Bailey Completes Day One of NCAA Championships

Minneapolis, Minn. ?  Senior Lauren Bailey swam in her first of three events at the 2007 NCAA Championships Thursday in Minneapolis, Minn., by competing in the 500-yard freestyle.

 

Bailey, who was seeded 33rd with a time of 4:47.16 heading into the meet, clocked a time of 4:50.78 to finish 43rd. At last year's NCAA Championships, Bailey placed 26th (4:49.30).

 

During the regular season, she won six of the eight 500 freestyle races she competed in before grabbing a fourth-place finish at the Big 12 Championships on Feb. 15 in College Station, Texas. Her career-best time is 4:46.96 from the 2006 Big 12 Championships in Columbia, Mo.

 

The senior's finish was not high enough to qualify for Thursday night's finals, but she will have another opportunity Friday morning when she swims in the 400 invididual medley. Preliminary events begin at 11 a.m.