A redshirt sophomore next season for the University of Wisconsin, the California transfer soaked up the moment upon realizing she is presumably heading to the Olympics.
“Oh my God ... I don’t know whether I should laugh or cry,” Runge said after finishing fifth in the 200 freestyle final Wednesday at the U.S. Swimming Trials in Omaha, Nebraska. “It’s been a dream of mine since I was four years old. To finally make it is unbelievable.”
Favorite Katy Ledecky won in 1 minute, 54.88 seconds while Missy Franklin (1:56.18) took second. Leah Smith and Allison Schmitt, the 2012 Olympic champion, were third and fourth and qualified to swim on the 4x200 freestyle relay.