Lithuania’s Ruta Meilutyte was one of several international athletes to claim victory Saturday night at the 2018 Fran Crippen Memorial SMOC in Mission Viejo, CA. Meilutyte blasted to victory in the women’s 50 breast, while 16-year-old Chinese superstar Li Bingjie added the 200 free to her list of victories.
Women’s 200 Free
China’s Li Bingjie continued her quest to dominate the mid-distance and distance freestyle events by collecting a victory in the women’s 200 free. The 16-year-old turned in a time of 1:56.93, while fellow 16-year-old teammates Yang Junxuan (1:58.04) and Yanhan Al (1:58.44) rounded out the podium.
Li’s time improves upon her ninth-place world ranking of 1:56.96 from the Austin stop of the TYR Pro Swim Series.
Men’s 200 Free
Blake Pieroni grabbed the victory in the men’s 200 free, delivering a final time of 1:48.80 to scrape 3.20 seconds off his prelims time of 1:52.00.
Stanford’s Grant Shoults took second overall with a time of 1:49.76, followed by China’s Qiu Ziao with a time of 1:50.23.
Women’s 200 Back
Minnesota’s Tevyn Waddell and China’s Jiang Yuru battled for victory till the final touch in the women’s 200 back final. Waddell managed to touch ahead of Jiang in the slimmest of margins: .01 seconds. She took home gold with a 2:14.01, while Jiang settled for second and a 2:14.02.
Kendyl Stewart finished a close third with a time of 2:14.15.
Men’s 200 Back
Josiah Binnema of UBC Thunderbird Swim Club dominated the men’s 200 back, finishing more than three seconds ahead of the competition with a time of 2:01.15.
University of Calgary’s Robert Hill grabbed second with a time of 2:04.25, just ahead of Cascade’s Cole Pratt’s 2:05.45.
Women’s 400 IM
SoCal’s Samantha Shelton posted a narrow victory in the women’s 400 IM over Trojan Swim Club’s Haley Anderson. Shelton picked up the win with a time of 4:48.46, shaving an astonishing 10.69 seconds off her prelims time of 4:59.15.
Anderson was second overall with a time of 4:48.61, while UBC Thunderbird’s Emily Overholt turned in a 4:50.35 for third.
Men’s 400 IM
Wang Yizhe of China topped the competition in the men’s 400 IM, stopping the clock at a time of 4:17.78.
Phoenix Swim Club’s Takeharu Fujimori picked up second overall with a 4:18.85, followed by Etobicoke’s Tristan Cote and his time of 4:22.81.
Women’s 50 Breast
Lithuanian Olympian Ruta Meilutyte, currently swimming for Trojan Swim Club, topped the competition in finals of the women’s 50 breast shootouts. Meilutyte posted a 31.34 to claim the gold, but her 2018 fastest stands at a 30.75 from earlier in the spring.
New York Athletic Club’s Breeja Larson grabbed second with a 31.45, followed by University of Calgary’s Rachel Nicol’s 31.80.
Men’s 50 Breast
Stanford’s Matt Anderson led a trio of men under the 29-second mark in the final of the men’s 50 breast, posting a winning time of 28.84.
Trojan’s Mario Koenigsperger delivered a 28.92 for second, just ahead of Barking and Dagenham’s Lewis Clifford-Stephenson’s 28.94.
Women’s 50 Free
Cal’s Katie McLaughlin splashed to victory in the women’s 50 free, touching in a final time of 25.54.
Isabella Arcila Hurtado of Mission Viejo posted a second place finish of 25.76, while Trojan’s Anika Apostalon was third with a time of 26.06.
Men’s 50 Free
Michael Chadwick was victorious in the men’s splash and dash, stopping the clock at a final time of 22.61.
Sid Farber, swimming unattached, delivered a 22.72 for second, followed by UBC Thunderbird’s Yuri Kisil’s 22.77 for third.
All results can be found on Meet Mobile – 2018 CA MVN Fran Crippen Memorial SMOC
