2017 Big 12 ChampionshipsFeb 25, 2017 by Maclin Simpson
Big 12 Day Four Prelims: Schooling's Scratch Elevates Conger To Top Seed
Big 12 Day Four Prelims: Schooling's Scratch Elevates Conger To Top Seed
Day four prelims at the 2017 Big 12 Swimming and Diving Championships featured the 200 backstroke, 100 freestyle, 200 breaststroke, and 200 butterfly. Joseph Schooling and Jack Conger are set for another race in the 200 butterfly.
Prelims on the final day of the 2017 Big 12 Swimming & Diving Championships in Austin, Texas, have come and gone. On Saturday, we saw some solid swims in the 200-yard backstroke, 100 freestyle, 200 breaststroke, and 200 butterfly. Some of the key matchups to watch for tonight are Tasija Karosas and Claire Adams in the women's 200 backstroke, Lauren Case and Remedy Rule in the women's 200 butterfly, and Joseph Schooling and Jack Conger in the men's 200 butterfly. Clark Smith should have a spectacular 1650 freestyle as well, as he owns the fastest time in the country this season with a 14:32.
Another Longhorns duo took the top two spots in the 200 backstroke this morning, separated by only six-10ths of a second. Jonathan Roberts, Friday night's champion in the 400 IM, took the top seed with a 1:43.40. Josh Artmann, a freshman for Texas, had a great swim and touched second in 1:43.46. It took a 1:41.9 to qualify for NCAAs last year, so look to see if these two guys can drop throw down even bigger swims tonight. Mid-distance freestyle ace Jeff Newkirk grabbed third with a 1:45.28. Not far behind him was his teammate Braxton Moore in 1:45.35.
Tonight's 100 freestyle will ultimately become a four-man race with any one of them capable of throwing down a 42 low-mid. Jeremy Nichols of Texas took the top seed with a 42.91, followed closely by his teammates Tate Jackson (43.21), Brett Ringgold (43.27), and Townley Haas (43.38). West Virginia's Merwane Elmerini will be the wildcard tonight. The Mountaineer sophomore had a great swim in 43.98 this morning and will look to take it out fast with the Texas men tonight to get ahead of that chop.
Before his preliminary heat in the 200 breaststroke Will Licon, a Texas senior and the NCAA record holder in this event, came up to us and said, "Count how many strokes I take in this 200," with a huge smirk on his face. Licon showed some serious efficiency this morning by taking just 22 strokes over the course of eight laps. After going close to 20 yards off the dive, Licon only took one stroke on the first 25 and three strokes each lap for the remaining 175 to finish with a time of 1:57.16 and grab the second seed. However, it was his teammate Jared Butler who took the top spot with a 1:56.56. Hayden Henry of Texas rounded out the top three with a 1:57.97. Look for Licon to be much more aggressive tonight and drop some significant time.
Joseph Schooling took the top seed this morning in 1:41.58 but has scratched tonight's final to focus on the 400 freestyle relay. His teammate Jack Conger finished not too far behind in 1:42.19 and will be the new top seed for tonight. Texas sophomore Max Holter unloaded a 1:42.74, good for the third seed this morning. More importantly, that time will likely solidify Holter in the NCAA Championships next month. Schooling and Conger finished 1-2 in this event at last year's NCAA Championships, with Schooling taking the win in a new NCAA record time of 1:37.97 and Conger taking second with a new American record time of 1:38.06.