Eleven Cavaliers Selected To ACC 50th Anniversary Women's Swimming And Diving Team
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Aug. 21, 2002
GREENSBORO, N.C. – Atlantic Coast Conference Commissioner John Swofford announced the ACC’s 50th Anniversary Women’s Swimming and Diving Team Wednesday (August 21). Eleven Cavalier women’s swimming and diving greats have been selected to the 52-member team as voted on by the eight league institutions that sponsor the sport as decided by the league’s 50th Anniversary Committee.
North Carolina led all league schools with 22 members on the Golden Anniversary team, while Virginia was second with 11 honorees. Clemson had eight individuals selected, followed by N.C. State with seven, Florida State with two and Duke and Maryland with one apiece.
The 11 UVa performers selected to the ACC 50th Anniversary Women’s Swimming and Diving Team are current Cavaliers Mirjana Bosevska and Cara Lane, along with former student-athletes Karen Burgess, Rebecca Cronk, Dorothy Dilts, Sudi Miller, Beth O’Connor, Betsy O’Donnell, Melanie Valerio, Laurie Wagner, and Lori Werth.
Fourth-year Mirjana Bosevska (Skopje, Macedonia/Trinity Prep) is one of two current Cavaliers named to the 50th Anniversary Team. The two-time Olympian for Macedonia (1996 and 2000) is an 11-time All-American, including six first-team selections. Bosevska is a three-time first-team All-American in the 400 individual medley. She has won eight ACC titles, including three in the 400 I.M., and was named the ACC Swimmer of the Year and ACC Meet MVP in 2002. Bosevska holds the school and ACC record in the 400 I.M. with a time of 4:09.75 at the 2002 NCAAs. She also holds the school, Conference and ACC Meet record in the 200 I.M. (1:59.31).
Karen Burgess, who is from Colonial Heights, Va., swam for UVa from 1990 to 1993. Burgess is a 10-time All-American, including three first-team honors. She won eight ACC titles during her career, including three in the 200 I.M. Burgess is the first UVa swimmer to be named the ACC Swimmer of the Year and ACC Meet MVP twice as she won both awards in 1991 and 1993. Burgess was selected as UVa’s 1992-93 Female Athlete of the Year.
Rebecca Cronk, from Charlottesville, graduated from UVa as a swimming program record 19-time All-American. She earned first-team All-America honors five times and was a three-time All-American in the 50 free, including first-team accolades in 1999. Cronk, who swam at UVa from 1997 to 2000, is an 11-time ACC champion and was selected as the 1999 ACC Swimmer of the Year. She holds the school record in the 50 free (22.52) and had her ACC Meet record in the 50 free broken this year.
Dorothy Dilts, who is from Fairfax, Va., swam for the Cavaliers from 1975 to 1978. In 1976, she became the first UVa female swimmer to earn All-America honors. Dilts went on to earn All-America accolades five times. Upon graduation, Dilts was the UVa record holder in three individual events and five relays.
Fourth-year Cara Lane (Charlotte, N.C./Providence) is the second current Cavalier named to the ACC 50th Anniversary Team. Lane is the first and only UVa women’s swimmer to win a NCAA title. She won the first of her two NCAA mile titles in 2000 in the 1500-meter freestyle. She then won the 1650-yard freestyle at the 2001 NCAAs. Lane is an 11-time All-American, including eight first-team honors. She has also won 10 ACC titles and became the second UVa swimmer to be twice named the ACC Swimmer of the Year and ACC Meet MVP. Lane captured both awards in 2000 and 2001. The 2001 UVa Female Athlete of the Year, holds the school records in the 500 (4:39.61), 1000 (9:36.35) and 1650 freestyle (15:53.86) as well as the 200 butterfly (1:58.58). Lane also holds the Conference and ACC Meet records in the 1650 free and the ACC Meet record in the 500 free.
Sudi Miller, who is from Towson, Md., competed for Virginia from 1985 to 1988. She is a 14-time All-American with eight first-team selections. Miller is a three-time All-American in the 200 medley relay, 200 free relay and 800 free relay. She is also an eight-time ACC champion. Miller holds the school record in the 100 butterfly (53.99), which is the oldest individual school record for an event currently being contested.
Beth O’Connor, from Richmond, lettered for UVa from 1980 to 1983. O’Connor is a 10-time first-team All-American, including seven individual All-America certificates. She is a three-time All-American in the 100 and 200 butterfly (1980 through 1982). O’Connor was named Virginia’s 1980-81 Outstanding Female Athlete.
Betsy O’Donnell, who hails from Willowgrove, Pa., competed for Virginia from 1986 to 1989. O’Donnell earned All-America honors 12 times, including six first-team selections. She was a three-time first-team All-American in both 1986 and 1988. O’Donnell also earned five ACC titles during her career. She was a member of the 800 free relay team that currently holds the school record (7:15.96).
Melanie Valerio, who is from Campbell, Ohio, was a standout for the Cavaliers from 1988 to 1991. Valerio won a gold medal at the 1996 Olympics as a member of the USA’s 400 free relay team. She is a 17-time All-American, which includes seven first-team certificates. She was a six-time All-American in 1988 with two individual and four relay honors. The ACC Swimmer of the Year and ACC Meet MVP in 1990 captured seven ACC titles during her career. Valerio was a member of the 800 free relay team that currently holds the school record (7:15.96).
Laurie Wagner, from Ann Arbor, Mich., is the only UVa diver selected to the ACC 50th Anniversary Team. Wagner dove for the Cavaliers from 1993 to 1996. She won the ACC one-meter diving title three times (1994 through 1996) and was the three-meter champion in 1996. Wagner was selected as the ACC Meet Most Valuable Diver in 1996. The three-time All-ACC selection holds UVa’s one-meter diving record with 425.10 points.
Lori Werth, who is from Houston, Texas, swam for the Cavaliers from 1990 to 1993. Werth was a first-team All-American in the 400 I.M. in 1992 and captured honorable mention accolades in 1991. She was a three-year All-ACC selection (1991 through 1993) and was the 1991 ACC champion in the 400 I.M.