Unusual Suspects: Freshman Seidt, Kentucky Women's Team on the Rise
Unusual Suspects: Freshman Seidt, Kentucky Women's Team on the Rise
The Kentucky Wildcats women's swim team is one to watch. The Wildcats have jumped onto the scene as of late with some fast times by young talent.
In the second installment of FloSwimming's "Unusual Suspects" series, we take a look at a Kentucky Wildcats women's team that is surging after its strong showing at the Ohio State Invitational.
The Wildcats finished the 10-team meet on Nov. 20 behind only top-ranked Stanford and edged No. 19 Ohio State for second place overall in Columbus, OH.
After wrapping up its fall competition slate, Kentucky has risen to No. 18 in the national rankings and looks poised to improve on its 22nd-place showing at the NCAA championships and an eighth-place finish at the SEC meet last season.
KENTUCKY WOMEN'S TEAM
Eighteen-year-old Asia Seidt, a Louisville, KY, native, is making some huge waves for Kentucky in her freshman year. At the Ohio State Invitational, she posted three NCAA-qualifying, A-standard times while racing against the No. 1 Cardinal.
She clocked PR times in both IM events, going 1:55.33 in the 200 IM and 4:09.33 in the 400 IM. Her efforts in the backstroke were even more impressive, and she hit the wall in 51.50 in the 100 back and 1:51.18 in the 200 back. Seidt leads a stacked core of backstrokers for Kentucky this season, including senior Danielle Gayler, who touched after Seidt in 1:52.21. Bridgette Alexander was a stroke behind in 1:52.84, and freshman Ali Gayler posted a 1:53.08 in prelims. That's four swimmers at 1:53.00 or under.
Not to be stopped, Seidt was 1:46.14 in the 200 free and threw down a huge butterfly split on the 400 medley relay, going 51.79.
Kentucky also has two solid breaststrokers who are on the verge of breaking the minute mark. Kendra Crew split 1:00.36 in the 400 medley relay, and Madison Winstead had a time of 1:00.63 on her flat start, which could've been a 59 in the relay. To put Kentucky in a good position at SECs, both of them will need to be just as strong in the 200s as well.
In the mid-distance and distance events, Kentucky has a standout group of swimmers in the 500. Geena Freriks was 4:39.34 last week, finishing second to Katie Ledecky's outlandish record-breaking swim. Freshman Ali Gayler was 4:42.55 and Kendall Casey was not far behind, touching the wall in 4:42.92. Those times have the potential to score some crucial points at SECs.
It seems that Kentucky has a mid-distance mindset, because the Wildcats are lacking support in the 50 and 100 free behind Freriks. A sophomore, Freriks can get moving in the 100 freestyle, but she's going to need help in order for the UK women to secure points in the 200 and 400 free relay.
If the Wildcats can shore up some of these depth concerns, Kentucky can become a serious player in the conference race as it enters the second half of the season.
By Adam Mania
RELATED POST
Unusual Suspects: Mizzou Men's Swimmers Demanding Attention
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The Wildcats finished the 10-team meet on Nov. 20 behind only top-ranked Stanford and edged No. 19 Ohio State for second place overall in Columbus, OH.
After wrapping up its fall competition slate, Kentucky has risen to No. 18 in the national rankings and looks poised to improve on its 22nd-place showing at the NCAA championships and an eighth-place finish at the SEC meet last season.
KENTUCKY WOMEN'S TEAM
Eighteen-year-old Asia Seidt, a Louisville, KY, native, is making some huge waves for Kentucky in her freshman year. At the Ohio State Invitational, she posted three NCAA-qualifying, A-standard times while racing against the No. 1 Cardinal.
She clocked PR times in both IM events, going 1:55.33 in the 200 IM and 4:09.33 in the 400 IM. Her efforts in the backstroke were even more impressive, and she hit the wall in 51.50 in the 100 back and 1:51.18 in the 200 back. Seidt leads a stacked core of backstrokers for Kentucky this season, including senior Danielle Gayler, who touched after Seidt in 1:52.21. Bridgette Alexander was a stroke behind in 1:52.84, and freshman Ali Gayler posted a 1:53.08 in prelims. That's four swimmers at 1:53.00 or under.
Not to be stopped, Seidt was 1:46.14 in the 200 free and threw down a huge butterfly split on the 400 medley relay, going 51.79.
Kentucky also has two solid breaststrokers who are on the verge of breaking the minute mark. Kendra Crew split 1:00.36 in the 400 medley relay, and Madison Winstead had a time of 1:00.63 on her flat start, which could've been a 59 in the relay. To put Kentucky in a good position at SECs, both of them will need to be just as strong in the 200s as well.
In the mid-distance and distance events, Kentucky has a standout group of swimmers in the 500. Geena Freriks was 4:39.34 last week, finishing second to Katie Ledecky's outlandish record-breaking swim. Freshman Ali Gayler was 4:42.55 and Kendall Casey was not far behind, touching the wall in 4:42.92. Those times have the potential to score some crucial points at SECs.
It seems that Kentucky has a mid-distance mindset, because the Wildcats are lacking support in the 50 and 100 free behind Freriks. A sophomore, Freriks can get moving in the 100 freestyle, but she's going to need help in order for the UK women to secure points in the 200 and 400 free relay.
If the Wildcats can shore up some of these depth concerns, Kentucky can become a serious player in the conference race as it enters the second half of the season.
By Adam Mania
RELATED POST
Unusual Suspects: Mizzou Men's Swimmers Demanding Attention
--