Donohoe Finishes Second in Richmond at Toyota U.S. Open

RICHMOND, Va. –  Virginia swimmer Maddie Donohoe (Annandale, Va.) finished second in the 800-meter freestyle at the Toyota U.S. Open’s competition in Richmond on Thursday (Nov. 12) at SwimRVA. Donohoe’s time of 8:48.97 placed her 16th overall in the combined results from the U.S. Open’s nine competition sites.

Richmond is one of nine sites hosting the Toyota U.S. Open. The meet split across different locations to help ensure safe travel for coaches and athletes as well as limit the number of participants at a single location.

In her heat at the Richmond site, Donohoe touched the wall at the 400-meter mark in third place with a time of 4:24.30. The sophomore swam a 4:24.67 in her last 400 meters to move into second place and out-touch Westchester Aquatic Club’s Alexa Reyna by over two seconds, who placed third in the heat with a time of 8:51.56. Donohoe finished 16th overall in the combined results from the nine competition sites with her time 8:48.97.

“Maddie kicked us off in our first long course meet in a year and had a great swim,” head coach Todd DeSorbo said. “She swam a smart race strategically which is what we would want to see right now. It gives us a great starting point as we help her progress towards her goal of being a finalist at the Olympic Trials in that race next June. Looking forward to the rest of her meet and the rest of the team tomorrow.”

Virginia will return to action tomorrow to compete in a morning and evening session. The morning session will begin at 9 a.m., while the evening session will start at 5 p.m.