Liu Shines at Junior Nationals
August 17, 2017 | Swimming & Diving
LOS ANGELES -- UCLA swimmer Kenisha Liu has had a busy summer, and the rising sophomore recently shined brightest at the 2017 Speedo Junior National Championships in East Meadow, NY. Liu picked up a win in the 100 Free on Aug. 9, before returning to the Nassau County Aquatic Center two days later to record a runner-up finish in the 200 Free. Her efforts at the Junior Nationals followed a 2017 US Open Swimming Championships trip just days earlier, when she participated in seven events.
In the Wednesday morning session, the Chino, Calif. native clocked in at 56.25 in the preliminary round of the 100 Free to secure a spot in the final as the fourth finisher. When the top eight returned that evening, Liu took charge from the start and never looked back. She led after the first 50 meters of the long-course competition, posting the best 50-meter split of the competition at 26.73. Liu finished with a time of 55.36 to win.
In the Aug. 11 morning session, Liu registered a sixth-place finish in the preliminary round of the 200 Free, checking in at 2:01.81. Just 0.48 back of the leader, Liu returned to the pool that evening poised to make a jump. Sure enough, she did, improving on her time by 1.47 seconds to finish at 2:00.34. Her 30.04 final split trailed only the winner, Easop Lee.
Liu also impressed in the 50 Free, where a 26.22 preliminary-round score qualified her for the B Final. She nearly mirrored that time later that day, when she came in at 26.24 to finish fourth and 12th overall.
The US Open, which also took place at the Nassau County Aquatic Center, occurred Aug. 2-6 and saw Liu tackle the 100 Free, 4x100 Free Relay, 200 Breast, 100 Fly, 200 Free, 200 IM and 50 Free. She advanced past the preliminary round in four of the six individual events. Liu's top finish came in the 100 Free B Final, where she came in at 56.05 to finish fourth and 12th overall.
Earlier this summer, Liu tallied five wins and one runner-up finish at the 2017 Speedo Summer Sectionals: California-Nevada in La Mirada, Calif. The wins came in the 100 Free (55.35), 400 IM (4:50.65), 200 IM (2:15.76), 50 Free (25.71) and 200 Breast (2:29.82).
Liu is coming off her debut season as a Bruin, during which she recorded multiple wins in the 200 Free (four), 200 Breast (three) and 200 IM (two). She added a victory in the 100 Free and was part of three relay-winning quartets. The 800 Free Relay team of Liu, Linnea Mack, Katie Grover and Madison White set a new school record in the 800 Free Relay with a time of 7:04.59.
Players Mentioned
