2023 NCAA Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships
In the 2023 Women’s NCAA Championship, NC State’s Catherine Berkoff Update your acquaintance with Virginia Gretchen Walsh.
Last year, they became the event’s two greatest performers of all time. Berkoff won her record American, US Open and NCAA titles in 48.74 seconds, becoming the first woman in history to break her 49 seconds. Walsh also broke her previous record, achieving her 49.00 seconds record, the second fastest ever.
Gretchen Walsh (Photo: Jack Spitzer)
It’s hard to say which one is a “favourite” here. Walsh has been spectacular all season, breaking the American record with his 50 frees (20.83) in the ACC. She is the top seed and her season best is her 49.25. Berkoff, on the other hand, has played cards a little closer to his best this season. She is her second seed with her 49.45 and will be looking for her third straight win in the event.
The two also did not meet in the individual 100m at the ACC (Walsh did not swim), but both led the 400 medley relay. There, Walsh outpaced Birkhoff by about half a second. Whatever order they finished in the NCAA, the gap is unlikely to be that wide. increase. This matchup is also going nowhere – Berkoff has confirmed plans to use his fifth-year qualification at North Carolina State University for an NCAA title.
Berkoff and Walsh are the top two, but let’s not forget Stanford’s freshman geniuses Claire Kurzan, is fast enough to dismantle the ACC party. With the PAC-12s, she lowered her own 17-18 National Age group record to her 49.46. That shaved her 600ths off her previous best of 49.52 and pushed her to her third place in the NCAA this season. Kurzan is going for her 100 fly/100 back double in the NCAA this year. The 100 Fly is the most anticipated race in the competition and will definitely nail it. Kurzan has proven she can manage both doubles and a busy schedule, but it’s something to keep in mind, especially since neither of her two biggest rivals, Berkoff and Walsh, have done doubles. I have.
familiar face
Isabel Stadden (Photo: Jack Spitzer)
Unlike other events in these championships, the 100 Bucks has many familiar faces. 2022 ‘A’ finals will see him return with seven swimmers Regan Smith (who finished 3rd) left the NCAA. And there are only three swimmers not from the 2021 ‘A’ final. Izzy IvyJulia Cook, and Caroline GumerichWith so many of the same names coming back, who can confuse the trio at the top of the psych sheet?
back in 5th year Ryan White Completed 4 petes in 100 backstroke in SEC. Outside of the top three contenders, she has the fastest personal best on the field with her 50.02. This will be her last NCAA competition and she is definitely aiming to be the next swimmer to break the 50 second barrier. Her season-best is her 50.84, which requires a significant drop to make it happen. She is one of her four swimmers seeded in her 50s and prepares for a tough race not only to win the trophy, but to seize the final lane. are arranged.
like white, Phoebe Bacon Most of her international success has been seen on the 200m long course. After finishing third in 2021, Bacon missed out on her 2022 ‘A’ final by 100 minutes to her 8th, and in the end she won the consolation final at 50.83. . She holds her lifetime high of 50.39, about a second behind her 51.40 this season. To get back to her ‘A’ final, she can’t wait to swim in her best time of the season, but it’s certainly possible for her. She’s known for her big drop from the Big Ten to the NCAA, and in 2021 she’s almost a second off her Big Her Ten time, going from 51.32 to her 50.39.
Isabel Stadden He finished second to Kurzan in the 2023 PAC-12 Championship with a career-best 50.79. This allowed her to shorten her 1/200th of the time she swam in both her 2022 NCAA and this season’s Minnesota Invitational. Stadden has more of a shot at the top half of the podium in the 200 backstroke, but this is her first full taper. Dave Durdenand Carmen has a reputation in the NCAA for dropping out of the seed.
Olivia Bray (Photo: Jack Spitzer)
Meanwhile, Texas Olivia Bray Last year he finished 8th in the backend of the 100 fly/100 back double. She won’t take on that double this year because instead of her 100 fly she plans to race the 500 free on her second day. The junior has improved in various events this year, but her lifetime best of 50.69 from the 2022 NCAA prelims remains in this event. Without her 100 fly to worry about before this event, she’s looking to climb her way up the standings, achieving another one of her career bests this season.
From a team standings standpoint, the ‘A’ final will likely feature two Virginia swimmers, so Bray will need to finish as high as possible. Walsh and Walsh. Riley TiltmanLast year they scored a total of 31 points and finished second and fifth respectively. Tiltman finished second to Birkhoff in the ACC with a 51.20, about three-tenths behind the Cavalier Invitational’s season best time of 50.90.
Senior Grace County It has been a driving force in the Tar Heels’ pool at this competition for the past few seasons. She finished her 7th in her 2021 and in 2022 she moved up to 6th. Both years she improved her times from ACC. She is seeded her 15th heading into the competition and her season best is her 51.70, slower than her last two seeding times. With some underclassmen improving this season (more on that later), Countie’s return to the ‘A’ Finals could be harder than ever.
Junior Rising
Josephine Fuller (Photo: Jack Spitzer)
In addition to Curzan and Stadden, there are plenty of swimmers who have already set personal bests this season. Josephine Fuller, Eboni McCarty, Nia Funderburkeand Kennedy Noble All four juniors can shake things up in this year’s NCAA.
University of Tennessee Sophomore Josephine Fuller Leads the quartet as the 8th seed. She has cut her three seconds off her four-minute best time of the season, taking her from her 52.00 seconds in the 2022 SEC to her 51.26 seconds in 2023. So all four of her swimmers now need to have one of their best swims to heat up the championship. All four are possible, giving Fuller the home pool advantage.
next, Ebony McCarty, She has dropped even more times than Fuller, and is 1.57 seconds off her all-time best this season. She took it all the way down from her 52.92 to 51.35 and swam her third in the SEC. That her 52.92 earned her 41st place in the 2022 NCAA, and she is currently entering the competition as her 9th seed. Her sophomore in Georgia, she looks poised to make her second swim in her NCAA for the first time in her career.
After Big Tens, we reported Nya FunderburkeAn incredible trajectory from being left off last year’s conference championship scoring roster to winning the 100-back title as a sophomore. Currently, she joins as the No. 11 seed with her personal best of 51.44 and, like McCarty, is on the precipice of her first NCAA finals swim. Funderburke said one of her goals is for her to break 51m within 100m.
finally freshman Kennedy Noble She improved her 100 back time by more than half a second and swam 51.46 in ACC. Based on the depth held in this event, with her 51.19 it took her to advance to last year’s ‘A’ Finals, she and Funderburke are well on their way to returning to her heat of the championship. Has to do the most work of her four. However, she is comfortably within 51.83, both of which it took to reach last year’s ‘B’ final.
swimsuit picks
Dark Horse: Meredith Reese (Missouri) — Now a senior, Reese has starred in the 100m backstroke ‘B’ final for the past two seasons. Is this the moment she finally breaks through to the ‘A’ final? Like the four underclassmen we’ve mentioned, Reese enters the competition on the best momentum of her life. She was her 4th in her SEC she swam 51.59. She has finished her 14th and her 16th so far, and this could be the year she climbs up even more.
