The William & Mary women's swimming team advanced a conference-best 17 swimmers to finals on Friday morning at the Colonial Athletic Association Championships, and also topped the table with nine championship finalists.  After projected points following the prelims are taken into effect, the Tribe has chipped away at James Madison's lead in the team standings, with the Dukes now leading by 48 points, 390-342.  Towson remains third, with 273 points.

400 IM
- Junior Julia Bland (Sea Girt, N.J.) got things started for the Tribe by earning the top seed in the finals of the 400 IM, swimming a lifetime-best 4:22.00 in the grueling event.  That was the eighth-fastest race in school history, and ranks Bland sixth all-time among athletes.
- Senior Morgan Smith (Verona, N.J.), the reigning champion in the event, also made the A finals after her fifth-place time of 4:25.37, as did freshman Gabby Zhang (Ashburn, Va.), finishing right behind Smith in a lifetime-best 4:27.15 for sixth overall.  Zhang moves up to 14th all-time among Tribe athletes with that time.
- Freshman Rebecca Rogers (Richmond, Va.) advanced to the consolation finals, touching the wall in 4:32.99 for 15th overall.
 

Place	Athlete	Time	Notes
1.	Julia Bland	4:22.00	A finals, PB, #8 perf, #6 ath
5.	Morgan Smith	4:25.37	A finals
6.	Gabby Zhang	4:27.15	A finals, PB, #14 ath
15.	Rebecca Rogers	4:32.99	B finals

100 Fly
- In the 100 fly, seniors Katie Sell (Fredericksburg, Va.) and Maria Oceguera (New Rochelle, N.Y.) both swam lifetime-bests and finished back-to-back in fourth and fifth, respectively, to qualify for the championship finals.  Sell timed 55.05 seconds to improve to sixth all-time at W&M, and Oceguera improved to seventh all-time with her performance of 55.08 seconds.
- Sophomore Madeline High (Raleigh, N.C.), competing in two events today, swam to the consolation finals in both.  In the 100 fly, she started her day off with a ninth-place 55.50 performance, the best mark of her career at W&M, and improved to 11th all-time among Tribe athletes.
 

Place	Athlete	Time	Notes
4.	Katie Sell	55.05	A finals, PB, #6 ath
5.	Maria  Oceguera	55.08	A finals, PB, #7 ath
9.	Madeline High	55.50	B finals, SB, CB, #11 ath
21.	Missy Cundiff	56.96	PB
23.	Annie Miller	57.79

200 Free
- Sophomore Megan Bull (Hillsborough, N.J.) advanced handily to the championship finals of the 200 free, finishing second in prelims at 1:48.39, the seventh-fastest time in school history.  On Wednesday, Bull broke W&M's longstanding record in the event with a 1:46.89 lead-off split on the 800 free relay.
- She'll be joined in the top heat by her classmate Tara Tiernan (West Hartford, Conn.), who swam a season-fast 1:49.93 for sixth overall.
- Freshman Inez Olszewski (New York, N.Y.) swam a lifetime-best 1:51.00 to advance to the consolation finals in 10th place overall, and improved to 14th all-time among Tribe athletes.
 

Place	Athlete	Time	Notes
2.	Megan Bull	1:48.39	A finals, #7 perf
6.	Tara Tiernan	1:49.93	A finals, SB
10.	Inez Olszewski	1:51.00	B finals, PB, #14 ath
17.	Margaret Williams	1:53.28	First alternate
21.	Norah Hunt	1:53.99	SB

100 Breast
- All four of W&M's entries in the 100 breast advanced to the consolation finals, led by senior Claire Williams (Apex, N.C.) who took ninth overall for the top seed in the heat at 1:04.00.
- Freshman Ellie Henry (Southern Pines, N.C.) was right behind her in 1:04.09 for 10th place, a lifetime-best for the rookie that improves her to 13th all-time at W&M.
- Junior Lauren Freeman (Fairfax Station, Va.) swam a season-best 1:04.55 for 14th place, just ahead of sophomore Diana Tramontano (Greenwich, Conn.) who turned in a lifetime-best 1:04.63 for 15th overall.
 

Place	Athlete	Time	Notes
9.	Claire Williams	1:04.00	B finals, SB
10.	Ellie Henry	1:04.09	B finals, PB, #13 ath
14.	Lauren Freeman	1:04.55	B finals, SB
15.	Diana Tramontano	1:04.63	B finals, PB

100 Back
- In the 100 back, freshman Sonora Baker (Mechanicsville, Va.) swam a lifetime-best 55.79 and advanced to the championship finals in sixth place.  That improved Baker to eighth all-time at W&M.
- Right behind her and also qualifying for the championship heat was Baker's classmate Anna Kenna (Chantilly, Va.), who set a season-best of 56.13 seconds for seventh overall.  That improved Kenna to ninth all-time among Tribe athletes.
- The sophomore High made her second consolation final of the day thanks to a season-fast 57.30 showing, touching the wall in 14th place.
 

Place	Athlete	Time	Notes
6.	Sonora Baker	55.79	A finals, PB, #8 ath
7.	Anna Kenna	56.13	A finals, SB, CB, #9 ath
14.	Madeline High	57.30	B finals, SB

Finals in all five events, as well as the 400 medley relay, begins tonight at 6 p.m. live on CAA.TV.

2019 CAA Women's Swimming & Diving Championships
Projected Team Scores After Friday Prelims
1. James Madison 390
2. William & Mary 342
3. Towson 273
4. UNCW 207.5
5. Drexel 201
6. Northeastern 185.5
7. Delaware 143