GREENSBORO, N.C. (theacc.com) – The Virginia women made a splash on Day Two of the 2023 Atlantic Coast Conference Swimming and Diving Championships at the Greensboro Aquatic Center (GAC) adding four ACC Champions and two more American Records to their resume, taking a comfortable lead in the team standings. NC State’s four podium finishes propelled them to a strong team lead on the men’s side after Wednesday’s competition.

The competition continues through Saturday.

Virginia’s Kate Douglass, Gretchen Walsh, Lexi Cuomo and Alex Walsh opened up the night’s finals by setting another ACC, NCAA, ACC Championship, US Open and American record in the 200-yard freestyle relay in 1:23.87, shattering their own previous American record set at the 2022 ACC Championships.  

Louisville took second place, also besting the GAC pool record (1:25.78), in 1:25.29 with NC State taking third in 1:26.54. The top four times in the 200-yard freestyle relay qualified for the NCAA Championships with A cut times, including North Carolina’s fourth-place finish in 1:27.69.

NC State’s men claimed their third relay victory of the meet, finishing the 200-yard freestyle relay in 1:15.10. Virginia finished in second place in 1:15.89 and Louisville took third in 1:15.90. Virginia Tech’s time of 1:16.15 secured all four times meeting NCAA A cut standards for automatic qualification to the NCAA Championships.

For the first time in ACC Swimming and Diving Championships history, there was a tie for first place in the women’s 500-yard freestyle between Georgia Tech’s Deniz Ertan and Virginia’s Ella Nelson, who both finished in 4:38.04. The Cavaliers finished with two on the podium as Maddie Donohoe took third (4:41.80).

James Plage of NC State claimed the men’s 500-yard freestyle title in 4:12.33, followed by Georgia Tech’s Batur Unlu in second place (4:12.35) and Florida State’s Yordan Yanchev (4:12.97).

UVA’s Douglass added another record-breaking swim to her resume, setting a meet and GAC pool record with her 1:50.15 swim in the women’s 200 IM. Duke’s Sally Foley finished in second in 1:54.12, recording a new personal best to go along with a new school record in the Blue Devils’ first podium finish of the Championships.  Virginia’s Abby Harter took third place in 1:54.83.

Arsenio Bustos of NC State set a meet record with a 1:40.31 swim in the men’s 200-yard IM, moving up to second in the Wolfpack’s record books. Virginia Tech’s Carles Coll Marti placed second in 1:41.02 and NC State’s Giovanni Izzo took third in 1:41.13. All three times qualified as NCAA A cut times.

Virginia’s Gretchen Walsh now owns the fastest time ever in the women’s 50-yard freestyle, setting another ACC, NCAA, ACC Championship, US Open and American record in 20.83. Louisville’s Gabi Albiero claimed second place in 21.36, followed by her teammate Christiana Regenauer in third in 21.58. All three top times qualified as NCAA A cut times.

Louisville’s Abdelrahman's El-Araby claimed an emotional and exciting win in the men’s 50-free, touching the wall in just 18.79 seconds. Youssef Ramadan of Virginia Tech took second in 18.82 while Chris Guiliano of Notre Dame took third in 19.07.

North Carolina diver Aranza Vazquez capped off the night by setting an ACC Championship and GAC pool record in the women’s 1-meter diving finals with her score of 379.25. Miami’s Mia Vallee finished in second with 330.05 points, followed by Virginia’s Jen Bell who earned the bronze with 301.40 points.

The championships continue Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. with preliminary events. Wednesday's finals events start at 5:30 p.m. They air live on ACC Network Extra and are also accessible via the WatchESPN app. Direct links to the ACCNX feeds and live swimming and diving results are available at theACC.com.

Women’s Standings (through 8 events)
1. Virginia, 551
2. Louisville, 473.5
3. NC State, 427
4. North Carolina, 386
5. Virginia Tech, 274  
6. Duke, 257
7. Notre Dame, 216  
8. Florida State, 213
9. Miami, 211
10. Pitt, 163.5
11. Georgia Tech, 158
12. Boston College, 100

Men’s Standings (through 7 events)
1. NC State, 585
2. Louisville, 332.5
3. Virginia, 317
4. Virginia Tech, 308.5
5. Notre Dame, 286
6. Florida State, 263.5
7. North Carolina, 216  
8. Pitt, 209.5
9. Georgia Tech, 187
10. Duke, 133
11. Miami, 74
12. Boston College, 64
 
Schedule of Events
Thursday, Feb. 16 - 9:30 a.m. - Prelims
400 IM, 100 Fly, 200 Free, Men’s 3-Meter

Thursday, Feb. 16 - 5:30 p.m. - Finals
400 IM, 100 Fly, 200 Free, Men’s 3-Meter

Friday, Feb. 17 - 9:30 a.m. - Prelims
200 Fly, 100 Back, 100 Breast, Women’s Platform

Friday, Feb. 17 - 5:30 p.m. - Finals
200 Fly, 100 Back, 100 Breast, Women’s Platform, 400 Medley Relay

Saturday, Feb. 18 - 9:30 a.m. - Prelims
200 Back, 100 Free, 200 Breast, Men’s Platform

Saturday, Feb. 18 - 2 p.m. - Finals
1650 Free (Early Heats-Finals)

Saturday, Feb. 18 - 5:30 p.m. - Finals
1650 Free, 200 Back, 100 Free, 200 Breast, Men’s Platform, 400 Free Relay