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Irish Place Fifth to Wrap Women's ACC Championships

Prelims Results | Finals Results | Full Meet Results

GREENSBORO, North Carolina — The No. 14 Notre Dame women’s swim and dive team finished the ACC Championships in fifth place Saturday, matching their 2020 finish. 

Nine swimmers notched finals appearances on the fourth day of competition, and five swimmers placed in the top eight of their respective events.

“Our team had a very solid outing this morning and backed it up tonight,” head swim coach Mike Litzinger shared. “I was excited to see both Madeline LaPorte and Sammie Eyolfson have breakout swims in the 1650 Free – both tremendous efforts.

“Having Bayley [Stewart] final in the 200 Back along with Luciana [Thomas] and Coleen [Gillilan] in the 200 Fly solidified our fifth place,” he added. “My heart goes out our seniors as this was their last championship. They help change the landscape of this program and I am incredibly proud of them.”

PRELIMS

To kick off the morning, junior Stewart earned a spot in the A Final of the 200 Back with a seventh-place 1:54.23 (B Cut), and was the only Irish swimmer to compete in the event. 

Senior Rachel Wittmer led all Notre Dame participants in the 100 Free prelim, posting a 49.88 for 14th and a spot in the B Final. Senior Skylar Fore claimed the top seed in the C Final with a 49.94 (17th). 

Senior Carly Quast placed 30th with a 50.61, and freshman Sydney Whiting came tied for 38th with a 51.01. Senior Cailey Grunhard rounded out the Irish contingent in the 100 Free with a 51.27 (43rd). 

In the 200 Breast, sophomore Ellie Jew placed 15th with a 2:14.01, cementing her spot in the B Final. Freshman Sarah Bender clocked a 2:15.17 for 20th and a berth in the C Final. 

Also in the 200 Breast prelims, junior Sarah Nicholls placed 29th with a 2:16.92, and sophomore Elizabeth Fry touched the wall in 2:17.33 for 31st. 

For the last event of the early session, junior Thomas and sophomore Gillilan earned bids to the 200 Fly A Final, as Thomas notched a B-Cut 1:56.38 for sixth, and Gillilan followed with a 1:56.43 (B Cut) for seventh. 

Freshman Megan Deuel also earned a berth in 200 Fly finals, placing 10th in prelims with a 1:57.57 (B-Cut), good for the B Final, and making her the eighth-fastest performer in program history in the 200 Fly. Freshman Emma Gleason claimed the top seed in the C Final, posting a 1:58.80 (B Cut) for 17th. 

On the men’s platform, junior David Petrison led the Irish divers, placing 15th with a score of 278.50. Sophomore Dave DeBacker scored a 276.15 to follow in 16th, and junior Austin Flaute came in 24th with a 243.55. All three scored for Notre Dame. 

FINALS

In the 1650 Free, which took place in just one round, junior LaPorte took sixth, posting a B-Cut 16:19.02, making her the third-fastest performer in the event in program history. Junior Eyolfson noted an impressive swim, placing eighth with a 16:28.80 (B Cut), becoming the sixth-fastest performer in Irish records. Freshman Allison Kopac rounded it out in 27th with a 17:25.43. 

Stewart added a second and change to her prelims time, placing eighth in the 200 Back Final with a 1:55.63 (B Cut). 

In the 100 Free Final, Wittmer swam a 49.81 to place 16th overall, and Fore touched the wall in 50.07 for 22nd. 

Next taking on the 200 Breast Final, Jew placed 15th with a B-Cut 2:13.67, becoming the seventh-fastest performer in the event in program records, while Bender took 24th with a 2:15.79. 

Finally, in the 200 Fly Final, Thomas placed seventh (1:55.90), and Gillilan placed eighth (1:56.12). Both times are NCAA B-Cut marks, and were times that garnered invitation to the NCAA Championships in 2019 (2020 Championships cancelled due to COVID-19). 

Deuel placed 12th with a B-Cut 1:57.77, and Gleason clocked a 1:58.42 (B Cut) for 19th. 

To close the night, the team of Wittmer, Gillilan, Quast and Fore swam a 3:19.21 in the 400 Free Relay, good for seventh. 

UP NEXT

The diving and women’s swimming teams will return to South Bend, as the men’s swim team will participate in the ACC Championships in Greensboro Feb. 24- 27. 

STANDINGS

  1. Virginia – 1486 points
  2. NC State – 1317
  3. Louisville – 1006.5
  4. Virginia Tech – 832
  5. Notre Dame – 716
  6. Duke – 647
  7. Florida State – 551
  8. North Carolina – 516.5
  9. Georgia Tech – 498
  10. Miami – 375
  11. Pitt – 360
  12. Boston College – 177