Bedford teen wraps up USA Swimming Championships

INDIANAPOLIS (WTAJ) — Bedford teen, Leah Shackley completed her USA Championship swims Friday night, a 1:00:22 in the B-Final of the 100m backstroke, third fastest among the under-18 competitors. The 16-year-old just missed the junior national team by two-hundredths of a second.

“I know she is disappointed in her times, but coming off being in a boot three weeks out, she really worked very hard through the pain,” her coach Tom Grassadonia said. “She won’t say it, but I’m really proud of her.”

All is not lost for the Blair County YMCA swimmer, who unofficially made the junior national team Thursday in the 100m butterfly, though official word remains pending. Shackley, who turns 17 in July, came into the week ranked in the top 10 in all three of her events, the 100m butterfly, 100m backstroke and 200m backstroke, but slow finishes across the board proved costly.

The high school rising senior failed to crack the top 16 in the 200m backstroke and was scratched from the D-Final. She finished 14th overall in the 100m butterfly, and 12th overall in the 100m backstroke.

“My goal was to make a team and represent America,” Shackley said. “I wish I had a little more in the tank but feel pretty good about my chances to be selected.”

Earlier this spring, Shackley set the swimming world on fire with dominant performances as the YMCA Nationals. She entered the weekend with the fifth-fastest 100m backstroke by an American woman this season.