The William & Mary women's swimming team finished second at the Colonial Athletic Association Championships on Saturday night, winning gold in the 200 fly and earning four more all-conference honors to finish with 657 points. James Madison won nine events over the week to win the team title for the second year in a row, and Towson was third 555.5 points. The rest of the field included Drexel (393.5), UNCW (389.5), Northeastern (356.5), and Delaware (293).
W&M's 657 points were the fourth-most ever scored by the Tribe, who finished second or better for the fourth-straight season. That matches the 2006-09 teams for the longest such streak in school history. W&M also won multiple events for the seventh-straight season, dating back to 2013.
1,650 Free
- Starting the night was the 1,650 free, where sophomore
Megan Bull (Hillsborough, N.J.) won her third individual medal of the meet. Bull swam a lifetime-best 16:45.55 for second overall, the fourth-fastest race ever at W&M. She now ranks third in school history in the mile.
- Bull also split 10:08.14 at the 1,000-yard mark, a season- and collegiate-best time for the sophomore. That was the sixth-fastest race in school history, and ranks Bull fourth all-time among athletes in the 1,000.
- Also swimming the 1,650 was junior
Norah Hunt (Stuarts Draft, Va.), who swam a season-best 17:03.48 for sixth place overall. Hunt's 1,000 split was another season-best, 10:19.02.
- W&M senior
Morgan Smith (Verona, N.J.) took ninth in the mile, touching the wall in a season-best time of 17:07.84. Like her teammates, Smith also set a season-best time in the 1,000 free, making the turn in 10:23.84.
| Place |
Athlete |
Time |
Notes |
1,000 Split |
Notes |
| 2. |
Megan Bull |
16:45.55 |
All-CAA, PB, #4 perf, #3 ath |
10:08.14 |
SB, CB, #6 perf, #4 ath |
| 6. |
Norah Hunt |
17:03.48 |
SB |
10:19.02 |
SB |
| 9. |
Morgan Smith |
17:07.84 |
SB |
10:23.84 |
SB |
200 Back
- In the 200 back, sophomore
Tara Tiernan (West Hartford, Conn.) swam a lifetime-best 1:59.53 to finish second overall and earn all-conference honors. That was the 16th-fastest race ever at W&M, and moved Tiernan up to fifth all-time among Tribe athletes.
- Also in the championship finals,
Sonora Baker (Mechanicsville, Va.) was fourth in 2:00.24, and fellow freshman
Ellie Henry (Southern Pines, N.C.) was sixth overall with a time of 2:01.39.
- In the consolation finals, freshman
Anna Kenna (Chantilly, Va.) swam a lifetime-best 2:00.37 to win the heat and finish ninth overall. That time now ranks Kenna sixth in school history.
100 Free
- Freshman
Missy Cundiff (Leesburg, Va.) swam 51.04 in the consolation finals of the 100 free, just 0.01 off her PB time set in the morning to finish 10th overall.
- Right behind her was senior
Annie Miller (Houston, Texas), 11th in a season-fast 51.10, and senior
Katie Sell (Fredericksburg, Va.), who brought her career to a close in 51.44 seconds for 13th overall.
- Freshman
Inez Olszewski (New York, N.Y.) rounded out the line-up in 51.74 seconds, placing 15th.
200 Breast
- Senior
Claire Williams (Apex, N.C.) closed out her career on a strong night in the 200 breast, taking fifth overall in 2:17.90. It was her third appearance in the championship finals of the 200 breast, which she made every year she swam at CAAs.
- In the consolation finals, junior
Lauren Freeman (Fairfax Station, Va.) swam a season-best 2:19.54 for 10th overall, and sophomore
Diana Tramontano (Greenwich, Conn.) was right behind her in 2:19.61 for 11th place and an improvement of two seconds over her prelims time.
200 Fly
- Senior
Maria Oceguera (New Rochelle, N.Y.),the pre-meet favorite in the 200 fly, lived up to the hype and closed out her career with the one thing that had eluded her to this point, winning an individual CAA gold medal. Fifth at the 100-yard mark, Oceguera turned it on in the back half of the race to win by nearly a second and a half in 2:00.18. That was a season-best time, and the sixth-fastest race ever at W&M. Oceguera is the third Tribe athlete in the last four years to win the 200 fly.
- Also in the championship finals was junior
Julia Bland (Sea Girt, N.J.), who finished eighth in 2:07.69.
- The consolation finals saw freshman
Gabby Zhang (Ashburn, Va.) finish 10th overall in 2:03.55, and her classmate
Rebecca Rogers (Richmond, Va.) was close behind in 2:04.66 for 13th place.
400 Free Relay
Finishing out the weekend was the 400 free relay, where the Tribe finished second overall to earn all-conference honors for the first time since 2017 with the fastest time since that season as well. The freshman Cundiff led off in 51.53, and handed off in third place to Bull, who split a race-best 50.15. Oceguera went 50.88 on the third leg, and the senior Miller brought it home in 50.84, chasing down reigning champion Northeastern over the final 25 yards to secure the silver. The Tribe combined to time 3:23.40, the sixth-fastest time ever at W&M and half a second better than a year ago.
William & Mary still has several post-season opportunities coming up in the next month. Next weekend is the ECAC Championships, being hosted by Navy March 1-3. On the national level, the CSCAA National Invitational Championships are being held in Cleveland, Ohio March 14-16, and the NCAA Swimming & Diving Championships will be held at the University of Texas March 20-23
2019 Colonial Athletic Association Women's Swimming & Diving Championships
Final Team Standings
1. James Madison 726
2. William & Mary 657
3. Towson 555.5
4. Drexel 393.5
5. UNCW 389.5
6. Northeastern 356.5
7. Delaware 293
Swimming Coach of the Year: Dane Pedersen, James Madison
Diving Coach of the Year: John Wolsh, James Madison
Outstanding Swimmer of the Championships: Bonnie Zhang, James Madison
Outstanding Diver of the Championships: Hope Byrum, James Madison
