STANFORD, Calif. - Lia Neal, Simone Manuel and Katie Ledecky combined to win four U.S. championships at the Phillips 66 National Championships, and each qualified to represent Stanford and Team USA at the World Championships.
That trio will join Stanford head coach Greg Meehan, who will serve as the women's head coach for Team USA at the World Championships in Budapest, Hungary, July 23-30.
Ledecky claimed the first of three U.S. national titles with a nine-second victory in the 800-meter freestyle on the first night. She touched the wall in 8:11.50 -- the fastest time in the world this year. The following night, she outraced Leah Smith in the 200 free. Ledecky stopped the clock at 1:54.84 in a final that featured three Stanford swimmers -- Manuel was fifth (1:57.11) and Katie Drabot was eighth (1:58.58). On Friday night, Ledecky and Smith claimed the top two spots, respectively, in the 400 free with a U.S. Open record time of 3:58.44. Drabot was seventh at 4:11.54.
Manuel capped the meet with a victory in the 50-meter freestyle. The Sugar Land, Texas, native bested Cal's Abbey Weitzeil by a half second with a winning time of 24.27. Manuel also qualified in the 100 free with a runner-up finish of 53.05.
Neal qualified for the USA relay team with a third-place finish of 53.59 in the 100 free, and also finished third in the 50 free at 24.77 -- just three-hundreths behind Weitzeil.
Stanford also had several other impressive performances. Incoming freshman Brooke Forde was third in the 400 individual medley (4:39.19), while rising sophomore Allie Szekely won the B final of that race (4:40.87). Rising junior Ella Eastin was third in the 200 IM (). Megan Byrnes was eighth in the 1,500 free at 16:28.60.
#GoStanford