YMCA Nationals: Anna Moesch Swims Y-National Record in 200 Freestyle at 1:43.35
The top swimmer in YMCA swimming kicked off her final short course national meet with two swift relay splits plus a third-place finish in the 100 butterfly. In Thursday’s action, Greater Somerset County’s Anna Moesch shined with a win in the 200 freestyle plus another swift relay split in a victorious effort.
Moesch clocked a time of 1:43.35 in the 200 free, crushing the Y-National record (and previous personal best) of 1:44.10 she set two years ago. That time would have placed in the middle of the B-final at last month’s NCAA Championships, and when Moesch arrives at the University of Virginia next season, she will be in position to both score in her individual events and play a key role on the Cavaliers’ relays, including the 800 free relay.
Later in the evening, Moesch swam the second leg of Greater Somerset’s 200 free relay, with a 21.33 split that was just off the 21.23 she clocked anchoring Wednesday’s 200 medley relay. Moesch teamed with Colleen Bull, Victoria Castro and Emily Thompson to win the event in 1:30.37.
Thompson was also an individual winner Thursday, posting a victory of almost seven seconds in the 400 IM one day after winning the 100 fly. Thompson clocked 4:08.28 in the medley. The other girls’ winner was Schroeder’s Alana Berlin, who clocked 52.01 for the top spot in the 100 backstroke.
In boys’ racing, Greater Somerset’s Garrett Gould added to his 100 fly win with a come-from-behind triumph in the 100 back. Gould clocked 47.10 to finish 12-hundredths clear of Schroeder’s Sam Lorenz (47.22). Birmingham’s Angus MacDonald finished about three seconds clear of the field in the 400 IM with a time of 3:49.06, and Cheshire’s Damian Czartoryjski blasted the third 50 to take the win in the 200 free in 1:37.49.
To conclude the session, Ridley Area’s team of Shane Eckler, Jonathan Hoole, Alex Chan and Jake Kennedy picked up the win in the 200 free relay in 1:20.25, with both Hoole and Kennedy splitting under 20 in the victorious effort.