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Virginia Wins Seventh Consecutive ACC Championship
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Feb. 22, 2014
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GREENSBORO, N.C.–The No. 7 Virginia women’s swimming and diving team captured its seventh consecutive Atlantic Coast Conference Championship Saturday (Feb. 22) at the Greensboro Aquatic Center. The seven titles in a row is a record for ACC women’s swimming and diving and is the Cavaliers’ 12th overall title.
The Cavaliers finished with 1,433 points, followed by second-place North Carolina with 1,205. Florida State was third (972), ahead of NC State (950), Virginia Tech (914.5), Notre Dame (802), Duke (592), Pittsburgh (474.5), Miami (470.5), Georgia Tech (311.5), Boston College (162) and Clemson (66).
“I am extremely proud of the way our team competed from the first race to the last,” UVa head coach Augie Busch said. “Their energy was outstanding all week and we were able to ride the momentum that we built the first night. Tremendous credit goes to my coaching staff, which did a fantastic job of getting the team ready for this meet.
“We talk weekly about how competition is how you get to the next level. Practice prepares you with the opportunity to succeed at any stage of the sport from the youth meets all the way up to the Olympics. We took advantage of that opportunity this week and took a big step in moving on to the next level.”
Freshman Leah Smith (Pittsburgh, Pa.) came from nearly eight seconds behind with 100 yards to go to win the 1,650 free in a school-record time of 15:47.99. Smith won the 500 free Thursday night and was second in the 200 free Friday evening.
“I did not know if I that much left in the tank, but I knew I had to give it my all the last 150 yards if I was going to pull out the win and reach the time I wanted to,” Smith said. “This weekend has been a great experience because the team has done awesome this weekend. I’m just so fortunate to be a part of such a great team.”
Junior Alison Haulsee (Glen Allen, Va.) finished fourth in 16:09.36, the ninth-fastest time on UVa’s all-time list, while sophomore Hanne Borgersen (Frederick, Md.) was fifth in 16:10.71. Junior Kelly Offutt (Reisterstown, Md.) placed seventh in 16:18.27, while sophomore Haley Durmer (Decatur, Ga.) was eighth in 16:20.67.
In the 200 back, sophomore Courtney Bartholomew (Holland, Mich.) successfully defended her conference title, winning in an ACC Championship record time of 1:52.37. It is Bartholomew’s fourth individual ACC title, adding to her 100 back championships from Thursday evening and last season. Senior Caroline Kenney (Suwanee, Ga.) earned bronze in 1:55.09, while freshman Kaitlyn Jones (Newark, Del.), junior Ellen Williamson (Ft. Mitchell, Ky.) and senior Charlotte Clarke (Adelaide, Australia) touched fifth, sixth and seventh, respectively.
Freshman Laura Simon (Simmern, Germany) broke the school record in the 200 breast, finishing second in a time of 2:07.68, nearly a second faster than her school-record prelim time of 2:08.65. Sophomore Natalie Martin (Haymarket, Va.) dropped a second and a half off her previous career-best, winning the consolation final to place ninth overall in 2:12.71.
Senior Emily Lloyd (Severna Park, Md.) placed third in the 100 free in a time of 48.82. Her prelim time of 48.63 was the second-fastest time in school history. Freshmen Ellen Thomas (Guildford, United Kingdom) and Shannon Rauth (Glenmoore, Pa.) finished 10th and 13th overall, respectively. Thomas’ time of 49.37 in the finals is tied for fifth on UVa’s all-time list, while Rauth’s prelim time of 49.40 ranks seventh.
The 400 free relay of Rauth, Thomas, Bartholomew and Lloyd finished fourth in a time of 3:16.90.
Juniors Shaun Casey (Port Orange, Fla.) and Haulsee placed sixth and eighth in the 200 fly in 1:58.77 and 2:00.13, respectively.
In women’s platform diving, sophomore Becca Corbett (Louisville, Ky.) placed 12th with a school-record 248.05 points. Fellow sophomore Katie Warburg (Wilton, Conn.) finished 23rd with 207.80 points.
Junior JB Kolod (Pittsburgh, Pa.) finished ninth in men’s platform diving with a score of 341.30 points, while sophomore Carl Buergler (Arlington, Va.) was 15th with 299.50 points.