Leah Shackley Leading Promising American Group Heading to World University Games
The favorites in the backstroke events entering U.S. Nationals got the job done in their respective events, but 19-year-old Leah Shackley left the outcomes in serious doubt as the former high school star showed off her massive improvements in one year at NC State. That form has Shackley heading to the World University Games in Germany favored to pull off another strong medal haul.
At Nationals, Shackley opened with a third-place finish in the 200 back, a massive improvement on the 17th-place result she achieved at the Olympic Trials one year earlier. She sits No. 5 in the world in that event, but the presence of Claire Curzan and Regan Smith will prevent Shackley from seeking a World Championships medal in the event. Shackley then took seventh in the 50 butterfly, fifth in the 100 fly and fourth in the 50 back before earning another top-three in the 100 back at 58.60. She was just off her weeks-old best time of 58.53, which also ranks her fifth globally.
The swimming portion of the World University Games will take place in Berlin, and Shackley will be among the busiest swimmers of the meet. She is the only American to have qualified in four individual events (all three backstroke races plus the 100 fly), and it is expected that she will be tapped for numerous relays. Expect to see a significant medal haul and potentially the achievement of times that would be good enough to win medals at the World Championships.
Shackley and the remaining U.S. swimmers will have an additional aim beyond simply winning medals during their trip to Germany: times from WUGs will be considered for selection to the team for next year’s Pan Pacific Championships, to be held in Irvine, Calif., in August. The fastest A-final times from Nationals, Worlds, WUGs, the World Junior Championships and the TYR Pro Championships will be combined to determine which swimmers will earn bids for the main international meet for American swimmers in 2026. At least two and potentially three swimmers per event will be selected for Pan Pacs, with more spots likely available on the women’s side.
Here are some of the other American swimmers who could put a dent into the national and international status quo with their performances against fellow collegians:
Ben Delmar
This University of North Carolina product will race all three breaststroke events in Germany, but his best event is the 200, in which he swam a best time by one-and-a-half seconds for fourth place at Nationals, coming in at 2:10.17. Delmar is the only Tar Heel on this roster, but the program is making noise nationally under the guidance of another elite breaststroker, Mark Gangloff. Given the relative weakness of the U.S. men in breaststroke, Delmar could open more eyes at WUGs.
Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick
Daniel Diehl
Diehl will swim at a senior-level international competition for the first time after his strong Nationals culminated with third-place finishes in the 100 and 200 back. Most impressive for the NC State standout was a time of 1:55.08 in the 200-meter event, ranking him fourth in the world and just two tenths behind Nationals runnerup Keaton Jones. Diehl also went 53.35 in the 100 back, finishing third by 0.16, and he swam a time of 1:46.70 in the 200 free prelims (he scratched the B-final), so expect a role on the 800 free relay as well.
Ryan Erisman
Erisman’s younger sister Rylee is one of the top teenage sprinters in the country, but Ryan came closer to qualifying for Worlds with a third-place finish in the 400 free. The future Cal Bear swam a time of 3:46.01 to take down the 17-18 National Age Group record in the event, edging Larson Jensen’s previous mark, and he would have been in line for a trip to Worlds if not for the stunning performance of Luka Mijatovic. Erisman also placed fifth in the 800 free at Nationals, adding that race to his WUGs schedule, and expect an 800 free relay role as well.
Leah Hayes
Three years after winning an unexpected World Championships bronze in the 200 IM, Hayes will head back in international waters for both individual medley races at the World University Games. Hayes had a trio of top-five finishes at Nationals, coming in fifth in the 200 breaststroke and fourth in the 200 IM, but her 4:38.46 in the 400 IM was most impressive. Hayes actually moved into second place on the breaststroke leg, but the freestyle efforts of University of Virginia teammate Katie Grimes were too much to overcome. If she can drop more time in Germany, that could rock the world rankings.
Tess Howley
Here is another Virginia Cavalier to keep an eye on. Howley was seventh in the 200 fly at last year’s Olympic Trials, but she cut two seconds from her best time on the way to a third-place finish at Nationals, ahead of touted teens Alex Shackell and Audrey Derivaux. At 2:06.79, Howley now ranks sixth in the world this year, although her path to further advancement is muddled with four of the swimmers ahead of her hailing from the United States. Still, if she can maintain her strong world ranking and no further Americans surpass her time, she has a really good shot of achieving a Pan Pacs bid.
Isabel Ivey
Best known for her standout collegiate performances at Cal and then Florida, Ivey was closer than ever to reaching the senior-level “A” team this year when she swam in the 200 free final at U.S. Nationals, her time as quick as 1:57.88. Swimmers in relay events receive lower priority for Pan Pacs qualification, so that is highly unlikely, but a further drop and impressive relay swims will cement her status as a contender in future years. Additionally, Ivey could be counted on for leadership; at age 24, she is the oldest woman on the American roster and second-oldest swimmer behind Jack Dahlgren.
Baylor Nelson
Nelson is now a Texas Longhorn after beginning his college career at Texas A&M, and he had a solid debut major meet in the burnt orange. Nelson reached the finals of both individual medley events, coming in at fourth in the 400-meter event, and he swam as fast a 1:47.01 in the 200 free, although he lost a swim-off to Jake Mitchell at the conclusion of the meet. Expect to see Nelson continue to build momentum before contributing to the Longhorns’ cause at the college level this season.
