Feb. 28, 2006
On February 26, swimmers from Purdue University, the University of Illinois, Northwestern University, and Notre Dame gathered at the Boilermaker Aquatic Center for a final qualifying attempt for the NCAA Championships in the “Boiler Make It” meet. Rather than having the entire team swim, the Irish sent only a few competitors who have been on the cusp of NCAA qualifying times all season. Juniors Ann Barton and Jessica Stephens, as well as sophomores Katie Guida and Caroline Johnson, all made valiant efforts at reaching the coveted NCAA Championships.
In the 200-yard backstroke, Ann Barton missed the NCAA B cut of 2:01.78 by less than half a second with a preliminary time of 2:02.05. Barring any changes to the College Quick 100 times as of February 15, Barton’s time would be good for 72nd in the nation. Teammate Caroline Johnson, who finished second in the prelims behind Barton, was roughly four seconds shy with a prelims time of 2:05.27. Barton and Johnson posted slightly slower times in the finals but still finished one-two.
In the 100-yard butterfly, Barton barely missed the 55.26 NCAA B cut with a prelims time of 55.97, good for first in her heat. This time would qualify for 80th on the national College Quick 100 from February 15. She posted a finals time of 56.62.
In the 200-yard butterfly time trial, Barton was less than three seconds removed from the NCAA B cut of 2:01.65 with a 2:04.37.
In the 100-yard backstroke, Johnson finished just under two seconds shy of the 56.10 NCAA B cut with a 58.02.
In the 100-yard freestyle, Katie Guida was less than two seconds removed from an NCAA B cut of 50.97 with a time of 52.78 in both the prelims and finals. Guida finished third among eight racers in the prelims, and again finished third among six in the finals.
After being disqualified in the 50-yard freestyle prelims, Guida swam two time trials. In the first one she swam a 24.50, less than a second shy of the NCAA B cut of 23.56. Had she earned this time in the finals, she would have placed fourth out of six swimmers. On her second attempt, Guida improved her time to 24.43.
The only Irish NCAA B cut was earned by Jessica Stephens in the 200-yard breaststroke. Stephens beat the B cut of 2:18.27 with a finals-winning 2:15.74. One the February 15 Quick 100, Stephens’ time would rank 26th and is a strong candidate for a Championships bid. Stephens’ prelims time of 2:17.46 also met the B cut.
In a 200-yard breaststroke time trial, Stephens narrowly missed a second B cut. She missed the NCAA B cut of 2:18.27 by 0.02 seconds, posting a time of 2:18.29 on her second of two attempts. On the February 15 Quick 100 her time would be good for 60th overall.
The NCAA is expected to named the field for the 2006 NCAA Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships on Friday, March 3. The championship meet will be in Athens, Ga., and begins Thursday, March 16.