BearDevil said:

---

Super stoked for Abbey, McL, Billy, and Robin. They last raced against the 'Furdettes in the 400 Free Relay in Berkeley. All were physically and emotionally spent at the end of the race. Abbey stayed in the pool for awhile and slightly struggled getting out. Awesome to see her blow away the field on her 200 Medley anchor leg.

Just wanted to get Izzy, Ema, and Maddie qualified for NCAAs this week. Looks like Izzy is now in, which is a huge relief. Teri hates to bring relay only swimmers, but may need to with Maddie and Ema if they don't get individual invites.

Top seed in the 800 Free Relay is not too shabby.

---

Did the Furds swim their top swimmers in the 800 free relay? With their depth not sure if they are moving swimmers around where some could swim only the prelims in the NCAAs.

OBear073akaSMFan said:

---

BearDevil said:

---

Top seed in the 800 Free Relay is not too shabby.

---

Did the Furds swim their top swimmers in the 800 free relay? With their depth not sure if they are moving swimmers around where some could swim only the prelims in the NCAAs.

---

Yes, Meehan & Slusser basically threw in their bona fide A team on this relay. LSJU actually swam more than 2 seconds faster than their 2018 Pac-12 Ledecky-led edition here! (and still were beaten by Cal both years )

Furdettes could have replaced Drabot's relatively subpar split with Raab's impressive one from their B squad, but still would have lost to Bears. Other options such as Voss, Nordmann, Pitzer or Byrnes wouldn't have been an upgrade, IMO.

Now one can argue that Ruck & co. don't seem to be much rested for Conference, and will surely be much faster when it really counts in March - but that's neither here or there.

Does massively highlight the importance of those phenomenal splits from McL & Amy - we always knew that Katie was more than capable of hanging in with the world's very best at this distance ever since her amazing leg for Team USA @ Worlds a number of years ago, but brill to see confirmation of her return to form & more here after that neck injury...and that massive drop for Billy, so soon after all her stress fracture injuries that had sidelined her contribution earlier this season - just wow!!!

Here are some stats for reference:

-------

*BEARS*

2018 Pac-12s - 6:52.62 -> #1
- Robin 1:43.38 (leadoff)
- Thleen 1:43.29
- Katie 1:43.29
- Billy 1:42.66

2018 NCAAs - 6:50.83 -> #3
- Robin 1:43.78 (leadoff)
- Thleen 1:42.78
- Katie 1:41.64
- Billy 1:42.63

2019 Pac-12s - 6:50.63 -> #1
- Izzy 1:44.75 (leadoff)
- Robin 1:43.04
- Katie 1:41.25
- Billy 1:41.59

-------

^Trees^

2018 Pac-12s - 6:53.86 -> #2
- Drabot 1:45.88 (lead off)
- Eastin 1:42.77
- Forde 1:44.00
- Ledecky 1:41.21

2018 NCAAs - 6:46.93 -> #1
- Drabot 1:42.99 (lead off)
- Eastin 1:41.13
- Forde 1:42.94
- Ledecky 1:39.87

2019 Pac-12s - 6:51.69 -> #2
- Ruck 1:42.80 (lead off)
- Eastin 1:42.55
- Drabot 1:44.64
- Forde 1:41.70

-------

~Wolverines~

2018 NCAAs - 6:50.03 -> #2
- Deloof C 1:43.35 (leadoff)
- Haughey 1:40.49
- Bi 1:43.88
- Deloof G 1:42.31

------

500 Free:
Robin 8th, Cass 18th

2IM:
Sarah 4th
Izzy 5th
Keeks 7th
Alicia 9th
Ema 17th

50 Free:
Abbey- 1st
Amy- 2nd
Madds- 6th
Elise- 22nd

Wow, 21.77 for Amy is a great sign, along with her swim yesterday, that she is fully healthy. Is that a PB for her.

Just a quick overview of Day 1 Prelims, with an * denoting that they'll probably be qualified with that time.

500 FREE
8. Robin Neumann SO (4:39.84 - A) *
18. Cassidy Bayer FR (4:47.32 - C)
23. Jenna Campbell SR (4:50.35 - C)
30. Elizabeth Bailey SO (4:55.56)

200 IM
4. Sarah Darcel SO (1:56.09 - A)
5. Izzy Ivey FR (1:56.14 - A)
6. Keaton Blovad JR (1:56.70 - A)
9. Alicia Wilson FR (1:57.02 - B)
17. Ema Rajic FR (1:59.05 - C)
21. Dannie Dilsaver SO (2:00.09 - C)
28. Natalie Tuck SO (2:01.82)
39. Alexa Buckley JR (2:03.67)
44. Alexa Skorus-Neely SO (2:05.04)

50 FREE
1. Abbey Weitzeil JR (21.36 - A) *A cut*
2. Amy Bilquist SR (21.77 - A) *
6. Maddie Murphy JR (22.11 - A) *
22. Elise Garcia FR (22.95 - C)
30. Aislinn Light JR (23.23)

2018 Cuts: 500 free (4:40.57) // 200 IM (1:55.99) // 50 free (22.30)
2019 Estimated Cuts: 500 free (4:40.59) // 200 IM (1:55.91) // 50 free (22.26)

tedbear said:

---

Wow, 21.77 for Amy is a great sign, along with her swim yesterday, that she is fully healthy. Is that a PB for her.

---

V. close - Billy did throw down a lifetime best of 21.74 @ 2018 Pac-12s finals after her 22.09 in the morning heats back then. That 21.77 this morning does represent an upgrade over Bilquist's 21.88 @ last year's NCAAs (B final winner) after a 21.97 @ prelims, so she's looking real good

Our 200 FR lineup tonight has to be Maddie, Amy, Katie, Abbey (in some order), in which case I'd fancy Bears' chances at a 3rd relay sweep!

May have to wait until March, but this squad is certainly capable of making a run at the Furdettes' NCAA/American record of 1:25.43 - would need Madds to dip below 22 sec from a standing start (which she has accomplished in the past), low to mid 21s flying splits from Billy & Bug (quite doable), and a mid-20s anchor from Abbey should then do the trick... :p

Getting back down to earth & reality lol, what's been really encouraging from this morning's session is Madds getting fairly safely in (to an NCAA invite) with her 50 Free prelims time, yay!

One priority remaining for securing an invite - Ema (so that Teri won't have to bring Rajic as a relay-only entry), so tomorrow's 100 Breast races will be critical.

Of course would be smashing to see Ali, Cass, Elise, Jenna & more throw down a breakout swim or two the next few days to join the party...

UrsusArctosCalifornicus said:

---

tedbear said:

---

Getting back down to earth & reality lol, what's been really encouraging from this morning's session is Madds getting fairly safely in (to an NCAA invite) with her 50 Free prelims time, yay!

---

One priority remaining for securing an invite - Ema (so that Teri won't have to bring Rajic as a relay-only entry), so tomorrow's 100 Breast races will be critical.

Couldn't agree with you more on these 2 items. Happy that Maddie looks to have gotten into the NCAA. We need her back to her freshmen year's performance (or better). Pulling for Ema big time to free up Abbey to anchor our 400MR.

---

https://swimswam.com/2019-pac-12-w-championships-day-2s-a-b-c-finalists/

"After Cal claimed both of the relay victories on day 1, the 2x defending champions Stanford rebounded nicely to claim the most finals swims for Thursday night with 17. Cal will have 13 finals swims followed by USC (12), Arizona State (10), and Arizona (10)."

HBear said:

---

https://swimswam.com/2019-pac-12-w-championships-day-2s-a-b-c-finalists/

"After Cal claimed both of the relay victories on day 1, the 2x defending champions Stanford rebounded nicely to claim the most finals swims for Thursday night with 17.

Cal will have 13 finals swims followed by USC (12), Arizona State (10), and Arizona (10)."

---

DAY 2 PRELIMS SCORES (IF SEEDS HOLD)
1. Stanford: 343.0
2. California: 225.0
3. USC: 164.0
4. Arizona State: 148.0
5. Arizona: 114.0
6. UCLA: 65.0
7. Utah: 24.0
8. Washington State: 3.0

UrsusArctosCalifornicus said:

---

1) The top to bottom depth of the LSJU squad is pretty intimidating - here's a sampling of the psych sheet *scoring* seedings (Pac-12s has a scoring C final unlike NCAAs) - and that's not taking into account their diving superiority over us (luckily, UCLA, Utah and the 2 Arizona programmes won't make it easy for the Furd there):

500 Free - 8 Furdettes (seeded #4, 5, 8, 10, 12, 16 & 18!) v. 2 Bears (#3 Robin & #23 Jenna)

2) Despite a bit of wobbliness in their sprint free & sprint fly, Stanford could well extend their lead in events where Cal traditionally has more than a modicum of success in:

200 IM - 6 Furdettes (seeded #4, 7, 8, 10, 12, 15) v. 3 Bears (#2 Alicia, #3 Sarah, #17 Ema)

50 Free - 5 Furdettes (seeded #4, 6, 8, 12, 23) v. 3 Bears ((#1 Abbey, #7 Billy, #14 Madds)

---

UrsusArctosCalifornicus said:

---

We'll need all these relay points, cos tomorrow will be the Furdettes' scoring onslaught in the 500 Free and possibly 200 IM... :p

---

Well to our Bears' credit, it won't be quite as grim as I had originally feared (other than that stacked A final for LSJU in the 500 Free haha)!

Meehan's Trees did rebound from last night's disappointments (for them lol) to put together a bunch of strong performances & season bests, but the Golden Bears responded in kind courtesy of the 200 IM & 50 Free

Here are the actual seedings from this morning's prelims for tonight's A, B & C finals, compared to the projected psych sheet seeds quoted above:

500 Free - 8 Furdettes (seeded #1, 2, 5, 6, 9, 12, 13 & 19 - ouch!) v. 3 Bears (#8 Robin, #18 Cass & #23 Jenna)

200 IM - 5 Furdettes (seeded #2, 3, 6, 10, 13) v. 6 Bears (#4 Sarah, #5 Izzy, #7 Keeks, #9 Alicia, #17 Ema, #21 Dannie)

50 Free - 4 Furdettes (seeded #5, 9, 10, 18) v. 4 Bears (#1 Abbey, #2 Billy, #6 Madds, #22 Elise)

Winning the 200 Free Relay tonight wouldn't hurt too much either... :p

UrsusArctosCalifornicus said:

---

Getting back down to earth & reality lol, what's been really encouraging from this morning's session is Madds getting fairly safely in (to an NCAA invite) with her 50 Free prelims time, yay!

---

Maddie's PB is 21.76 from NCAA's her freshman year (2017). During 2017 Pac-12s, she was 22.37 during prelims, before winning the B final in 21.96. She's already gone 22.11 this year during prelims, so if we see below 22 today during finals, I think that we have a good chance at getting the American record back. All after just a small sophomore slump (She was 22.10 at Pac-12's last year, and 22.07 at NC's after a 21.96 during prelims.

------

2019 PAC-12 WOMEN'S CHAMPIONSHIPS: DAY 2 FINALS LIVE RECAP

------

*DAY 2* FINALS

500 Free

#7 Robin - 4:39.34 (PB = 4:39.84, 2019 Pac-12s Prelims) => New PB!*
#20 Cass - 4:45.31 (prev PB = 4:47.32, 2019 Pac-12s Prelims) => New PB!*
#21 Jenna - 4:47.18 (PB = 4:45.83, 2015 May)

Tonight, Robin & Cassidy both lowered their personal records from morning heats - well done!

------

1 metre Springboard Diving (finals)

#6 Phoebe Lamay - 276.50 pts

Great contribution to the team scoring from Phoebs in the finals! (she was 8th @ morning heats)

Not sure how far down they score in the diving events - but @ prelims, Briana Thai had placed 12th, Alexa Cacao 23rd, and Kathleen Navas 25th.

UrsusArctosCalifornicus said:

---

#20 Cass - 4:45.31 (prev PB = 4:47.32, 2019 Pac-12s Prelims) => New PB!*

---

Very impressed with Cassidy's improvement curve in the 500. Consistently dropping time most times she's swam this. Hopefully next year she can continue this upwards trend and step up a final or qualify for NC's in this event.

200 IM

#2 Izzy - 1:54.31 (prev PB = 1:55.77, 2017 Nov) => New PB!*
#3 Sarah - 1:54.91 (PB = 1:54.50, 2018 Pac-12s)
#5 Keeks - 1:55.62 (PB = 1:55.72, 2018 Pac-12s) => New PB!*
#10 Alicia - 1:56.52 (PB = 1:55.77, 2018 UGA Invite)
#21 Ema - 1:58.57 (PB = 1:58.95, 2018 UGA Invite) => New PB!*
#24 Dannie - 2:00.65 (PB = 1:58.59, 2017 UGA Invite)

Quite brill - 3 lifetime bests accomplished in this event by our Bears tonight - Izz, Keeks & Ema!

Abbey and Amy go 1-2 in the 50 free!

A PB for Billy in the 50 free!! (21.68) !!!

swimmer19 said:

---

UrsusArctosCalifornicus said:

---

#20 Cass - 4:45.31 (prev PB = 4:47.32, 2019 Pac-12s Prelims) => New PB!*

---

Very impressed with Cassidy's improvement curve in the 500. Consistently dropping time most times she's swam this. Hopefully next year she can continue this upwards trend and step up a final or qualify for NC's in this event.

---

Agreed, she was a 4:52 before college. Hopefully this bodes well for her 200 fly!

UrsusArctosCalifornicus said:

---

50 Free

#1 Abbey - 21.16 (PB = 21.12 AR, 2016 Mar) => New NCAA & School record!!!**
#2 Billy - 21.64 (PB = 21.74, 2018 NCAAs) => New PB!*
#5 Madds - 22.08 (PB = 21.76, 2017 NCAAs)
#19 Elise - 22.75 (PB = 22.64, 2016 May)

So sweet that Abbey took down ex-Furdette Simone Manuel's NCAA record by 0.01... :p

---

Wasn't it taken down by Erika Brown last week at SEC's though haha
Brown VS Abbey 50 free will be a great race to watch.

bearz012 said:

---

Wasn't it taken down by Erika Brown last week at SEC's though haha
Brown VS Abbey 50 free will be a great race to watch.

---

Sorry, I got too blinking excited and ahead of meself, cheers for the sobering correction haha

Well, er maybe I was referring to the 200 FR in a few minutes where Abbey will lead off and break both Ericka's NCAA and Abbey's own American Record...?

NCAA Qualifiers List (Day 1):
1. Robin Neumann (4:39.34 - 500 free)
2. Izzy Ivey (1:54.31 - 200 IM) *A cut*
3. Sarah Darcel (1:54.91 - 200 IM)
4. Keaton Blovad (1:55.62 - 200 IM)
5. Abbey Weitzeil (21.16 - 50 free) *A cut*
6. Amy Bilquist (21.64 - 50 free) *A cut*
7. Maddie Murphy (22.08 - 50 free)

Others that have already have cuts: Katie McLaughlin, Alicia Wilson

2018 Cuts: 500 free (4:40.57) // 200 IM (1:55.99) // 50 free (22.30)
2019 Estimated Cuts: 500 free (4:40.59) // 200 IM (1:55.91) // 50 free (22.26)

---

So far we have a team of about 9, which is about (?) what we had last year. If Ema or Ali can qualify in breast, and Cassidy in the 200 fly (or even Elise in fly!), we'd have a solid group headed to Austin for NCs.

ABBEY WEITZEIL BREAKS SIMONE MANUEL'S PAC-12 RECORD IN 50 FREE


Weitzeil's time from Thursday evening is the 3rd-fastest 50 yard free in swimming history. Archive photo via Jack Spitser/Spitser Photography


Cal junior Abbey Weitzeil has broken the Pac-12 Record in the women's 50 yard freestyle with the 3rd-fastest performance in event history.

Weitzel swam a 21.16 in the final of the race on Thursday, which ranks behind only her own American and US Open Records of 21.12, which she set in 2016 during her gap year before beginning classes at Cal; and the NCAA Record of 21.15 set by Erika Brown at SECs last weekend.

Since starting college, Weitzeil's previous best time in the 50 on a flat-start is 21.36.

The old Pac-12 record belonged to Olympic gold medalist Simone Manuel, who swam 21.17 at the 2017 NCAA Championships in Indianapolis (and 21.18 at the 2018 NCAA Championships in Columbus). Manuel previously had the 3 fastest times in Pac-12 history in the event.

All-Time Top 11 Performances, Women's 50 Yard Free

[ol]

Abbey Weitzeil, Canyons Aquatic Club, 21.12 - 2016 American Short Course Championships

Erika Brown, Tennessee, 21.15 - 2019 SEC Championships

Abbey Weitzeil, Cal, 21.16 - 2019 Pac-12 Championships

Simone Manuel, Stanford, 21.17 - 2017 NCAA Championships

Simone Manuel, Stanford, 21.18 - 2018 NCAA Championships

Simone Manuel, Stanford, 21.20 - 2018 Pac-12 Championships

Olivia Smoliga, Georgia, 21.21 - 2016 NCAA Championships

(TIE) Lara Jackson, Arizona, 21.27 - 2009 NCAA Championships/Olivia Smoliva, Georgia, 21.27 - 2017 NCAA Championships

-

(TIE) Abbey Weitzeil, Canyons Aquatic Club, 21.28 - 2016 American Short Course Championships/Liz Li, Ohio State, 21.28 - 2018 NCAA Championships

[/ol]

The next-fastest Cal Bear in history is Farida Osman, who went 21.32 in 2016, which was the school record until Weitzeil's finals swim; followed by Liv Jensen.


--------

• UPDATES =>

https://instagr.am/p/Buc77bGlTeX

200 Free Relay

#1 - Abbey 21.47 / Madds 21.61 / Katie 21.62 / Billy 21.30 - 1:26.00 -> 3rd fastest time in School History

Great splits all-around!


-------

• UPDATE =>

2019 Women's Pac-12 Championship Day 2: Weitzeil, Eastin, Hansson Claim Titles




-------

UrsusArctosCalifornicus said:

---

200 Free Relay

#1 - Abbey 21.47 / Madds 21.61 / Katie 21.62 / Billy 21.30 - 1:26.00 -> 3rd fastest time in School History

Great splits all-around!

---

Think Abbey, Katie, and Billy can all drop from their splits, and I think that's Maddie's fastest 50 split ever? (someone fact-check me on that lol)

If Abbey leads off with a 21.1, followed by Maddie's 21.6-7, Katie with a 21.4-5, and Amy anchor with a 20.9 like she did with the 2MR last year, it equals to about 1:25.1, which breaks the AR by nearly 3 tenths! Obviously it's wishful thinking, but if they all peak at the same time...

bearz012 said:

---

NCAA Qualifiers List (Day 1):

2. Izzy Ivey (1:54.31 - 200 IM) *A cut*

---

Isabel's 1:54.31 now ranks her as #6 on Cal's All-Time Top 10 list for this event (200 IM).

Only Thleen, Leverenz, Missy, Lizzie & Celina ahead of her - illustrious company indeed

• UPDATE =>

200 IM podium: Izzy, Louise Hansson (USC), Sarah

So, I guess Bug is going to do the 100 Fly and 200 Free double tomorrow.

tedbear said:

---

So, I guess Bug is going to do the 100 Fly and 200 Free double tomorrow.

---

Er, don't forget the 400 MR too, methinks McL will have quite a busy couple of sessions tomorrow lol (luckily for Katie, there aren't any prelims for the relays at least... :p)

Also curious as to which of the 100 Fly, 200 Free, 100 Back trio of events Izzy will tackle... Getting that A cut in the 200 IM does take a lot of pressure off her (& Teri lol) - automatic invite and can swim any other events that she has a B cut in, within the quota.

More Abbey goodness

-------

• UPDATE => (Video clip)

https://pac-12.com/videos/2019-pac-12-swimming-w-diving-mw-championships-cal-200-yard-freestyle-relay-finishes-nation

Taking a temporary break from all the euphoria of the past 2 nights, 3 relay wins & all haha - don't know what the current standings is points wise, but Furdettes probably are already smugly enjoying a sizeable lead on our Bears ~groan~

It's going to be even uglier for Cal after the 1st event tomorrow (400 IM) but as we all know, THE BEAR WILL NOT QUIT!

-------

• UPDATE =>

"After two days, Stanford leads the meet with 583.5 points. Cal is second with 455.5, followed by Arizona State (349), USC (323), Arizona (320), UCLA (291), Utah (143), Washington State (135) and Oregon State (90)."

Cal should be leading at the halfway mark with three relay wins and outpointing Furd in 2 of the 3 individual events so far. Granted Stanford went 1-2-4-6 vs Cal's 7th place in the 500 free. Stanford also won the diving event with 3-5-7 spots while LeMay for Cal nabbed 6th. I'm good at math (not swimming scoring) but the Bears
should have outscored the Cardinal w/ the most points. GO BEARS!

Weitzeil Swims To School Record In 50 Free

Junior Wins Pac-12 Title In 20.16; Bears Add 200 Free Relay Crown

"FEDERAL WAY, Wash. - After winning a pair of relays on the opening night of the Pac-12 Championships Wednesday, Cal kept up its record-setting pace Thursday, led by sprinter Abbey Weitzeil, who set school and meet marks on her way to victory in the 50-yard freestyle. The Golden Bears also captured the 200 free relay to give them four victories in the first seven events overall.

In the 50 free, Cal placed three swimmers in A final and made the most of its seedings. Weitzeil's first-place finish of 21.16 broke Farida Osman's 2016 school record of 21.32 and the Pac-12 Championships record of 21.20 by Stanford's Simone Manuel last year. The time was Weitzeil's second-fastest ever, trailing only her American-record 21.12 from 2016, and the third fastest in history.

In addition, senior Amy Bilquist sprinted to the runner-up position with a lifetime-best of 21.64, lowering her previous mark by a tenth of a second. Junior Maddie Murphy came in fifth for Cal with a season-best time of 22.08.

Cal also scored well in the 200 individual medley by claiming four of the top 10 spots. Freshman Isabel Ivey punched her ticket to next month's NCAA Championships with an A qualifying time of 1:54.31, which was good for second place. Right behind in third was sophomore Sarah Darcel in 1:54.91, while junior Keaton Blovad was fifth in lifetime-best 1:55.62 and freshman Alicia Wilson 10th in 1:56.62. Freshman Ema Rajic (21st, 1:58.57) and sophomore Dannie Dilsaver (24th, 2:00.65) also added to the Bears' point total.

In the 500 free, sophomore Robin Neumann was Cal's top finisher, touching seventh in a personal-best 4:39.34, and freshman Cassidy Bayer (4:45.31) and senior Jenna Campbell (4:47.18) also swam collegiate bests, placing 20th and 21st, respectively.

Cal picked up a pair of top-12 finishes on the 1-meter springboard, led by senior Phoebe LaMay's sixth-place showing with 276.50 points. Sophomore Briana Thai was 12th with 245.55.

The Bears closed out the night with the nation's fastest time in the 200 free relay as they finished in 1:26.00. Weitzeil led off in 21.47, followed by Murphy, Katie McLaughlin and Bilquist, giving Cal a nearly second-and-a-half victory over runner-up Stanford. The Bears have now won the race four times in past five years.

Stanford owns the team lead after two of four days with 583.5 points, with Cal second with 455.5 points. Arizona State (349), USC (323) and Arizona (320) round out the top five."

RESULTS

Schroeder71 said:

---

Cal should be leading at the halfway mark with three relay wins and outpointing Furd in 2 of the 3 individual events so far. Granted Stanford went 1-2-4-6 vs Cal's 7th place in the 500 free. Stanford also won the diving event with 3-5-7 spots while LeMay for Cal nabbed 6th. I'm good at math (not swimming scoring) but the Bears
should have outscored the Cardinal w/ the most points. GO BEARS!

---

Pardon, I'm pretty challenged when it comes to math of any sort (in spite of an annoying tendency to throw up stats here & elsewhere lol), so haven't done the actual arithmetic...hopefully you can help me out?

Here's the scoring system @ Pac-12 Championships, I think (may be wrong as didn't find anything nicely laid out from a quick googling attempt :p) - note that unlike NCAAs, the C finals finishes at our conference championship will count towards the tally:

--------

*Individual Events* (incl. diving, which has prelims placings + 1 single finals of 8 qualifiers?)

~A final~
#1 -> 32 pts
#2 -> 28
#3 -> 27
#4 -> 26
#5 -> 25
#6 -> 24
#7 -> 23
#8 -> 22

~B final~
#9 -> 20 pts
#10 -> 17
#11 -> 16
#12 -> 15
#13 -> 14
#14 -> 13
#15 -> 12
#16 -> 11

~C final~
#17 -> 9 pts
#18 -> 7
#19 -> 6
#20 -> 5
#21 -> 4
#22 -> 3
#23 -> 2
#24 -> 1


*Relays*

#1 -> 64 pts
#2 -> 56
#3 -> 54
#4 -> 52
#5 -> 50
#6 -> 48
#7 -> 46
#8 -> 44

--------

Our Bears have a number of "superstars" who will always be in the running for a podium spot (whom you tend to mostly hear about in the headlines), plus a handful of high end swim talent who can reliably support the team with some decent level of scoring.

However, Bears being a bit top heavy (imo) along with well known vulnerabilities in several swim areas (focussed on sprint free & sprint strokes at the expense of distance free & strokes & longer IM, breast, diving), I would reckon there could be anywhere between a third to less than half the team who will realistically contribute to the scoring at the highest levels.

When one considers how almost the entirety of the current incarnation of the Stanford squad that Meehan has built (that includes their divers) are capable of scoring at the conference level, that sort of enviable depth & breadth across the board (where LSJU can stack up a hefty group of A or B finalists who will punish their opponents with a points onslaught even if they won't often get on the podium) is quite a challenge to overcome, no matter how many relay titles or individual event wins or astonishing records Bears will claim in these sessions...

I would also preface this all with the suggestion that developing elite prowess in the pool isn't the only or even most important criteria for this programme that has always placed a high value on academics, team fit & support, on nurturing a person's personal growth to be the best that they may aspire to be beyond the narrow confines of collegiate swimming, on being a good match with the school, and buying into the particular values & culture of the programme

• UPDATE => Val summed it up here (below) in a massively more eloquent manner than I can ever hope to lol:

A Head Start On A New Career

What makes a good teammate, according to Hull, is more than fast times. Culture fit, potential, leadership and willingness to be a team player are among the many elements to consider.

"Are you the right personality type? Can you have the tough conversations? Can you lead in a certain way? We do that with swimmers, too. Teri's always said we recruit the person, not the swimmer."

Lots of important and interesting races (100 Fly, 200 Free, 100 Back, 400 Medley Relay), but 100 Breast is the biggest. Ideally get both Ema and Ali invites and leave Abbey as the sprint hammer on both medley relays.

UrsusArctosCalifornicus said:

---

Amy's entered in 4 events on the 2019 Pac-12s psych sheet. Probably won't be attempting the tough double on the last day as she'll also be an essential component of the 400 FR at the end of the session, so likely to drop either the 200 Back or 100 Free...

Here are several others who are presently listed on more than 3 events, along with their seeding:

Katie
Day 3: 100 Fly (#2), 200 Free (#5)

Izzy
Day 3: 100 Fly (#10), 200 Free (#9), 100 Back (#8)

Cass
Day 3: 100 Fly (#30), 200 Free (#41)

Can't really see Izzy tackling that close-to-impossible treble on Day 3 (though she did @ Jr Winter Nats lol - so, you never know!).

Izz hasn't really contested the 200 IM either in the blue & gold, hence her "lowly" 37th seeding there.

---

On my way out, but just wanted to note that the heat sheets have been released for today's session (Day 3):

https://cdn.swimswam.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Day3PrelimsHeatSheet.pdf

At a quick glance:

- Katie is confirmed as going for that tough 100 Fly - 200 Free double.

- Izzy has dropped the 100 Back, and will "only" attempt the 100 Fly - 200 Free double. (Not sure about Pac-12 rules, but I'm guessing that Izz's allowed to compete in 4 individual events if her relay contribution doesn't exceed 3, in which case she'll tackle the 100 Free tomorrow??)

- Cassidy will be racing the 200 Free, but not the 100 Fly.