Virginia Breaks ACC Record on First Night of NCAAs
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March 16, 2016
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ATLANTA-The Virginia women’s swimming and diving 800-yard freestyle relay broke the ACC and school record in a fourth-place finish on the first day of the NCAA Championships Wednesday evening (March 16) at the McAuley Aquatic Center in Atlanta.
The foursome of junior Leah Smith (Pittsburgh, Pa.), freshman Megan Moroney (Deerfield Beach, Fla.), junior Kaitlyn Jones (Newark, Del.) and sophomore Jennifer Marrkand (Westport, Mass.) placed fourth in a new ACC and Virginia-record time of 6:55.25. The previous UVA and ACC record in the event was 6:59.98, set by the same relay at the ACC Championships in February.
The fourth-place finish matches the Cavaliers’ highest finish in the event (1988). Smith’s lead-off 200 free split of 1:42.87 ranks second on UVA’s all-time list.
“What a great start to our meet,” UVA head coach Augie Busch said. “To beat the school record by nearly five seconds is awesome. These women are ready to swim fast and we coaches can’t wait to be a part of it.”
After one event, Georgia leads with 40 points, followed by USC (34), California (32) and Virginia (30).
The action continues tomorrow with prelims at 10 a.m. and finals at 6 p.m. The 200 free relay, 500 free, 200 IM, 50 free, 1-meter diving and 400 medley relay events will be contested.