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UVA Women Win Two Relays on Day One of ACC Swim & Dive Championships

The three-time defending ACC champs won both relays and broke an American record on Tuesday night in Greensboro

Matt Newton

The three-time defending ACC Champion Virginia women's swim & dive team opened up competition at the 2023 ACC Swimming & Diving Championships with a bang, winning ACC titles in both of the relays and breaking an American record on the opening night of the meet on Tuesday at the Greensboro Aquatic Center. 

As the overwhelming favorites to claim a fourth-straight ACC title, the Cavalier women left little doubt as they set the tone in the first event of the meet, the 200-yard medley relay. Virginia's team of Gretchen Walsh (back), Alex Walsh (breast), Lexi Cuomo (butterfly), and Kate Douglass (freestyle) recorded a time of 1:31.73, claiming first place by more than two seconds ahead of second-place NC State (1:33.02). UVA's time of 1:31.73 broke the NCAA, US Open, and American record in the 200-yard medley relay. 

Virginia kept the ball rolling in the 800-yard freestyle relay, as the team of Reilly Tiltmann, Aimee Canny, Claire Tuggle, and Ella Nelson swam the event in 6:55.15, again finishing ahead of the rest of the field by more than two seconds. The Hoos have now won 16-consecutive ACC titles in the 800-yard freestyle, the longest streak in the history of the Atlantic Coast Conference. 

Despite winning the two relay events, the Cavalier women actually find themselves in second-place in the team standings after day one, as Virginia (166 points) trails North Carolina (202 points), who went 1-3 in the women's 3-meter diving event to give the Tar Heels the lead on day one. UVA's Jennifer Bell just barely missed the podium in the event, placing fourth in the 3m with an overall score of 330.45. 

ACC Women's Swim & Dive Championships Standings (after day one)

  1. North Carolina - 202
  2. Virginia - 166
  3. Louisville - 160
  4. NC State - 140
  5. Notre Dame - 126
  6. Florida State - 118
  7. Miami - 112
  8. Virginia Tech - 111
  9. Duke - 107
  10. Pittsburgh - 84
  11. Georgia Tech - 76
  12. Boston College 60

The Virginia men's swimming & diving team notched a runner-up finish in the 200-yard medley relay, as the team of Matt Brownstead, Noah Nichols, Max Edwards, and August Lamb took second in 1:23.03, less than a second behind NC State (1:22.25). UVA's team of Jack Aikins, Tim Connery, Sebastien Sergile, and Jack Wright placed sixth in the 800-yard freestyle relay in 6:16.62. Those placements earned Virginia 104 total team points, good for eighth on the team leaderboards at the ACC Men's Swimming & Diving Championships after day one. 

ACC Men's Swim & Dive Championships Standings (after day one)

  1. NC State - 196
  2. North Carolina - 147
  3. Notre Dame - 145
  4. Virginia Tech - 127
  5. Pittsburgh - 133.5
  6. Louisville - 130.5
  7. Florida State - 115
  8. Virginia -  104
  9. Duke - 82
  10. Georgia Tech / Miami - 74
  11. (tie)
  12. Boston College - 32

The second day of competition at the 2023 ACC Swimming & Diving Championships will include the 500-yard freestyle, 200-yard individual medley, 50-yard freestyle, and the women's 1-meter diving event. 

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Matt Newton
MATT NEWTON

Matt launched Virginia Cavaliers On SI in August of 2021 and has since served as the site's publisher and managing editor, covering all 23 NCAA Division I sports teams at the University of Virginia. He is from Downingtown, Pennsylvania and graduated from UVA in May of 2021.

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