UVA Women Dominate Relays Again on First Day of ACC Championships

GREENSBORO, N.C. – One of the fastest performances in the history of the sport highlighted Day 1 of the ACC Swimming and Diving Championships at the Greensboro Aquatic Center for Virginia. The UVA women, seeking their fifth consecutive league title, got off to a solid start with a pair of relay wins including the second fastest 800 free relay in history.

Virginia’s Gretchen Walsh, Alex Walsh, Aimee Canny and Ella Nelson had their sights set on the NCAA record of 6:45.91 set in 2017 and came close to eclipsing that mark with a time of 6:46.28. Gretchen Walsh’s leadoff leg of 1:40.23 set a UVA record for the 200 free and is the third fastest time ever for that distance. While the Cavaliers didn’t better the NCAA mark, their time set ACC, meet and pool records.

It was the second victory of the night for UVA women after the Hoos turned in the best performance in the 200 medley relay to open the night’s competition. The team of Reilly Tiltmann, Jasmine Nocentini, Carly Novelline and Maxine Parker took first place with a time of 1:33.84.

The ACC Championships run through Saturday. The Cavalier women enter the meet ranked No. 1 in the CSCAA poll. while the UVA men are No. 20.

Women’s Highlights

• In the 3-meter diving, Elizabeth Kaye (9th, 280.50) and Maddy Grosz (19th, 246.70) earned points for Virginia.
• UVA continues to dominate the relay competitions at the ACCs. It marks the 21st victory in the last 22 relays contested at the conference meet.
• Virginia has now won 17 consecutive 800 free relays at the ACC Championships, a streak that dates back to the 2008 season.
• Alex Walsh won her 20th ACC title with UVA’s victory in the 800 free relay. His sister, Gretchen, now has 10 ACC golds.
• Jasmine Nocentini, Carly Novelline and Maxine Parker each won their first ACC titles with their victory in the 200 medley relay.

Men’s Highlights

• The 200 medley relay squad (Matt Brownstead, Noah Nichols, Tim Connery, August Lamb) placed sixth – 1:23.46 with a season-best time.
• The Cavaliers’ 800 free relay team (Shttps://twitter.com/UVASwimDive/status/1760107625780228351ebastien Sergile, Hayden Bellotti, Sam O’Brien and Will Cole) posted the meet’s fifth-best time but were disqualified due to an early start by one of the team members during the race.
• Oliver Mills picked up the men’s team’s first points with a 19th-place finish in the 1-meter diving competition.

Team Scores

Women

1. North Carolina – 159
2. Louisville – 155
3. Virginia – 154
4. NC State – 144
5. Duke – 142
6. Notre Dame – 139
7. Florida State – 128
8. Virginia Tech – 115
9. Miami – 96
10. Pittsburgh – 85
11. Georgia Tech – 85

Men

1. Notre Dame – 176
2. NC State – 159
3. Pittsburgh – 151
4. North Carolina – 138
5. Florida State – 132
6. Virginia Tech – 124.5
7. Louisville – 114
8. Georgia Tech – 114
9. Duke – 88
10. Miami – 54
11. Virginia – 53.5

HOW TO FOLLOW
Prelims and finals will be streamed live on ACCNX. Links for the live streams and live results each day will be available on VirginiaSports.com. The evening sessions will air on the ACC Network the next morning. Craig Minervini, Amy Van Dyker and Jason Baumann will call the action.

SCHEDULE
Each day finals will begin at 5:30 p.m.
Wednesday through Saturday prelims begin at 9:30 a.m.

ORDER OF REMAINING EVENTS
Wednesday: 200 free relay, 500 free, 200 IM, 50 free, women’s 1-meter
Thursday: 400 IM, 100 fly, 200 free, men’s 3-meter
Friday: 200 fly, 100 back, 100 breaststroke, women’s platform, 400 medley relay
Saturday: 1650 free, 200 back, 100 free, 200 breaststroke, men’s platform, 400 free relay

COMMONWEALTH CLASH
The ACC Championships serves as the Commonwealth Clash matchup for Virginia and Virginia Tech. The rivalry between Virginia Athletics and Virginia Tech Athletics has a long and storied history dating back more than 125 years within the Commonwealth of Virginia. The Cavaliers and Hokies first faced off on the gridiron in Charlottesville in 1895. First coined the Commonwealth Clash during the 2014-2015 season, the rivalry has expanded and intensified across the 22 sports the two institutions face off in head-to-head competition. The final ACC standings was worth a point in the Clash on the men’s and women’s sides. UVA’s women won a point and the Virginia Tech men’s team won a point. Heading into Monday’s night men’s basketball game between the Cavaliers and the Hokies, Virginia leads this year’s Clash 5.5 to 1.5. UVA captured the Clash in 2015, 2016 and 2019 and 2023 while Virginia Tech has won the Clash in 2017, 2018 and 2022. The 2020 and 2021 clashes were canceled due to the pandemic.