Keiner Places 54th in NCAA 100 Backstroke

Liberty senior Payton Keiner finished 54^th in the 100 backstroke at the NCAA Division I Women's Swimming & Diving Championship, Friday at the Greensboro Aquatic Center in Greensboro, N.C.

Keiner is making her second appearance at the NCAA national meet, as she swam in the 100 backstroke and 200 backstroke at the 2018 NCAA Division I Women's Swimming & Diving Championship.

Liberty's Performer
• Sr. Payton Keiner – 100 backstroke – 54.42 (54^th place overall)

Notable
• During this week's four-day meet, the top 16 from morning prelims each day qualify for evening finals.

• NC State's Katharine Berkoff and Alabama's Rhyan White tied for the top seed, at 50.16. It took 51.43 to qualify for the A Final and 52.26 to make the B Final.

• Keiner came in with the 53th fastest time in the field, the 53.46 that she swam at the 2021 CCSA Championships.

• The Liberty senior went out in 26.22 after 50 yards, and split 28.20 on the final 50.    

Historically Speaking
• Keiner is the first Lady Flame to be selected to compete in three NCAA Division I Women's Swimming & Diving Championships. She was named a CSCAA All-American last year, as the NCAA Championships were not held due to the COVID-19 pandemic.   

• This is the seventh time in 11 years of the program's history that at least one Lady Flame has been selected to compete in the NCAA Division I Women's Swimming & Diving Championships. The Lady Flames have had two All-America honorable mention finishers, in Brye Ravettine (13^th in 50 free, 2012) and Jess Reinhardt (10^th in 100 fly, 2014). All competitors at the cancelled 2020 NCAA Championships were named All-Americans, so Keiner received All-American honors last year.

Up Next
Keiner will conclude her collegiate swimming career tomorrow, competing in the 200 backstroke on the fourth and final day of the 2021 NCAA Division I Women's Swimming & Diving Championship. The 200 backstroke will be the first event tomorrow, with morning prelims beginning at 10 a.m.