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Erin Gemmell Remains 5th in US with 200 FR Season Best of 1:57.51 at Longhorn Elite Invite

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Erin Gemmell Remains 5th in US with 200 FR Season Best of 1:57.51 at Longhorn Elite Invite


2024 LONGHORN ELITE INVITE

Friday Finals Livestream Video

As many Florida and Georgia names are repping at the 2024 Atlanta Classic, many more Texas names are going in on the weekend racing action two time zones over at the 2024 Longhorn Elite Invite in Austin, TX. Friday’s finals session sounded off with a set of four more women’s and men’s event finals, the 200 free, 200 back, 400 IM, and 100 fly.

Texas freshman Erin Gemmell of Nation’s Capital easily won the women’s 200 free at 1:57.51, ahead of Texas redshirt Jillian Cox (2:00.96). This marks a season best for Gemmell, following her 1:57.98 from the San Antonio Pro Swim Series. For Cox, her finals time was just off her season best of 2:00.22 from the Knoxville Pro Swim Series.

Gemmell now affirms herself as the 5th-fastest American in this event this season after being tied with Addison Sauickie. Gemmell owns a lifetime best of 1:55.90 from the 2023 World Championships.

2023-2024 US Rankings- Women’s 200 FR LCM

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  1. Katie Ledecky, 1:54.97
  2. Anna Peplowski, 1:56.99
  3. Paige Madden, 1:57.25
  4. Simone Manuel, 1:57.37
  5. Erin Gemmell, 1:57.51**
  6. Addison Sauickie, 1:57.98

Four Texas Longhorn women finished 1-2-3-4 on the women’s side of the 100 fly. Kelly Pash (58.16) took the four-tenths win over Emma Sticklen (58.57) while Dakota Luther touched out Olivia Bray by 0.07s for third, 59.01 to 59.08.

Pash’s 58.16 eclipses her 2024 calendar year best of 58.34 from the Knoxville Pro Swim Series. She remains the 7th-fastest American in 2024 in this event. At the October 2023 Pan American Games, Pash won silver with a time of 57.85, which still ranks 7th this season.

Meanwhile, Sticklen’s 58.57 is a small drop from her 58.81 year best and keeps her ranked 12th in the nation this year. Luther’s 59.01 was a hair off her 2024 best time of 58.84. In the same way, Bray’s 59.01 was just off her US No.11-ranked 58.42 year best.

2024 US Rankings- Women’s 100 FL LCM

  1. Torri Huske, 55.68
  2. Gretchen Walsh, 56.14
  3. Regan Smith, 56.36
  4. Claire Curzan, 56.61
  5. Alex Shackell, 57.22
  6. Alex Walsh, 57.59
  7. Kelly Pash, 58.16**
  8. Josephine Fuller, 58.37

TXLA’s Shaine Casas took out another win in Austin, topping the men’s 100 fly at 51.48, splitting 23.80/27.68. Casas’ season best rests at 51.03 from the 2023 US Open, but has a 2024 calendar year best of 51.40 from the January Knoxville Pro Swim Series. With his 51.03 season best, Casas sits in second in the US only behind Caeleb Dressel this season. Casas put up his lifetime best of 50.40 back at the 2022 US Nationals.

SMU transfer Danny Kovac was spotted exactly a second behind, in second place, at 52.48. Kovac remains 10th-ranked in the nation this season, dropping 0.03s from his 52.51 from a SMU time trial last month. This marks Kovac’s fastest 100 fly since the 2021 US Olympic Trials, where he swam 51.61 to rank 4th in semi-finals before dropping to 8th in the final.

Pro Carson Foster, representing the Mason Manta Rays, won the men’s 200 free by exactly two seconds at 1:47.10. That’s just tenths off his season best time of 1:46.58 from the San Antonio Pro Swim Series last month, which ranks 4th in the nation for the 2023-2024 season. Foster does own a lifetime best of 1:45.57 from the 2022 US Team Trials.

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Austin trainee Rex Maurer narrowly took second at 1:49.10, ahead of Texas’ Luke Hobson of Lakeridge (1:49.35). Maurer put up a new season best, dropping from his 1:49.98 at last month’s Fran Crippen Swim Meet of Champions in Mission Viejo. He owns a lifetime best of 1:47.63 from the 2023 US Nationals, which ranked 20th in the nation at the end of last season. Meanwhile, Hobson holds the top time in the nation this season at 1:45.26 from the outlandishly-scheduled February World Championships.

More Day 3 Event Winners

  • Wisconsin commit Maggie Wanezek of Elmbrook handily took the women’s 200 back with a 2:11.99. Wanezek recently set her personal best of 2:10.33 at the March NCSA Spring Championships, ranking 12th in the nation this 2023-2024 season.
  • Texas commit Cooper Lucas of Lakeside easily won the men’s 400 IM in 4:24.52, just off his 2024 year best of 4:23.54 from the Knoxville Pro Swim Series. Lucas owns a lifetime best of 4:18.76 from the September 2023 World Junior Championships, which puts him in 8th in the US this 2023-24 season.
  • Texas’ Chris O’Connor easily won the men’s 200 back at 2:03.54, dropping just about a second from prelims (2:04.44). In February, O’Connor swam an unrested 2:12.28 at a TCU dual meet. He owns a lifetime best of 1:58.24 from 2023 US Nationals, which ranked 15th in the nation at the end of the 2022-23 season.
  • After swimming the event for the first time since June 2022 in prelims, Texas’ Angie Coe dropped from a fresh 4:57.97 personal best to an Olympic Trials qualifying time of 4:48.76. She now adds this 400 IM cut to her 200 IM cut achieved in January.





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Austin, TX

Lawsuit: Brianna Aguilera’s parents allege underage alcohol service at Austin tailgate contributed to daughter’s death

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Lawsuit: Brianna Aguilera’s parents allege underage alcohol service at Austin tailgate contributed to daughter’s death


The parents of Brianna Aguilera have filed a lawsuit against two organizations, alleging that they served alcohol to their underage daughter which contributed to her death in Austin.

Before Aguilera fell to her death from the Rio 21 Apartments in West Campus, the lawsuit states that she attended a tailgate at the Austin Blacks Rugby Club’s facility, organized by the UT Latin Economics and Business Association.

Both the Austin Blacks Rugby Club and the UT Latin Economics and Business Association were listed as defendants in the lawsuit.

>> What we know about Texas A&M student Brianna Aguilera’s death in Austin

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Even though the lawsuit states Aguilera was “noticeably intoxicated” at the tailgate, her parents argue that the defendants continued to serve her alcohol.

According to court documents, Aguilera allegedly began stumbling at the tailgate and needed help standing at times. At some point, the lawsuit said she fell into the woods and lost her phone.

After leaving the tailgate at approximately 10 p.m., court documents state Aguilera died around two hours later.

The lawsuit also accuses the defendants of negligence and gross negligence for serving alcohol to Aguilera despite her age and allegedly overserving her.

In the suit, Aguilera’s parents demanded a trial by jury and sought at least $1 million plus interest, costs and punitive damages.

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Aguilera’s parents also seek damages for wrongful death, citing the defendants’ alleged misconduct.

Houston-based attorney Tony Buzbee, who’s representing the Aguilera family, commented on the lawsuit in a Tuesday news conference.

Watch the full news conference below:

“Brianna was obviously overserved,” Buzbee said. “Even the police have concluded that she was overserved at that tailgate. She was not 21.”

Buzbee also stated that the Austin Police Department has allegedly told multiple witnesses not to talk with him and Aguilera’s parents.

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“They told the three, the three individuals that were in that apartment that night when this young girl died. They told them, do not speak to Brianna’s mother or her lawyers,” Buzbee said.

He said that the lawsuit could provide a way for the witnesses to eventually come forward with information.

“By filing this lawsuit, not only will we hold accountable an entity or entities that were involved in overserving Brianna and other minors, but we will also be able to subpoena individuals and documents and video and data so we can continue our investigation,” Buzbee said.

KSAT’s sister station, KPRC, has reached out to both the Austin Blacks Rugby Club and the UT Latin Economics and Business Association for comment on the lawsuit. This story will be updated once the organizations provide a statement.


More coverage of this story on KSAT:

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Copyright 2026 by KSAT – All rights reserved.



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Austin, TX

Cedar pollen eases, but record heat builds across Central Texas

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Cedar pollen eases, but record heat builds across Central Texas


Although record-breaking heat and spring-like warmth dominated the first few days of the new year, cooler — but still warmer than normal —temperatures settled in to start the first work week of 2026.

The heat will ramp up yet again Tuesday and Wednesday, with temperatures about 20 degrees above the normal early-January high of 62 degrees. 

Expect a blanket of low stratus clouds and some patchy dense fog Tuesday morning, but skies should begin clearing around lunchtime.

“In the meantime, a surface trough (of low atmospheric pressure)/dry line will push from the southern Edwards Plateau into the I-35 corridor, bringing temperatures into the lower to mid-80s,” meteorologists with the National Weather Service wrote in a forecast discussion Monday. “It is going to be very warm for this time of year, and some daily high temperature records could be broken.”

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Those temperatures could rival record highs at both Austin climate observation sites, Camp Mabry and Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, where the standing record is 84 degrees, set in 1989.

Behind the dry line Tuesday, drier air will move into Central Texas, leading to a slightly cooler start Wednesday under mostly to partly cloudy skies.

Morning temperatures will dip into the 50s around sunrise before climbing into the upper 70s to mid-80s by the afternoon. Those highs would surpass the record of 80 degrees set in 2008 at Camp Mabry.

Temperatures the rest of the week will remain above normal with mostly cloudy mornings but sunny afternoons. 

A cold front is forecast to move across the region later in the week with a slight rain chance Thursday and Friday, but most of the rain will fall north and east of Austin. However, cooler and more seasonable weather is expected this weekend. 

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This past weekend, Austin experienced the highest cedar pollen counts so far this season with a count of 3,200 grains per cubic meter Saturday and a peak of 4,000 grains per cubic meter on Sunday. However, the count dropped to just over 1,000 grams per cubic meter on Monday. Humidity has been on the rise in the past few days, and winds have been much lighter. Those factors have helped “settle” the cedar pollen for the time being. 

Luckily, the winds have turned southerly and are much lighter, so the pollen has settled a bit. A small chance of rain on Thursday and Friday should also help dampen cedar pollen before it becomes airborne. However, above-normal temperatures will allow tree pollen cones to continue opening, setting the stage for another pollen surge when the next breezy cold front arrives.



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Venezuelan oil reboot not expected to spur windfall in Texas

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Venezuelan oil reboot not expected to spur windfall in Texas


With former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro out of power, President Trump said he wants to reboot the oil industry in Venezuela. 

That idea has raised questions about whether it could cause a price spike at the gas pump and a downturn in the Texas oil patch region. 

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Now, a spike at the pump and a production slump in the Texas oil patch may not happen this year, but with oil prices down, a budget crunch for state lawmakers may be waiting when they return to Austin in 2027.

What they’re saying:

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The situation in Venezuela is creating a lot of political uncertainty, but a Texas energy expert said he is not expecting that uncertainty to cause an oil patch crash or a gas pump pike in 2026.

Prices at the pump are low and despite some recent big swings, up and down, analysts say 2026 could see the lowest prices since the pandemic. That prediction has people like Dale Owens cautiously optimistic.

“Things change so drastically nowadays. I mean, look what’s happening with the government, so anything can affect the price. But right now I’m really happy that it’s stable,” said Owens.

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There are big reasons for that local gas price stabilization, and it predates the leadership change in Venezuela, according to Ed Hirs, an Energy Fellow at the University of Houston.

“The first is that the president has asked MBS (Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman) and OPEC nations to continue pumping a pace. Number one. Number two, this helps hamstring the Russian economy and its war effort. And that’s also one of the goals of not only the European Union, but of the Trump administration. And number three, we’ve got the midterm elections coming up,” said Hirs.

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The price of a barrel of oil is expected to increase slightly because of the uncertainty regarding Venezuela. Texas crude oil production, according to an update released Monday, was stable in December, but state data also showed drilling permits for 2025 were at 369 and that’s down from 459 in 2024.

“When President Trump took office, oil was about $80 a barrel, today it’s under $60 a barrel. We are the high-cost producers in the global commodity oil market, and the cost of drilling these wells has gone up by between 5% and 12%, primarily because of Trump’s steel tariffs. Not only does the imported steel now cost a lot more, but domestic producers raise their So the producers in West Texas and across the Permian Basin are getting squeezed by much lower revenues, $20 a barrel less and much higher cost. It’s not a good capital investment for Wall Street,” said Hirs.

Dig deeper:

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The oil industry remains a big part of the Texas economy and the state budget. State lawmakers will return to Austin in 2027 to crunch numbers for a new two-year budget.

“I think they need to be looking at the budget. So the state comptroller needs to be running the numbers now based on lower oil revenues, not only for state lands, for example, for the universities, but for the state tax receipts. And that applies to the counties and cities that rely on these revenues to keep their budgets balanced. It’s going to be lower for longer,” said Hirs. 

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There are also doubts about whether the Texas refineries will get a financial windfall if the Trump Administration is able to reboot the oil industry in Venezuela. There are about six refineries in Texas and Louisiana that can process the heavy crude that is located in Venezuela.

“Well, it might help keep them open. But Lyondell just closed down a 100-plus-year-old heavy crude refinery on the Houston Ship Channel because it just doesn’t make any sense to reinvest in it. And it was going to require $750, $800 million of new capital investment just to keep the plant operating at par,” said Hirs.

What’s next:

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Stocks for several oil companies did increase on Monday. Chevron, at one point, had a 10% stock price surge, mainly because Chevron is the only U.S. company operating in Venezuela. Other energy-related companies also saw an increase, like Exxon, as well as industry suppliers like Baker-Hughes and Halliburton. 

The action on Wall Street came after President Trump said he wants energy producers to pay for the oil production rebuild. Hirs described the administration’s plans as being “naive.”

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Past attempts to rebuild another country’s oil infrastructure seem to back up the doubts raised by Hirs. In 1989, after the Soviet Union collapsed, companies like Exxon went in to rebuild — only to get kicked out later by the Russians. Hirs also noted the rebuilding effort in Iraq, started by President George W. Bush, hasn’t returned production there to pre-war levels. And it’s the same story for Libya, which was done under President Obama.

The Source: Information from interviews conducted by FOX 7 Austin’s Rudy Koski and previous coverage

AustinTexas PoliticsDonald J. Trump
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