Coughlin started off the evening with a win in the 200m freestyle, setting a new U.S. Open record with a time of 1:58.00, breaking the U.S. Open record of 1:58.02. Katie Hoff of North Baltimore, the former U.S. Open record holder, was second with a time of 1:58.49, and Margaret Hoelzer (Auburn Aquatics) finished in third place in 2:00.11.

“That’s a really, really good time for me, so I know my freestyle is on,” said Coughlin, who also picked up a win in the 100m free last night. “I was really happy with this swim in season.”

Coughlin came back later to win her second gold medal of the night, finishing first in the 50m free with a time of 25.22. Olympic medalist Amanda Weir of Swim Atlanta touched the wall in second (25.79), and Olympian Rachel Komisarz (Lakeside Swim Team) was third in 25.83. All three will compete at the FINA World Championships next month in Melbourne, Australia.

Phelps might not have set any world records tonight, but he posted two solid swims in the 200m free and 400m individual medley. Phelps led a Club Wolverine sweep in the 200m free, taking first place in 1:46.47. Peter Vanderkaay (Club Wolverine) recovered from a slow start to earn second place honors with a time of 1:48.93. In third place was Davis Tarwater (Club Wolverine), who touched the wall in 1:50.05.

The 21-year-old Phelps returned later in the evening and went head-to-head with Tunisian Olympian Ous Mellouli (Trojan) in the 400m IM. Phelps and Mellouli took it down to the wire, as Phelps squeaked out a win with a strong finish in the freestyle. Phelps’ time of 4:11.30 was three-tenths ahead of Mellouli, who touched in a personal-best time of 4:11.64. Brazil’s Thiago Pereira took third in 4:20.33.

“It knew it was going to be a race,” Phelps said. “We had a battle at the U.S. Open (in December 2006), but I didn’t think we were going to go that fast. I heard the crowd coming off the first 50, and I thought, ‘Oh no, please don’t get me that excited.’ I tried to relax a little bit, but it’s good when they get into it. It definitely makes it more exciting.

”In one of the more surprising races of the evening, Eric Shanteau (Lilburn, Ga. / Longhorn) won the 200m breaststroke, edging out Longhorn teammate Brendan Hansen by more than half a second. Shanteau touched in 2:13.03, and Hansen, the current world-record holder in the event, finished in 2:13.60. Auburn Aquatics’ Mark Gangloff was third in 2:16.63.

For Shanteau, who will compete in this event at the World Championships, the victory was significant.

“It was huge,” Shanteau said. “Brendan is the best at what he does. He’s held the world record for a number of years now, and he doesn’t lose too many breaststroke races. It’s good for both of us, for me to have the confidence, and it gives him the motivation because he doesn’t lose too often.”

In other events, 2004 Olympian Tara Kirk (Bremerton, Wash. / Palo Alto Stanford) took the 200m breast with a time of 2:27.42, finishing more than three seconds ahead of Trojan’s Keri Hehn (2:30.49). Gator Swim Club’s Vipa Bernhardt took third in 2:31.00.

Cullen Jones (New Brunswick, N.J. / NC State Aquatics), ranked first in the world in the 50m free in 2006, continued his domination of the event, winning tonight’s final with a time of 22.40. Four-time Olympic medalist Ian Crocker (Longhorn Aquatics) finished second in 22.74, and Jakob Andkjaer (Auburn) came in third with a time of 22.81.

In the women’s 400m IM, 2007 World Champ team member Ariana Kukors (Auburn, Wash. / King Aquatic Club) blew away the competition, winning in 4:47.60. Bernhardt came back for her second top-three finish of the evening, taking second behind Kukors in 4:55.26. Lauren Thies (Multnomah Athletics) finished in third (4:56.25).

The 2007 Missouri Grand Prix concludes Monday with prelims and finals of the men’s and women’s 100m butterfly, 100m backstroke, 100m breaststroke and 200m individual medley. Timed finals of the women’s 800m freestyle, men’s 1500m freestyle and men’s and women’s 800m free relay will also be contested. Prelims begin at 9 a.m. (central standard time), and finals are at 5:30 p.m.