Lasco Highlights Fast Night At Minnesota Invite
MINNEAPOLIS – California sophomore Destin Lasco posted the fastest time in the country to win the 200-yard backstroke, highlighting an impressive performance by the Golden Bears on the final night of the Minnesota Invitational at the Jean K. Freeman Aquatics Center.
Lasco, the 2021 NCAA runner-up in the 200 back as a freshman, clocked 1:39.24 to win his second individual event of the midseason meet. Daniel Carr made it a 1-2 punch for the Bears, taking second place in 1:40.09, which stands as the second-fastest time in the country this season behind Lasco. A trio of Bears – Colby Mefford (1:43.59), Sebastian Somerset (1:43.61) and Ziyad Saleem (1:44.59) – shaved time off of their prelims and placed 10th, 11th and 12th.
The fast times continued as Björn Seeliger, Reece Whitley and Gabriel Jett earned runner-up honors in three consecutive events. Seeliger (41.75, 100 freestyle) and Whitley (1:51.11, 200 breaststroke) both threw down the second-fastest times of the season in their respective events; Whitley also recorded his second NCAA A cut in as many days. Jett touched the wall in a personal-best 1:41.92 for second place in the 200 butterfly while Dare Rose took sixth (1:43.79).
Cal concluded the meet with a 2:48.80 second-place finish in the 400 free relay. Lasco (42.62), Jack Alexy (42.09), Seeliger (41.27) and Carr (42.82) were well under the NCAA A qualifying standard of 2:50.99, giving Cal its second A relay cut of the meet. Cal's B relay – Matthew Jensen, Robin Hanson, Jett and Rose – took seventh in 2:51.95.
It was an impressive week for Jett, a freshman from Clovis, California, who won the 200 free and was fourth in the 500 free earlier in the meet.
Alexy (43.12, 10th), Jensen (43.39, 12th) and Hanson (43.44, 13th) earned top-13 finishes in the 100 free. Behind Whitley in the 200 breast were Jason Louser (1:57.39, 11th) and Jacques Laeuffer (1:58.11, 12th).
Sean Grieshop was Cal's top finisher in the 1650 free, clocking 15:07.38 to take ninth. Will Roberts (15:14.71) and Tyler Kopp (15:20.26) were 13th and 14th.
The four-day, non-scoring meet featured some of the nation's top teams, including No. 1 Texas, No. 4 Michigan, No. 17 Wisconsin, Harvard and Arizona.
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The Bears will step away from competition until next month when they host Arizona and Arizona State in consecutive dual meets on Jan. 21-22 in Berkeley.
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