Caitlin Leverenz finished third in 200 breast.

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OMAHA, Neb. — For the first time all week, the sparkle was missing in the eyes of Caitlin Leverenz as she walked slowly to the Olympic trials' warm-up area.

In the race of her young swimming life Friday night, the Sahuaro High School senior missed a berth on the USA Olympic swimming team by 0.85 of a second.

Leverenz was third in the finals of the women's 200-meter breast stroke at Qwest Center. Former Arizona Wildcat All-American Amanda Beard out-touched Leverenz at the wall to finish second and book a spot at the Beijing Olympics.

Beard touched the wall in 2 minutes 25.13 seconds. Leverenz was third in 2:25.98. USC's Rebecca Soni won going away in 2:22.60.

Leverenz's lifetime best is 2:25.62.

After leaving the pool, Leverenz walked down a stairway to a media interview zone and was consoled by officials from USA Swimming for about two minutes. Then she walked behind a curtain and into the warm-down area without speaking to reporters.

For the week, Leverenz was achingly close to Beijing. She finished fourth in the 400 IM and fourth in the 200 IM. She will be 21 when the trials for the 2012 London Olympics are held. Only the top two finishers make the Olympic team.

Leverenz was second after the first 50 meters, but Beard caught her at about the 100-meter level and maintained a slight lead to the finish.

"I died like a dog on that last 50 meters, but it was worth it," said Beard, 27, who has won seven Olympic medals, two of them gold, in three Olympiads. "I really didn't expect to make it."

Beard essentially was away from swimming from 2005 to 2007 after she left the UA coaches at Hillenbrand Aquatic Center. She said she returned to training a year ago and "only seriously two months ago."

She has been training at UCLA.

"I feel very touched, very special and very honored to be part of this team," she said.

Tucsonan Jeff Dash, a three-time Georgia boys Swimmer of the Year in the late 1990s, graduated from the UA in 2003, stopped competitive swimming and gained about 40 pounds.

He worked in the hotel business in Jackson, Wyo., and for the NBA Cleveland Cavaliers in a ticket management position. He later spent time traveling in Asia and selling commercial real estate in Phoenix.

Last summer he became seriously ill with an ulcer in his esophagus and with severe anemia. To return to health, he lost about 40 pounds and rejoined the Tucson Ford Dealers Aquatic Club. Two months ago, in a Grand Prix meet in Minnesota, he qualified for the Olympic trials in the 100 butterfly.

Friday morning at Qwest Center, Dash, 27, swam a career-best 54.31, finishing 35th overall. He was ranked 57th before that.

"A year ago, I couldn't walk up a flight of stairs without hurting bad," he said. "So to be back here, swimming my fastest time ever, it's very fulfilling. When I came back to Tucson, I was getting my butt whipped by 16-year-olds. So this has been very rewarding experience for me."

Dash, who competed in the 2000 Olympic trials in Indianapolis, said his experience in Omaha has made him consider extending his swimming career.

Sabino High School junior Sarah Denninghoff set another personal record Friday. This time her 200 backstroke time of 2:15.82 shattered her previous best of 2:17.22. She was 35th overall after entering the event ranked 63rd.

Earlier in the week, Denninghoff finished 28th in the 100 backstroke, launching her onto the roster of USA Swimming's junior national team for 2009.

"This week has been very inspirational for me," she said. "I'm going to compete in the U.S. Open (July 29-Aug. 3 in Minneapolis), take a week off, and then start training for the high school season."

Her performance in Omaha suggests Denninghoff will be one of the handful of top swimming recruits for the graduating class of 2010.

UA sophomore Cory Chitwood was an All-American his first college season, helping the Wildcats win the NCAA championship. He finished second in the 200 backstroke.

His performances at the Olympic trials have been similarly strong. UA coaches say he has a no-one-gets-by-me mentality with the potential to be on the Olympic team in 2012.

The Cincinnati product reached the finals of the 200 backstroke Friday night, finishing eighth. He also reached the final 16 of the 400 IM.

"Training at Arizona has been a dream come true for me," Chitwood said. "Every day I'm on the deck with Olympic champions and swimmers that press me to the limit. And our coaching staff is the best. Frank Busch is a great man, a great coach and a great role model.

"My first year at Arizona was better than I thought it could possibly be."