Gators of Distinction
SHP Alum Ally Howe Set a Pool Record in the 200-Yard Back
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Even better, Howe helped the top-ranked Stanford women beat visiting No. 4 California, 186-110, handing the Golden Bears their first loss of the season.
Howe will be looking to help Stanford (8-0, 7-0) defend its Pac-12 championship title in Federal Way, WA beginning Feb. 21.
Palo Alto grad Grace Zhao also helped the medley relay set the record. She was the lone freshman among a team of seniors that also featured Janet Hu and Olympian Simone Manuel, who swam the anchor leg and made up a deficit for a dramatic finish.
Olympian and world record holder Katie Ledecky won three events that totaled 1,700 yards, and Ella Eastin, diver Haley Farnsworth and Hu each swam to a pair of victories on Senior Day.
Howe, Manuel and Hu were honored in a pre-meet ceremony along with Olympian Kassidy Cook, Sammy Gallagher, Gracia Leydon Maloney, Alex Meyers and Lindsey Engel. As a group, they produced 59 All-American honors and helped Stanford win its first NCAA title in 19 years.
Stanford finished the dual meet season unbeaten for the third straight season. The Cardinal has won 23 straight dual meets dating to a Feb. 14, 2015 loss to Cal, which also marks a string of 21 straight Pac-12 dual meet victories, and 16 consecutive wins at home.
Hu, who also won the 100 butterfly at 51.93, set the pool record in the 100 backstroke. She hit the wall at 51.63, just ahead of Howe (51.92), and her previous standard of 51.83. Howe set the mark in the 200 back in 1:53.67.
Ledecky pulled off another double in the 1000 and 200 free. She raced to a 30-second victory and stopped the clock at 9:13.74 in the distance event. She jumped right back in the water for the next event and won the sprint in similarly dominating fashion; her time of 1:43.00 was more than two seconds better than the rest of the field.
Ledecky also claimed a substantial victory in the 500 free. She led a Cardinal sweep of the top four with a winning time of 4:34.54. Sophomore Katie Drabot was second (4:48.02), followed by Leah Stevens (4:50.09) and Megan Byrnes (4:50.76).
On the boards, sophomore Haley Farnsworth swept both events. She won the 1-meter with a score of 303.00 and was tops on the 3-meter with a score of 336.75. Menlo-Atherton grad Mia Paulsen was the runner-up on the lower board with a score of 326.55. They were the only two divers to score over 300.
A pair of Stanford freshmen swept the breaststroke. Zhao edged Kim Williams (1:01.72) and won her third straight in the 100 with a finish of 1:01.27, while Brooke Forde edged Zhao in the 200 with a winning time of 2:12.07.
Eastin battled with Drabot (1:54.17) in the 200 butterfly once again, but edged her teammate with a time of 1:53.79. Eastin also won the 200 individual medley at 1:56.84.
Outside of the pool, the Pac-12 rivals teamed up to raise more than $1,800 for Stanford University's Lucile Packard Children's Hospital, thanks to donations from the 2,018 energized fans in attendance, and several online donations.
Back
Senior Ally Howe, a graduate of Sacred Heart Prep, finished her regular-season swimming career with a flourish. She set a pool record in the 200-yard back and helped set a pool record in the 200 medley relay.
Even better, Howe helped the top-ranked Stanford women beat visiting No. 4 California, 186-110, handing the Golden Bears their first loss of the season.
Howe will be looking to help Stanford (8-0, 7-0) defend its Pac-12 championship title in Federal Way, WA beginning Feb. 21.
Palo Alto grad Grace Zhao also helped the medley relay set the record. She was the lone freshman among a team of seniors that also featured Janet Hu and Olympian Simone Manuel, who swam the anchor leg and made up a deficit for a dramatic finish.
Olympian and world record holder Katie Ledecky won three events that totaled 1,700 yards, and Ella Eastin, diver Haley Farnsworth and Hu each swam to a pair of victories on Senior Day.
Howe, Manuel and Hu were honored in a pre-meet ceremony along with Olympian Kassidy Cook, Sammy Gallagher, Gracia Leydon Maloney, Alex Meyers and Lindsey Engel. As a group, they produced 59 All-American honors and helped Stanford win its first NCAA title in 19 years.
Stanford finished the dual meet season unbeaten for the third straight season. The Cardinal has won 23 straight dual meets dating to a Feb. 14, 2015 loss to Cal, which also marks a string of 21 straight Pac-12 dual meet victories, and 16 consecutive wins at home.
Hu, who also won the 100 butterfly at 51.93, set the pool record in the 100 backstroke. She hit the wall at 51.63, just ahead of Howe (51.92), and her previous standard of 51.83. Howe set the mark in the 200 back in 1:53.67.
Ledecky pulled off another double in the 1000 and 200 free. She raced to a 30-second victory and stopped the clock at 9:13.74 in the distance event. She jumped right back in the water for the next event and won the sprint in similarly dominating fashion; her time of 1:43.00 was more than two seconds better than the rest of the field.
Ledecky also claimed a substantial victory in the 500 free. She led a Cardinal sweep of the top four with a winning time of 4:34.54. Sophomore Katie Drabot was second (4:48.02), followed by Leah Stevens (4:50.09) and Megan Byrnes (4:50.76).
On the boards, sophomore Haley Farnsworth swept both events. She won the 1-meter with a score of 303.00 and was tops on the 3-meter with a score of 336.75. Menlo-Atherton grad Mia Paulsen was the runner-up on the lower board with a score of 326.55. They were the only two divers to score over 300.
A pair of Stanford freshmen swept the breaststroke. Zhao edged Kim Williams (1:01.72) and won her third straight in the 100 with a finish of 1:01.27, while Brooke Forde edged Zhao in the 200 with a winning time of 2:12.07.
Eastin battled with Drabot (1:54.17) in the 200 butterfly once again, but edged her teammate with a time of 1:53.79. Eastin also won the 200 individual medley at 1:56.84.
Outside of the pool, the Pac-12 rivals teamed up to raise more than $1,800 for Stanford University's Lucile Packard Children's Hospital, thanks to donations from the 2,018 energized fans in attendance, and several online donations.
Sacred Heart Schools Atherton
Founded by the Society of the Sacred Heart, SHS is a Catholic, independent, co-ed day school for students in preschool through grade 12
