Editorial coverage for U.S. Senior Nationals proudly sponsored by Master Spas!
IRVINE, California, August 10.
The top two 200 IMers in history unleashed a pair of incredible IMs this evening in what was a powerhouse finale. SwimMAC’s Ryan Lochte went out hard and held off a hard-charging Michael Phelps, in what is a race strategy we’ve all seen a billion times before. Lochte charged his way to the win in 1:56.50, while Phelps took second in 1:56.55. Those are the top two times in the world behind only Kosuke Hagino’s 1:55.38 from the Japanese Nationals. The two will look to put up even faster times in Australia.
Comparative splits:
Lochte:
24.91, 53.97 (29.06), 1:27.74 (33.77), 1:56.50 (28.76)Phelps:
25.50, 55.33 (29.83), 1:29.34 (34.01), 1:56.55 (27.21)
SwimMAC’s Tyler Clary had a strong third-place finish with a 1:57.94 to move to a ninth-ranked tie with Chad le Clos, while NBAC’s Conor Dwyer placed fourth in 1:58.03. Dwyer was faster this morning with a 1:57.41.
NBAC’s Chase Kalisz (1:58.85), California’s Josh Prenot (1:59.09), Club Wolverine’s Kyle Whitaker (1:59.44) and SwimMAC’s Ty Stewart (2:01.25) also made the podium as part of the finale.
Dynamo’s Gunnar Bentz blasted the B final with a sizzling time of 1:59.19. That swim vaulted him to 18th in the world rankings. Stanford’s Max Williamson placed second with a time of 2:00.12, while NCAP’s Andrew Seliskar touched third in 2:00.22.
Dynamo’s Jay Litherland touched out North Texas’ Jonathan Roberts by the slimmest of margins, 2:01.95 to 2:01.96, for the C final win. Nitro’s Sean Grieshop picked up third in an equally close finish against BlueFish’s Connor Green, 2:02.60 to 2:02.61.
