gave Stanford its fourth title in the event to tie with Southern California for third all time. Sanders had been the last Stanford swimmer to win when she went back-to-back in 1991-92 with times of 4:05.19 and 4:02.28. Before that, Janet Evans won in 1990 with a 4:07.59.
Auburn's Ava Ohlgren couldn't defend her title, but still dropped a best time with a 4:04.07, better than her 4:04.08 to win last year. The 4:04.07 now stands as the seventh-fastest ever in the event.
Washington's Ariana Kukors rounded out the top three with a lightning fast 4:04.82, the 15th-quickest time ever.
At the completion of the event, Arizona remained in first with 191 points, while Auburn cut the gap with a second-place 177. Stanford (134), Texas A&M (133) and California (119) completed the top five.