Former McAllen High swimmer Shaine Casas continued his big week Saturday at the Phillips 66 National Championships in California as his time of 52.72 in the men’s 100-meter backstroke final earned a national title and ranks as the fifth fastest time in the world in 2019.
The current Texas A&M sophomore swimmer qualified for the final by setting a personal record in the qualifying round with a time of 53.26, shattering his previous record of 54.51, which was recorded last summer. Casas’ final time of 52.72 ranks as the seventh fastest all-time for an American in the 100-meter backstroke, surpassing U.S. Olympic great Michael Phelps, who posted a 53.01 at the 2007 U.S. Nationals.
Casas is now in position to potentially earn a spot on the U.S. national team in the 100 and 200-meter backstroke events.
Earlier in the week, Casas earned a silver medal in the men’s 200-meter backstroke with a time of 1:55.79 in the finals, which set a program record at A&M and currently stands sixth in the world for 2019. Casas’ time was only .07 of a second behind the first-place finisher, Austin Katz from the University of Texas. Katz and Casas now own the fifth- and sixth-place rankings in the 2019 World Rankings in the 200-meter backstroke, and the second and third times in the U.S.
He qualified for the 200-meter backstroke with a time of 1:57.09.
Casas added another Texas A&M school record to his name with a time of 49.17 in the men’s 100-meter freestyle as he went on to win the Group C Final.
During his first year with the Aggies, Casas broke six school records and was named to the SEC All-Freshman Team and an Honorable Mention All-American. He was also the nation’s fastest freshman in the 200-yard backstroke.