Featured: Alyssa Sagle The third evening of the Toyota U.S. Open highlighted emerging USA Swimming talents as three young swimmers celebrated victories. At only 15 years of age, Sadie Buckley (Fairfax, Va./Nation’s Capital Swim Club) initiated the session with an impressive performance, winning the women’s 400-yard individual medley by over four seconds. Later, 17-year-old Kennedi […]
Featured: Alyssa Sagle
The third evening of the Toyota U.S. Open highlighted emerging USA Swimming talents as three young swimmers celebrated victories. At only 15 years of age, Sadie Buckley (Fairfax, Va./Nation’s Capital Swim Club) initiated the session with an impressive performance, winning the women’s 400-yard individual medley by over four seconds. Later, 17-year-old Kennedi Dobson (Levittown, Pa./Eastern Express Swim Team) clinched the women’s 200y freestyle win by a narrow margin. In the final individual women’s race of the event, 16-year-old Alyssa Sagle (Gainesville, Va./Nations Capital Swim Club) outpaced Tokyo Olympian Rhyan White (Herriman, Utah/Wolfpack Elite) to take first place in the women’s 100y backstroke.
In the initial men’s individual event of the evening, Danny Berlitz (Drums, Pa./West Virginia University) astonished the audience by securing a victory from lane eight. Berlitz surged during the freestyle segment, finishing nearly a second ahead of the rest. Later in the night, a recognizable champion emerged as Paris Olympian Drew Kibler (Carmel, Ind./New York Athletic Club) triumphed in the men’s 200y freestyle by more than a second. Racing will wrap up tomorrow, with prelims set to start at 9 a.m. ET and finals at 6 p.m. ET.
Women’s 400y Individual Medley – FINAL
1 – Sadie Buckley (Fairfax, Va./Nation’s Capital Swim Club), 4:07.87
2 – Emerson Callis (Richmond, Va./Quest Swimming), 4:12.62
3 – Mira Szimcsak (Budapest, HU/Southern Methodist University), 4:13.22
Buckley on her approach: “I was really surprised by my time dropping. I didn’t expect such a significant drop in just one day. My plan was simply to focus on my breaststroke and see how it unfolded.”
Men’s 400y Individual Medley – FINAL
1 – Danny Berlitz (Drums, Pa./West Virginia University), 3:46.51
2 – Angus Macdonald (Beverly Hills, Mich./Unattached), 3:47.90
3 – Sean Honey (Provo, Utah/Penn State University), 3:49.05
Berlitz on his strong lane eight swim: “I’ve had a tough few months of training, so I was motivated but not stressed. I just wanted to enjoy swimming in lane eight. I put in a lot of effort and wanted to see the results.”
Women’s 100y Butterfly – FINAL
1 – Rhyan White (Herriman, Utah/Wolfpack Elite), 52.19
2 – Rachel Klinker (Lexington, Ky./Cal Aquatics), 52.48
3 – Margaret Markvardt (Estonia/Penn State University), 52.56
White on her butterfly performance: “It’s refreshing to swim a different event. Swimming backstroke all the time makes this feel less pressured. There’s no stress, no performance expectations. It’s enjoyable just to swim and see where I stack up.”
Men’s 100y Butterfly – FINAL
1 – Brady Samuels (Muncie, In./Purdue University), 45.27
2 – Marshall Odom (Friendswood, Texas/University of Utah), 47.14
3 – Shane Eckler (Delco, Pa./Unattached), 47.52
Samuels on his meeting expectations: “I had few expectations coming in. I was focused on swimming with a clear mindset, hoping for the best, and enjoying the moment without taking it too seriously.”
Women’s 200y Freestyle – FINAL
1 – Kennedi Dobson (Levittown, Pa./Eastern Express Swim Team), 1:44.07
2 – Chloe Stepanek (Northport, N.Y./Texas A&M University), 1:44.51
3 – Georgia Nel (South Africa/University of North Carolina), 1:45.47
Dobson on her race execution: “I believe I executed my strategy quite well. Chloe is a strong competitor, and I’m thrilled to have shared the pool with her.”
Men’s 200y Freestyle – FINAL
1 – Drew Kibler (Carmel, Ind./New York Athletic Club), 1:32.78
2 – Bradley Dunham (Hoschton, Ga./Swim Atlanta), 1:33.87
3 – Breno Correia (Brazil/Wolfpack Elite), 1:34.23
Kibler on his short course experience: “I experienced it entirely differently. I had a burst of speed at the finish that I feel like I haven’t had in ages. It was great to try something new and express myself.”
Women’s 100y Breaststroke – FINAL
1 – Skyler Smith (San Jose, Calif./University of North Carolina), 58.87
2 – Aliz Kalmar (Hungary/Fresno State University), 1:00.56
3 – Casadie Dibetta (St. Clairsville, Ohio/Ohio University), 1:00.60
Smith on her pre-race mindset: “We’ve had an intense training week, so to come here and race, achieving a solid time despite everything, I was just glad to have the chance.”
Men’s 100y Breaststroke – FINAL
1 – Charlie Egeland (Minneapolis, Minn./Yale University), 52.11
2 – Mariano Lazzerini (Chile/Penn State University), 52.52
3 – Logan Kelly (Austin, Minn./Unattached), 52.68
Egeland on the competition so far: “I wanted to maintain a brisk tempo. I had been overthinking things; it really isn’t that complicated. I just need to pick up the pace and push myself.”
Women’s 100y Backstroke – FINAL
1 – Alyssa Sagle (Gainesville, Va./Nations Capital Swim Club), 51.71
2 – Rhyan White (Herriman, Utah/Wolfpack Elite), 51.95
3 – Lily Mead (Timonium, Md./Loyola University Maryland), 52.86
Sagle on her performance: “It felt excellent; I definitely didn’t expect that (time). I felt powerful and thought I performed well with my underwaters.”
Men’s 100y Backstroke – FINAL
1 – Bradley Dunham (Hoschton, Ga./Swim Atlanta), 46.11
2 – Matthew Bittner (Houston, Texas/Penn State University), 46.98
3 – Joe Hayburn (Bowie, Md./Loyola University Maryland), 47.05
Dunham on his race plan: “I knew I might feel a bit fatigued after the 200 (freestyle), so I aimed to start strong with all my energy. I know I have good endurance, so I figured if I could take an early lead, I’d be able to finish strong. I believe I accomplished that, so I felt pleased.”
Women’s 4x50y Freestyle Relay – FINAL
1 – Queens University, 1:31.91
2 – Nation’s Capital Swim Club, 1:32.78
3 – Marshall University, 1:34.45
Men’s 4x50y Freestyle Relay – FINAL
1 – Purdue University, 1:17.84
2 – Queens University, 1:19.85
3 – Loyola University Maryland, 1:20.04
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