RECORD BREAKERS: Swimmers Smash School Standard
12/1/2007 12:00:00 AM | Swimming & Diving
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. ?? It’s only the first day of December, and already four Alabama swimmers have punched their ticket to this spring’s NCAA Championships, shattering the Tide’s school record in the 200 freestyle in the process.
“It was a great swim and a great morning for the Tide,” head coach Eric McIlquham said. “To already be qualified for the NCAA Championships, at this point of the season, is a huge boost for us.”
During this morning preliminaries of the Alabama Classic being held at the Alabama Aquatic Center this weekend, the Tide quartet of Ida Persson, Vanessa Von der Heyde, Brooke Baldi and Erin Sparks posted a 1:30.81 bettering the old mark, set in 2001, by more than a second.
“Crush the school record by more than a second and make an automatic NCAA cut is a tremendous boost for this young, young team,” McIquham said.
The Tide’s time earned the foursome an automatic berth at the NCAA Championships, bettering the automatic standard by two tenths of a second.
Persson, a freshman, led off with a 23.22, which makes her the fifth fastest 50 freestyler in Tide history. Sparks, a senior, finished things off with a blistering 22.38 anchor leg. The previous record was held by Lisa Andersson, Marcy Warriner, Kelly Coellner and Kate Meriam.
Elsewhere during prelims, Persson earned an NCAA “B” standard in the 100 butterfly, turning in a 55.36, which ranks her eighth all-time for the Tide in that event. Sophomore Agustina de Giovanni earned yet another NCAA “B” cut, posting a career-best 1:02.63, which moves her to fourth all-time for the Tide.
Junior Chris Perry posted a career best time of his own, touching the wall at 48.87 in the 100 backstroke, more than a second ahead of the rest of the field, and moving him to fourth all-time for the Tide.
This afternoon’s finals get underway at 5 p.m. at the Don Gambril Olympic Pool and will be held over a 50-meter course.
Players Mentioned
