Austin, TX

Rising Texas Sophomores Modglin, Germonprez Post Lifetime Bests on Day 1 of Austin Sectionals

Published

2 years ago

July 12, 2024

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Rising Texas Sophomores Modglin, Germonprez Post Lifetime Bests on Day 1 of Austin Sectionals

2024 Austin Sectionals

July 11-14
Lee & Joe Jamail Texas Swim Center
Austin, Texas
LCM (50 meters)
Results on MeetMobile: “2024 ST TXLA SZ LC Sectional Champs”

Rising University of Texas sophomores Will Modglin and Nate Germonprez kicked off Austin Sectionals on Thursday night with lifetime bests in the 100-meter freestyle and 200 breaststroke, respectively.

Modglin fired off a personal-best 49.07 to win the 100 free, a few tenths quicker than his previous-best 49.41 from last month’s Olympic Trials, where he placed 28th. The 20-year-old also placed 6th in the 100 back (53.69) and 8th in 200 IM (1:58.44) at Trials last month.

Germonprez pulled off an impressive three-second drop in the 200 breast with a victory in 2:13.38, crushing his previous-best 2:16.86 from last summer. The 19-year-old placed 12th in the 200 IM at last month’s Trials, where he did not contest the 200 breast. Germonprez is now within a second of the time it took to make the 200 breast semifinals at Trials (2:12.23).

Modglin was the No. 2 recruit in the high school class of 2023 while Germonprez was ranked 5th.

Recent Texas A&M graduate Chloe Stepanek claimed the women’s 100 free crown in 54.99, just a few tenths off her Olympic Trials performance from last month (54.63) that placed 15th overall. The 22-year-old is in the NCAA transfer portal after spending her first four seasons swimming for the Aggies.

Stepanek reached the wall just a blink ahead of Texas graduate Grace Cooper, who earned a runner-up finish in 55.05. The 21-year-old touched within a couple tenths of the 54.91 she clocked at Olympic Trials last month en route to 21st place. Cooper’s lifetime best sits at 54.67 from last August.

The women’s 200 breast also came down to the wire as rising Texas junior Lindsey Hosch (2:35.43) eked past 17-year-old Aliana Marakovic (2:35.60). Hosch, 20, was only a few tenths shy of her personal-best 2:35.04 from May. Marakovic, a Harvard commit (’25), has been as fast as 2:33.69 last August.

Raphael Wang registered a lifetime best in the 200 breast on his way to 2nd place in 2:16.61. The 17-year-old Duke commit (’25) shaved more than a quarter of a second off his previous-best 2:16.87 from last month.

Texas graduate Emma Sticklen cruised to the women’s 200 butterfly victory in 2:08.95. The 22-year-old is coming off a solid showing at Olympic Trials last month that saw her post a personal-best 2:07.44 in semis before ultimately placing 4th in 2:08.07.

Matthew O’Konski captured the men’s 200 fly title in 2:03.84, dropping more than two seconds off his previous-best 2:06.02 from last July. The Crawfish Aquatics 17-year-old beat Logan Walker (2:04.48) and Andres Brooks (2:04.69) by less than a second.

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Austin, TX

Goodwill Central Texas launches “Swap Your Shop” Challenge

Published

6 hours ago

March 28, 2026

Press Room

Goodwill Central Texas launches “Swap Your Shop” Challenge

Austin, TX — If you’re looking for an easy way to make a difference this Earth Day, Goodwill Central Texas has a simple challenge for you.

It’s called “Swap Your Shop,” and the idea is straightforward. Instead of buying something new, try picking up one secondhand item. That one small switch can help cut down on waste and reduce your environmental impact.

According to a 2023 report, if every U.S. shopper made that choice just once this year, it could reduce carbon emissions by more than 2 billion pounds. That’s like taking 76 million cars off the road for a day. It could also save more than 20 billion gallons of water and keep hundreds of millions of pounds of waste out of landfills.

And it doesn’t have to be a big commitment. Even buying one thrifted clothing item instead of a new one could prevent about 450 million pounds of waste each year.

So whether you already love thrifting or have never tried it, this is a good time to start. Swap out one purchase, give something pre-owned a second life, and see the difference it can make.

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If you do take part, you can even share your find on social media and tag @austingoodwill.

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Austin, TX

AUS plans for 18,000 departing passengers day after Trump order pays TSA employees

Published

18 hours ago

March 28, 2026

Press Room

AUS plans for 18,000 departing passengers day after Trump order pays TSA employees

AUSTIN, Texas — The Austin airport expects over 18,000 departing passengers on Saturday, this coming the morning after Trump signed an executive order to pay TSA employees after Congress failed to agree on DHS funding.

The airport recommends travelers arrive 2.5 hours early for domestic flights and three hours early for international departures.

ALSO | Hays County judge says Rep. Erin Zwiener turned away from meeting over water dispute

AUS noted that many MotoGP fans will be departing from the airport this weekend, the motorcycle racing event at Circuit of the Americas happening this weekend and ending on Sunday.

The DHS shutdown has burdened airports nationwide with hours-long TSA lines. Austin’s lines were especially long during SXSW, stretching out the terminal and down the road.

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Austin, TX

Austin Police Investigating Two Friday Morning Traffic Fatalities

Published

1 day ago

March 27, 2026

Press Room

Austin Police Investigating Two Friday Morning Traffic Fatalities

The Austin Police Department is investigating two fatal Friday morning crashes that represent the city’s 17th and 18th traffic fatalities of the year.

APD put out details about the two deaths in separate press releases on Friday. The first bulletin reveals that at 3:03 a.m. on March 27, officers responded to a single motor vehicle collision in the 2600 block of W. Slaughter Ln.

According to the release, the collision involved a motorcycle leaving the roadway. The motorcycle rider, 27-year-old Evan Sedall, was pronounced dead on the scene.

The incident is being investigated as the city’s 17th fatal crash of the year. On this date in 2025, the city had seen 20 fatal crashes resulting in 24 deaths.

According to the second press release, at 3:58 p.m., officers responded to a collision involving a motor vehicle and a pedestrian in the southbound lanes of the 13300 block of N. U.S. Highway 183.

An unidentified pedestrian was pronounced dead on the scene. The driver of the vehicle remained at the scene and cooperated with the investigation.

This incident is being investigated as Austin’s 18th fatal crash of the year, resulting in 18 fatalities

The statements in these press releases are from the initial assessments of the fatal crashes, and the investigations are still pending. Fatality information could change.

Anyone with information about either case should contact APD’s Vehicular Homicide Unit at 512-974-8111. Residents can also submit anonymous tips through the Capital Area Crime Stoppers Program by visiting its website or calling 512-472-8477.

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