2024 NOVATO SECTIONALS
Brooke Boak impressed on the final day of Novato Sectionals with a personal-best 25.20 on her way to the women’s 50 freestyle win on Sunday night.
The 37-year-old Stanford alum shaved .14 seconds off her previous-best 25.24 from March, which was her first time swimming the 50 free since the 2008 Olympic Trials. Boak wound up placing 28th at the U.S. Olympic Trials last month in 25.38.
Indiana commit (’25) Liberty Clark earned the runner-up finish in the 50 free in 25.95, within half a second of her personal-best 25.50 from May. The Crow Canyon Country Club Sharks 16-year-old is a two-sport star who also plays volleyball.
Rising San Jose State senior Ela Freiman took the women’s 200 IM title in 2:19.79, dropping more than a second off her previous-best 2:20.82 from last month. She beat Crow Canyon Country Club Sharks 16-year-old Raya Mellott (2:19.89) by just a tenth of a second. Mellott, a Virginia commit (’25), shaved a couple tenths off her previous-best 2:20.16 from last August.
Crow Canyon Country Club Sharks 18-year-old Devyn Caples came away with the men’s 200 IM victory in 2:05.36, narrowly missing his personal-best 2:05.35 from April. Rising University of the Pacific senior Mitchell Hopper crushed his best time from 2022 by almost six seconds with a 2nd-place showing in 2:06.29.
A pair of North Bay Aquatics 18-year-olds had a thrilling battle in the men’s 50 free. Denison commit (’24) Harry Parsons dropped four tenths off his lifetime best (23.34), but it wasn’t enough for the win as Harvard commit (’24) Marre Gattnar prevailed in 23.03. Gattnar touched within a tenth of his personal-best 22.96 from May.
Alto Swim Club 16-year-old Garic Shao executed a huge time drop in the men’s 1500 free to pull out the victory in 16:03.29. He dropped more than 23 seconds off his previous-best 16:26.70 from February. LaMirada Armada 17-year-old Leon Mikulski earned the runner-up finish in 16:14.47, crushing his previous-best 16:32.77 from February by 18 seconds.
Crow Canyon Country Club Sharks 16-year-old Lillyana Caples captured the women’s 800 free crown in 9:03.43, about 10 seconds off her personal-best 8:52.68 from May. It was still enough to skirt past LaMirada Armada 17-year-old Mayu Yager (9:14.99), who dropped almost four seconds off her previous-best 9:18.94 from April.
