Day 3 Finals Live Recap

2024 ACC SWIMMING AND DIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS

The 2024 ACC Swimming & Diving Championships continue tonight with finals of the 400 IM, 100 fly, and 200 free, as well as the men’s 3m diving event.

On the women’s side, Virginia swimmers posted the top times in prelims in all three swimming events. Even without ACC record holder Alex Walsh (who’s not swimming tonight), the Cavaliers had the three fastest times of the morning in the 400 IM , led by Ella Nelson, who will be swimming for her fourth-straight title in the event.

The event of the night could be the 100 fly, where top-seed Gretchen Walsh could take her former teammate Kate Douglass‘ all-time mark of 48.46. Walsh went 49.32 this morning. The Cavaliers have a whopping five women in the A-final of the 200 free, with Aimee Canny swimming in lane 4 after going 1:43.58 in prelims.

On the men’s side, three different teams will have swimmers in lane 4 of tonight’s A-finals. Louisville’s Tommy Bried led the 400 IM prelims with a 3:42.36. In the 100 fly, Youssef Ramadan of Virginia Tech is on the hunt for his fourth-straight title after going 44.37. He should be the favorite, but he could face stiff competition from NC State’s Luke Miller, who’s been 44.17 this season, and 2023 NCAA 200 fly champ Aiden Hayes.

The 200 free could also feature a repeat conference champion, as 2023 champ Chris Guiliano of Notre Dame posted the morning’s top time with a 1:32.91. Guiliano tied Miller’s ACC record with a 1:31.16 leading off Notre Dame’s 800 free relay Tuesday night. Another former ACC 200 champ, Georgia Tech’s Batur Unlu, who won in 2021, had the morning’s second-fastest time at 1:33.09, and will swim next to Guiliano. Finally, 1m runner-up Dylan Reed of Pitt will be diving for his first title tonight after posting the top score in this morning’s 3m diving competition.

TEAM SCORES THRU DAY 2

Women:

1. Virginia — 552
2. Louisville — 473.5
3. NC State — 418
4. Duke — 332
5. UNC — 328
6. Notre Dame — 274
7. Virginia Tech — 253.5
8. Florida State — 217
9. Pitt — 183
10. Georgia Tech — 177
11. Miami — 162

Men:

1. NC State — 531.5
2. Notre Dame — 335.5
3. Louisville — 302
4. Virginia Tech — 298.5
5. Florida State — 292
6. Virginia — 249.5
7. Georiga Tech — 235
8. UNC — 223
9. Pitt — 193
10. Duke — 130
11. Miami — 54

WOMEN’S 400 IM – FINALS

• NCAA Record: 3:54.60, Ella Eastin (Stanford) – 2018
• ACC Record: 3:57.25, Alex Walsh (Virginia) – 2022
• ACC Championship Record: 3:59.33, Ella Nelson (Virginia) – 2023
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 4:03.62
• 2023 NCAA Invite Time: 4:11.36

Top 8:

1. Ella Nelson (Virginia) – 4:03.80
2. Grace Sheble (NC State) – 4:09.51
3. Kim Herkle (Louisville) – 4:09.89
4. Ella Bathurst (Virginia) – 4:10.50
5. Anna Keating (Virginia) – 4:11.56
6. Katherine Helms (NC State) – 4:12.55
7. McKenzie Campbell (Georgia Tech) – 4:13.13
8. Rye Ulett (Louisville) – 4:17.78

UVA’s Ella Nelson won her fourth ACC title in this event with a 4:03.80 tonight, winning by nearly six seconds. Nelson becomes the first ACC to women to win four titles in this event since another Cavalier, Mirjana Bosevska, did the same from 2000 to 2003. Bosevska represented Macedonia at the 1996 and 2000 Olympics.

Virginia had three women in this A-final, and earned 4th and 5th finishes from Ella Bathurst (4:10.50) and Anna Keating (4:11.56). Louisville and NC State, who are battling for 2nd in the team standings, each had two women in the A-final. The Wolfpack earned more points with a 2nd place finish from Grace Sheble (4:09.51) and a 6th place showing from Katherine Helms (4:12.55), along with a B-final win from Yara Hierath (4:12.11) and a C-final win from Keelan Cotter (4:14.74).

The Cardinals’ Kim Herkle (4:09.89) and Rye Ulett (4:17.78) took 3rd and 8th, while Georgia Tech’s McKenzie Campbell took 7th at 4:13.13.

MEN’S 400 IM – FINALS

• NCAA Record: 3:28.82, Leon Marchand (Arizona State) – 2023
• ACC Record: 3:38.00, Gal Nevo (Georgia Tech) – 2009
• ACC Championship Record: 3:38.43, Robert Owen (VA Tech) – 2017
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 3:38.90
• 2023 NCAA Invite Time: 3:42.99

Top 8:

1. Kyle Ponsler (NC State) – 3:41.18
2. Max Matteazzi (Pitt) – 3:42.38
3. Owen Lloyd (NC State) – 3:43.18
4. Sebastien Sergile (Virginia) – 3:44.23
5. Louis Dramm (UNC) – 3:44.25
6. Tommy Bried (Louisville) – 3:45.56
7. Matthew Styczeń (Virginia) – 3:46.07
8. Nico Garcia (Virginia Tech) – 3:46.78

Kyle Ponsler made his move on the backstroke leg and never gave up the lead, hitting a lifetime best by well over a second to win in 3:41.18. Ponsler becomes for the first Wolfpack man to win this event since Anton Ipsen in 2018, and moved up four spots after finishing fifth last year.

Pitt’s Max Matteazzi had a big swim to take 2nd in 3:42.38. That’s well under last year’s NCAA qualifying time, and while there’s no guarantees, he put himself in a good position to qualify for his first NCAA champs with that swim.

Ponsler’s teammate Owen Lloyd was the only other man under 3:44, with a time 3:43.18….