The 2017 ACC Women’s Swimming & Diving Championship got started in record-setting fashion on Monday evening as two records fell at the McAuley Aquatic Center on the campus of Georgia Tech.
The NC State 200 medley relay (1:34.89) and Virginia 800 freestyle relay (6:56.21) squads set league and meet records, respectively, in the two swimming events of the night.
In diving action, Notre Dame’s Joe Coumos became the first diver in program history to win an ACC title with a victory on the 1-meter springboard, while Virginia Tech’s Ashlynn Peters was victorious in the 3-meter.
After three events in the women’s meet, North Carolina leads with 153 points, ahead of Louisville (149), Duke (144) and Virginia Tech (134).
Tuesday’s action gets underway at 10 a.m. with the prelims for the 500 free, 200 individual medley, 50 free, and women’s 1-meter, with doors open to spectators at 9 a.m. The finals for those events, in addition to the 200 freestyle relay, will begin at 6 p.m.
Recapping Monday’s Action
The 2017 ACC Women’s Swimming & Diving Championship got started in record-setting fashion on Monday evening as two ACC records fell at the McAuley Aquatic Center.
The NC State 200 medley relay and Virginia 800 freestyle relay squads set league records in the two swimming events of the night.
In diving action, Notre Dame’s Joe Coumos became the first diver in program history to win an ACC title with a victory on the 1-meter springboard, while Virginia Tech’s Ashlynn Peters was victorious in the 3-meter.
After three events in the women’s meet, North Carolina leads with 153 points, ahead of Louisville (149), Duke (144), and Virginia Tech (134).
Tuesday’s action gets underway at 10 a.m. with the prelims for the 500 free, 200 individual medley, 50 free, and women’s 1-meter, with doors open to spectators at 9 a.m. The finals for those events, in addition to the 200 freestyle relay, will begin at 6 p.m.
Women’s 3 Meter
Virginia Tech’s Ashlynn Peters closed out the first night of action with a win on the 3-meter springboard. The sophomore, who qualified with the seventh-best score in prelims, posted a score of 365.95 to win the title.
Miami’s Marcela Maric (353.60) and North Carolina’s Elissa Dawson (349.30) rounded out the podium.
800 Freestyle Relay
The Virginia women continued their dominance in the 800 freestyle relay on Monday evening, winning the event for the 10th straight year with a meet record time of 6:56.21.
Leah Smith got Virginia off to a quick start with a 1:43.60 opening leg, a lead they would hold onto for the rest of the race.
Swimming the second leg, Louisville’s Mallory Comerford posted the fastest split in the field in 1:41.12 to pull into second place and close the gap.
Through 600 yards, it was a three-way race with Virginia, NC State, and Louisville battling for the top spot. Kaitlyn Jones, swimming anchor for the Cavaliers, split 1:42.96 to pull away and clinch the title for Virginia.
NC State also went under the previous ACC record in 6:59.73 to win silver, while Louisville finished in 7:01.62 for bronze.
Men’s 1 Meter
Notre Dame’s Joe Coumos edged out two-time defending champion Briadam Herrera of Miami to claim the 1-meter conference title in Monday’s second event.
The senior from Tomball, Texas, qualified for the finals with the second-best score in prelims of 328.20. He then posted a score of 420.00 in the finals to top Herrera’s 418.65.
The victory marked the first ACC title for a Notre Dame diver since the Irish joined the league.
200 Medley Relay
The NC State Wolfpack got the meet started in record-setting fashion in the 200 medley relay.
The relay squad of Elise Haan, Kayla Brumbaum, Natalie Labonge, and Ky-Lee Perry combined to touch in 1:34.89 to top the previous league record of 1:35.43 held by Louisville.
The Wolfpack held the lead for the entire race, with Haan jumping out with an opening 23.73 split. Perry closed out the race in 21.36 to grab the victory, the first in the event for NC State since 1991.
Louisville (1:35.69) and North Carolina (1:36.39) rounded out the other two podium spots.
Getting the Championship Started
The 2017 ACC Swimming & Diving Championships are about to get underway, with the 200 medley relay starting at 4:15 p.m. The McAuley Aquatic Center, which hosted the 2016 NCAA Swimming & Diving Championships, is welcoming the ACC Championships for the fifth time.
After the 200 medley relay, the men will get the diving competition kicked off on the 1-meter. The 800 freestyle relay will follow, and then the women’s 3-meter will close out the first day of action.
Make sure to follow @ACCSwimDive and #ACCWSD for updates throughout the week.
