OMAHA, Neb. Bryan Trottier Islanders Jersey . -- Four years ago in London, a 17-year-old teenage girl from Colorado became Americas swim darling with her infectious smile, bubbly personality and innate ability to touch the wall before any of her competition. Missy Franklin wasnt even old enough to vote when she won four golds and a bronze at her first Olympics. There was talk that she would be the one to fill the shoes of the then-retiring Michael Phelps and become the face of the sport. Nothing, seemingly, could stop her.But now, less than six weeks from the Rio Games, the talk is coming in the form of questions about whether Franklin is somehow in danger of not making the 2016 U.S. Olympic team that will compete in August. The trademark smile is still there, only now it carries an entirely different purpose. No longer is it an involuntary release of the joy Franklin is feeling inside. Instead, the smile is there to remind everyone -- herself included -- that everything is OK. Theres no need to panic.Tuesday night, she might have needed the boost of positivity more than she has at any other point in the past three years after finishing seventh in the 100-meter backstroke -- the event in which she won her first gold in London. Her time of 1:00.24 was more than a second-and-a-half off her personal best in London, as she was one of only three competitors in the final who failed to break a minute. During interviews afterward, the smile was still there but her words hinted that this is all starting to become a bit much.I think I am feeling more pressure than I ever have before, but thats all part of the process is learning how to deal with it and learning how to move forward, Franklin said. All I can do is the best I can do. I had a race strategy and I went out and I did it and it just wasnt good enough this time.Franklin got off to a slow start in the race and found herself in eighth place at the halfway point, a full second behind Kathleen Baker, who eventually finished second to Olivia Smoliga. Falling behind is nothing new to Franklin, but this time the margin was too much. Afterward, her coach Todd Schmitz tried to find the positives, including the fact that her start looked better technically and had the third-fastest closing time.Is she disappointed? Of course she is, Schmitz said. Anybody who says shes not isnt telling the truth. But being disappointed and using that to motivate you is different than being disappointed and just sulking around. On this pool deck, you see a lot of both. And you know what? It is what it is. We cant go back and swim them again. We just need to move on.The 100 backstroke was on the back end of a challenging double that saw Franklin swim the event 23 minutes and 36 seconds after swimming in a semifinal of the 200 meter freestyle, where she finished fourth overall. But she had a similar double in London on the night she won gold, getting special permission to swim her warm down in the diving well.Schmitz said after both races Tuesday night that he did not consider scratching to allow Franklin to focus on only one event. In fact, because she had struggled in the prelims and semis in the 100 back on full rest, he was hopeful that mixing it up might change things for the 21-year-old.When I woke up this morning, my first thought was we tried it twice being fresh, lets try it once with the two free under our belts and see what happens, Schmitz said.What happened was stunning to anyone who hasnt paid attention to the sport since London, but hardly all that shocking to anyone else. Two years ago at the Pan Pacific Championships in Beijing, Franklin suffered crippling back spasms that left her unable to move for nearly 45 minutes. She managed to still compete and win four medals but only one gold. She hasnt been the same since.After helping California win the NCAA championship in early 2015, she returned home to Colorado and the comforts of her mom, dad, Schmitz and her dryland trainer. But she hasnt been able to return to the form she showed in London or the following summer at the world championships in Barcelona. Franklin hasnt won an individual race at a major international meet since that meet. Nor has she swum a personal best since then. At worlds in Russia last summer, she finished seventh, third, second and fifth.Why? Tuesday morning Franklin repeated the word no four times when asked if there were any lingering issues from her back injury. Some have wondered whether she has been burdened by the pressure and demands of turning professional and traveling the country for commercials and promotional appearances. But thats how swimmers make a living. And Schmitz traveled with Franklin for most of those professional appearances, putting her through training sessions at various local pools.Whatever the explanation, there is still some room for optimism. Despite Franklins gold in London, the 100 back is not her best event. Thats the 200 back. Preliminaries for that event start Friday, with the final scheduled for Saturday, the last full day of competition at trials. But Schmitz is hoping that Franklins Olympic chances dont come down to such a pressure-filled, do-or-die scenario. Before the 200 back, Franklin will swim in the 200 free final Wednesday night. She is seeded fourth. The top four finishers in the final are guaranteed a spot on the Olympic team, and there is a strong likelihood the top six finishers will be named to the team.Tomorrow night, the definite goal is we gotta see a 1 through 6 next to her name and punch that ticket, he said. Obviously in an ideal world, wed want it to be a 1 or a 2. The B option would be 1 through 4, and the C option 1 through 6. Whatever the case, tomorrow night the goal is to punch that ticket.If and when that should happen, you can be sure there will be a smile -- the one so many remember from London.Right now I need to make the team in whatever way that looks like, Franklin said. I need to make this team. And Im going to do my best. Christopher Gibson Islanders Jersey . They had already blown a double-digit lead, fans were hitting the exits, and a long seven-game road trip waited at the end. Christopher Gibson Jersey . Reassurance came from Paul Tesori, his caddie and close friend whose newborn son is in intensive care in a Florida hospital. "Paul sent me a text this morning, just told me he loved me and wanted to go out and fight as hard as I would any other day," Simpson said Sunday after doing just that. http://www.nhlislandershockeystore.com/casey-cizikas-jersey/ . It was Kerbers third final of the year after losing to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia in Monterrey in April and to Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic in Tokyo two weeks ago. The 10th-ranked German improved her record in finals to 3-5. NEW YORK -- Four games, all Mets. Same story, summer or fall.Wilmer Flores went 6 for 6 with two of New Yorks five home runs, and the Mets romped to another four-game sweep of the Chicago Cubs by battering Jon Lester in a 14-3 blowout Sunday.Curtis Granderson homered immediately in his return to the starting lineup, and New York also got long balls from Rene Rivera and pinch-hitter Kelly Johnson while setting season highs for runs and hits (22) in support of Noah Syndergaard (9-3).Coming into these four games, I think the guys knew that they had a huge challenge ahead of them, and I think they picked up their game, Mets manager Terry Collins said.Before Friday night, the Mets had never hit five home runs in a game at Citi Field, which opened in 2009. They did it twice in 45 hours against a Cubs pitching staff that began the day with a 2.97 ERA -- lowest in the majors by a considerable margin.After sweeping four games against Chicago in the NL Championship Series last October, the Mets outscored the Cubs 32-11 in winning their first four matchups this year. Chicago took all seven regular-season meetings in 2015.It was just a rough weekend. Give the Mets credit, Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. They got us this time. They got us last year. This is a really easy game for me to forget about.Maddon began pulling starters in the sixth as his major league-best squad (51-30) lost for the 10th time in 14 games and finished 4-7 on its longest road trip of the season.By the seventh, catcher Miguel Montero was on the mound to save the bullpen, throwing pitches that mostly ranged from 79-84 mph. He yielded one run and four hits in 1 1/3 innings.Flores drove in four runs, scored three and raised his batting average from .224 to .255. The fan favorite received a pair of standing ovations, and the crowd of 36,137 chanted his name.The huge game couldnt have come at a better time for Flores, with Jose Reyes playing third base in the minors and getting ready to rejoin the Mets. When he does, Reyes is expected to take a sizable chunk of Flores playing time.I dont think players are naive, Collins said.Filling in at the hot corner since captain David Wright was injured in late May, Flores entered Sunday in an 0-for-14 slump before joining Edgardo Alfonzo as the only Mets players with six hits in a game.Alfonzo, who accomplished the feat in August 1999 at Houston, reached out to Flores through the team to congratulate him, club spokesman Jay Horwitz said.Pretty good feeling, Flores said. I never thought I was going to get six hits, ever.New Yorks previous four-game sweep of the Cubs during the regular season came in June 1985 at Shea Stadium.Granderson homered in the first and had an RBI single an inning later. Flores hit a leadoff homer and an RBI single in the seccond, part of a seven-run outburst that spelled the end of a miserable day for Lester (9-4), the NL pitcher of the month in June. Dennis Seidenberg Jersey. The left-hander gave up eight runs and nine hits in 1 1/3 innings, the shortest of his 301 career starts over 11 major league seasons. He was 5-0 in his previous seven outings and entered with a 2.03 ERA that ranked second in the majors to injured Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw (1.78).I feel like they didnt miss a mistake the whole series, Lester said.Rivera knocked in three runs, and every Mets starter had a hit by the sixth -- including Syndergaard. Eight players finished with at least two hits, and New York clocked 12 home runs in the series.PITCH AND CATCHWith the game well in hand, Mets pitcher Jacob deGrom was sent up as a pinch hitter in the eighth and flied out against Montero. I thought it was equal at that point, Maddon said. I have to believe that is somewhat of a first.HIT PARADENew York tied the team record for hits in a home game set against St. Louis on Sept. 20, 1981.NICE AND EASYAfter allowing his only run in the first, Syndergaard enjoyed an easy afternoon in a pitching matchup of potential All-Stars. Showing no ill effects from a bone spur in his elbow that he called pretty insignificant, the big right-hander bounced back nicely from his worst start of the season last week in Washington, where the Mets lost all three games to the NL East leaders just before heading home to play Chicago. He threw 84 pitches in seven innings, striking out eight and walking none. A lot of fun to watch our offense really come alive, Syndergaard said. I just felt really calm out there. I wasnt trying to do too much.TRAINERS ROOMCubs: OF Chris Coghlan went on the 15-day disabled list with a right ribcage strain and expects to have an MRI on Tuesday in Chicago. INF Jeimer Candelario was recalled from Triple-A Iowa and played third base in his major league debut. He struck out three times but singled in the seventh off Syndergaard for his first career hit.Mets: Granderson made his first start since last Tuesday. He had not played since Wednesday because of a strained right calf. ... CF Juan Lagares (sprained left thumb) started for the first time since June 4 at Miami. ... SS Asdrubal Cabrera was rested with a sore knee but is expected to play Monday, Collins said.UP NEXTCubs: RHP Kyle Hendricks (6-6, 2.76 ERA) pitches Monday afternoon at Wrigley Field against Cincinnati LHP Cody Reed (0-2, 9.00).Mets: RHP Matt Harvey (4-10, 4.55 ERA) starts Monday afternoon against Miami RHP Tom Koehler (6-7, 4.45). Harveys 10 losses are a career high and the second-most among major league pitchers. 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