Virginia Wins Fourth Consecutive Women’s NCAA Swimming and Diving Championship

ATHENS, Ga. – For the fourth consecutive season, the top-ranked Virginia women’s swimming and diving team won the NCAA Championship. The Cavaliers scored 527.5 points to finish well ahead of second-place Texas (441 points) at the Jack Bauerle Pool at the Gabrielsen Natatorium in Athens, Georgia.

Virginia becomes just the third program to win four consecutive NCAA team titles in the sport and the first since 1996. Stanford won five straight team championships from 1992 to 1996. Texas is the only other program to claim four-or-more consecutive titles after winning the championships in five consecutive seasons from 1984 to 1988.

The title was the 34th NCAA Championship won by a Cavalier athletics program. The women’s swimming and diving program becomes the second UVA program to win four consecutive NCAA titles, matching the men’s soccer’s team’s run of national championships from 1991 to 1994.

Virginia won a total of seven individual events and four of the five relays. It marked the third consecutive year UVA has won a total of 11 titles at the championship.

On the final night of the competition, UVA’s Gretchen Walsh won her sixth and seventh NCAA titles at the event, taking first in the 100 free with a NCAA record time of 44.83 and later picking up gold in the 400 free relay. Virginia’s Jasmine Nocentini placed fourth in the 100 free with a time of 47.00.

Alex Walsh took first place in the 200 breast with a personal best time of 2:02.07, the fourth fastest time ever. It was her third individual title after picking up the gold in the 200 IM and 400 IM races earlier in the week. Ella Nelson was third in the event (2:04.80) while Anna Keating placed eighth (2:07.32).

UVA won its fourth relay of the championship and its third straight NCAA 400 free relay title with a time of 3:05.89, just shy of its record mark of 3:05.84 for the event. The relay team included Nocentini, Alex Walsh, Gretchen Walsh and Maxine Parker.

In the 200 fly, Tess Howley placed fourth (1:52.41) and Abby Harter was sixth (1:52.49) to provide the Cavaliers with enough points to clinch the title prior to the evening’s final swimming event.

A total of five Cavaliers brought home gold medals topped by seven by Gretchen Walsh, six by Alex Walsh, five by Nocentini, four by Parker and one by Carly Novelline.

From Head Coach Todd DeSorbo

“I’m not sure I can put it into words. It’s really hard to digest even that we won. I told the girls before the session tonight that there are only nine teams, I think, that have ever won one national championship, and we are one of nine. And when you have 70 teams at a national championship, you know, that’s pretty impressive in and of itself. So it’s just wild. I really can’t put words to it. I’m just really proud of them and happy for them. And this one was a lot of fun.”

“We knew we had to be good today, like really good, maybe great. I think it was after the breaststroke this morning, when I was really like okay, we’re good. And then the 200 butterfly. Abby Harder and Tess Howley, when they went top eight, I literally cried. I cried after the 200 breast and the 200 fly. It was just an amazing feeling to have them step up in a really pressure situation. We haven’t been in that situation before. After Friday night, usually we felt pretty good about things. They just came out and really just set the tone this morning right away and put us into a really good position.”

Virginia Notes

• Gretchen Walsh has 6 individual and 12 relay titles in her collegiate career (18 total)
• Alex Walsh owns 8 NCAA individual and 11 relay titles (19 total)
• Gretchen Walsh owns or has participated in eight NCAA Records: 100 free, 50 free, 100 back, 100 fly, 200 free relay, 400 free relay, 200 medley relay and 400 medley relay.
• Alex Walsh has 26 All-America honors in her career
• This was Ella Nelson’s 19^th All-America honor
• Grad student Jasmine Nocentini had never scored a point at an NCAA Championship meet before this year. She finished the meet as an individual champion in the 100 Breast with three relay titles and a fourth-place finish in the 100 Freestyle
• Freshman Tess Howley earned the first All-America honor of her career with her performance in the 200 Fly
• Junior Reilly Tiltmann finished second in the B-Final of the 200 Back with a 1:51.80
• Sophomore Aimee Canny finished second in the 200 Breast B-Final with a 2:07.34
• Grad student Ella Nelson finishes her career with six first team All-America finishes, including four at this year’s championship

UP NEXT
The NCAA Division I Men’s Swimming and Diving Championships get underway Wednesday in Indianapolis at the IU Natatorium. The Cavaliers will be represented by six swimmers at that event that runs through Saturday.

Team Results (top-10)
1. Virginia 527.5
2. Texas 441
3. Florida 364
4. Tennessee 277
5. Stanford 250
6. Louisville 212
7. Indiana 206
8. USC 200
9. Ohio State 162
9. NC State 162

American Records Set by Cavaliers at the NCAA Championships:
50 Free: Gretchen Walsh 20.37
100 Fly: Gretchen Walsh 47.42
100 Free: Gretchen Walsh 44.83

NCAA Records Set by Cavaliers at the NCAA Championships:
50 Free: Gretchen Walsh 20.37
100 Fly: Gretchen Walsh 47.42
400 Medley Relay: 3:21.01 (Gretchen Walsh, Jasmine Nocentini, Alex Walsh, Maxine Parker)
100 Free: Gretchen Walsh 44.83

Event Titles at the NCAA Championships (11)
200 IM, 50 Free, 400 IM, 100 Fly, 100 Breaststroke, 100 Free, 200 Breast
200 Medley Relay, 200 Free Relay, 400 Medley Relay, 400 Free Relay

NCAA Championships by Individual
Gretchen Walsh – 200 Medley Relay, 50 Free, 200 Free Relay, 100 Fly, 400 Medley Relay, 100 Free, 400 Free Relay
Jasmine Nocentini – 200 Medley Relay, 200 Free Relay, 100 Breast, 400 Medley Relay, 400 Free Relay
Alex Walsh – 200 IM, 200 Free Relay, 400 IM, 400 Medley Relay, 200 Breast, 400 Free Relay
Maxine Parker – 200 Medley Relay, 200 Free Relay, 400 Medley Relay, 400 Free Relay
Carly Novelline – 200 Medley Relay

All-America – First Team
Aimee Canny – 800 Free Relay
Cavan Gormsen – 500 Free
Abby Harter – 200 Fly
Tess Howley – 200 Fly
Lizzy Kaye – 3M Diving
Anna Keating – 200 Breast
Ella Nelson – 800 Free Relay, 200 IM, 400 IM, 200 Breast
Jasmine Nocentini – 200 Medley Relay, 50 Free, 200 Free Relay, 100 Breast, 400 Medley Relay, 100 Free, 400 Free Relay
Carly Novelline – 200 Medley Relay
Maxine Parker – 200 Medley Relay, 50 Free, 200 Free Relay, 400 Medley Relay, 400 Free Relay
Reilly Tiltmann – 800 Free Relay
Alex Walsh – 800 Free Relay, 200 IM, 200 Free Relay, 400 IM, 400 Medley Relay, 200 Breast, 400 Free Relay
Gretchen Walsh – 200 Medley Relay, 50 Free, 200 Free Relay, 100 Fly, 400 Medley Relay, 100 Free, 400 Free Relay

All-America – Honorable Mention
Aimee Canny – 200 Breast
Lizzy Kaye – 1M Diving
Maxine Parker – 100 Free
Reilly Tiltmann – 100 Back, 200 Back
Emma Weber – 100 Breast, 200 Breast