Carson High graduate Julie Hardt turned in two All-American performances and came with .13 of a second of becoming a national champion for the University of Georgia women's swim team.
Hardt placed third in the 200-yard freestyle and helped Georgia to a second place finish in the 800 free relay on Friday at the NCAA Championships at Auburn. Carson High graduate Dana Baum also had an outstanding effort on Friday for Minnesota, winning the consolation title in the 200 free.
Hardt, a junior who came in seeded 18th in the event, posted the fastest qualifying time one minute, 45.74 seconds in the preliminaries in the 200 free. In the finals, she finished in 1:45.14.
In a photo finish, North Carolina's Jesse Perruquet beat Auburn's Heather Kemp. Both finished in 1:45.01.
Baum, a senior, who was seeded 18th in the event, qualified 12th in the preliminaries in 1:47.47. She moved up to win the consolation finals, placing ninth overall in 1:47.15.
Hardt swam her leg in 1:45.60 to help Georgia take second in the 800 free. The Bulldogs finished in 7:05.69. Auburn won, setting a meet record of 7:02.72.
It also looks like Auburn is going to win its second straight NCAA title. Going into the final day today, Auburn is first with 389 points. Georgia appears to be on its way to taking second with 262 points. Stanford is third with 202.5.
Hardt is scheduled to compete in the 1,650 free while Baum is scheduled to swim in the 100 free today.