Virginia Wins 11 Events to Close Trojan Swim Invite
Morning Session Results | Afternoon Session Results
LOS ANGELES – The Virginia men’s and women’s swimming teams concluded the second day of competition (Oct. 5) at the Trojan Swim Invite, hosted by Southern California, at the Uytengsu Aquatics Center with nine Cavaliers recording a first-place finish in an individual event and the team winning two relay races.
In addition to winning the 100-yard breaststroke, freshman Kate Douglass (Pelham, N.Y.) recorded the third-fastest time in UVA history in the event with a time of 59.55. Before the day concluded she would record two more swims that placed in the top 10 all-time at Virginia. The freshman finished second in the 100-yard butterfly with a time of 51.58, recording the second-fastest time in program history, and placed second in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 48.45, recording the seventh-best swim in program history.
Junior Abby Richter (Henderson, Nev.) won the 400-yard individual medley, reaching the wall with a time of 4:15.00 to finish first by over a second. Junior Paige Madden (Mobile, Ala.) won the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 1:45.51, while junior Caroline Gmelich (Rumson, N.J.) recorded a time of 53.91 to finish first in the 100-yard backstroke. Freshman Maddie Donohoe (Annandale, Va.) topped the mile, placing first with a time of 16:21.68 as junior Emma Seiberlich (Audubon, Pa.) recorded a time of 1:54.64 to win the 200-yard backstroke.
On the men’s side, sophomore Casey Storch (Great Falls, Va.) recorded a first-place finish in the 400-yard individual medley with a time of 3:48.36. Senior Joe Clark (Worcester Park, Great Britain) won the 100-yard backstroke with a time of 46.51, while sophomore Justin Grender (Cincinnati, Ohio) topped the 1000-yard freestyle with a time of 9:14.09.
The Cavaliers also swept the 200-yard medley relay. The women’s team of Gmelich, sophomore Alexis Wenger (Detroit, Mich.), Douglass and senior Morgan Hill (Olney, Md.) recorded a time of 1:38.67, while the men’s team of Clark, junior Keefer Barnum (Louisville, Ky.), junior Cooper Wozencraft (Houston, Texas) and freshman Jack Walker (Charlotte, N.C.) recorded a time of 1:20.80.
Additionally, Barnum recorded the top collegiate swim and second overall swim in both the 100 and 200-yard breaststroke. He recorded a time of 53.07 in the 100-yard breaststroke and a time of 1:56.74 in the 200-yard breaststroke.
Wozencraft recorded the seventh-fastest time in program history in the 100-yard butterfly at 46.92, placing third overall and first among collegiate athletes. He was also the top collegiate swimmer in the 200-yard backstroke, placing second overall with a time of 1:43.79.
Freshman Ella Nelson (Nashville, Tenn.) recorded the eighth-best time in program history in the 200-yard breaststroke. The first-year finished second in the event with a time of 2:11.75.
“We wrapped up the Trojan Invite today with some great energy and some great swimming,” head coach Todd DeSorbo said. “I think we are in a really great spot for this time of year. We saw our athletes closing races really well. They’re definitely executing a lot of races and swims the way we talk about in practice and training, which is exciting for the future. A lot of our athletes were swimming multiple events in a matter of 10 to 15 minutes and doing well with that.
“For this early in the season, there was a lot of great swimming. A lot of the athletes are showing some great speed and we’re putting ourselves in a position to accelerate through the rest of the season. It just shows us where we are right now and what we need to work on. There were some positive takeaways from the weekend. Again, a lot of great racing and I think we put ourselves in a really good position for the first five to six weeks of the season. The team is in great shape and I’m definitely looking forward to building some speed and taking on Michigan and Tennessee in two weeks.”
The Cavaliers will return to action on Oct. 18 for a two-day tri-meet against Michigan and Tennessee in Ann Arbor, Mich.