2025 W. NCAA Previews: Here She Goes Again – Gretchen Walsh Flying Towards Victory in 100 Fly

2025 Women’s NCAA Swimming & Diving Championships

• March 19-22, 2025
• Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatics Center – Federal Way, Washington
• SCY (25 yards)
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Women’s 100 Fly

• U.S. Open Record: 47.35 – Gretchen Walsh, UVA (2024)
• American Record: 47.35 – Gretchen Walsh, UVA (2024)
• NCAA Record: 47.35 – Gretchen Walsh, UVA (2024)
• Championship Record: 47.42 – Gretchen Walsh, UVA (2024)
• 2024 NCAA Champion: Gretchen Walsh, UVA

The 100 fly promises to be an adrenaline-inducing race as we get ready for the women’s NCAA Division I Championships, boasting a loaded roster heading into the meet. The lineup features the American record holder in the event, two Olympic gold medalists and a World Junior champion, just to mention a few of the stars in the mix. But even with all of the depth in the field, there is still one familiar name that stands out from the rest: Gretchen Walsh.

The Winner Takes It All

Here she goes again: after dominating the 100 fly throughout the 2024 championship season, Walsh is on her way to pick up another gold in the event next week. She took on the event at NCAAs for the first time last March and blew the competition out of the water, winning by almost 2.3 seconds in what was a championship and NCAA record.

Despite only racing the 100 fly at two meets this season, Walsh posted the fastest time in both the NCAA and the entire country this season with her time of 47.35 at the Tennessee Invitational back in November. That performance marked new NCAA, U.S Open and American records, and no one else in American swimming history has come anywhere close to that time.

Walsh holds the five fastest performances of all-time in the 100 fly, all of which were posted within a one year period. She has also improved her lifetime best by two seconds over the last two years, going from 49.34 in February 2023 to 47.35 in November 2024, and she doesn’t seem to be slowing down anytime soon. With over a second separating Walsh and the #2 seed, in addition to her winning history in the event, she seems almost guaranteed to be walking away with the gold in the 100 fly.

Fly(ing) Queens

Torri Huske (photo: Jack Spitser)

If anyone is going to give Walsh a run for her money, it is likely going to be fellow Olympic gold medalist Torri Huske. The Stanford  competitor sits behind her as the #2 seed in the event and was in top form at the ACCs just a few weeks ago. Huske posted a lifetime best time of 48.52 at the meet, winning the event by half a second.

Huske’s race in February was .45 faster than her previous personal best (48.96) set back in 2023 when she took 3rd at NCAAs, and it marks the 8th-fastest performance of all time in the 100 fly.

The event is shaping up to be an exciting matchup between Huske and Walsh, as they are two of the most dominant forces in the pool in this race. Walsh was notably absent from the 100 fly at this year’s ACCs, meaning that while she and Huske are frequent competitors, they have never gone head-to-head in this event in their college careers until now. Huske may not be able to overthrow Walsh for the win, but she should be a lock for silver.

University of Texas graduate student Emma Sticklen has been a top performer in the 100 fly throughout her collegiate career. She has contested the 100 fly at the NCAA Championships each of the past three years and landed in the A-final every time. Her best performance was at the 2024 championships, when she took the runner-up spot behind Walsh in 49.70, a personal best for her at the time.

Sticklen has consistently improved her time even further this season, shaving a few hundredths off almost every time she swam the event. She went from a time of 49.62 at the Texas v. Indiana meet back in November to her most recent lifetime best 49.40 at the SEC Championships in mid-February. That swim marked the 4th-fastest time this season and puts her as the #3 seed heading into the championships this week.

As the only other swimmer besides Walsh and Huske entered with a sub-50 time, Sticklen is unquestionably one of the biggest threats in the event and can be counted on to make a strong push to try to chase down Huske.

Ella Welch is coming in hot as the #5 seed in the event. While the Louisville junior’s times have not been the most consistent over the last year or so, they have been on a general upward trend this season, culminating in a new personal best time of 50.74 at the ACCs in February.

This will be the first year that Welch takes on the 100 fly at NCAAs, so she doesn’t have quite as much history behind her. Looking at how she performed in other events at the championship meets the last two years, Welch has tended to perform better at ACCs than at NCAAs with more of her personal and season best times being set at the earlier competition.

Welch has yet to break into an individual A-final at the NCAA Championships, but that could change with the 100 fly. As long as she can manage to turn in a performance close to what she did at ACCs, she should put herself safely in the top 8.

Giulia Carvalho (photo: Jack Spitser)

Miami’s Giulia Carvalho will be fighting to get closer to one of those podium spots. She placed 14th at the 2024 NCAAs in 51.31 and has since improved that time considerably. Carvalho was in top form at the ACCs a few weeks ago, posting a lifetime best time in prelims (50.99) before lowering it again in finals (50.91) to shave .15 overall off of the previous personal best that she set back in November.

Despite her strong performance in February, Carvalho’s times have fluctuated drastically throughout the season, taking big swings in opposite directions nearly every time she’s raced the 100 fly. As the #7 seed, Carvalho is right on the cusp of securing a spot in the A-final, but she will need to deliver one of her best performances in order to avoid being pushed out of the top 8.

Florida senior Olivia Peoples will also be pushing to secure her spot in the top 8. Currently seeded 8th, there is just .05 separating her from both Carvalho in 7th and Abigail Arens in 9th. However, Peoples is entered with her season best time of 50.96, which is half a second off of her lifetime best.

Peoples enjoyed a breakout year last season and posted her lifetime best 50.47 at the SEC Championships in February 2024, following it up with a 50.85 during NCAA prelims before placing 6th overall with her finals time of 50.93. Her performance at this year’s SECs (50.96) is right around where she was during at NCAAs last year, meaning if she can pull off a similar race or improve her time a little bit, she should be able to get herself into the top 8.

Young And Speed(y)

The veterans are hardly the only ones to keep an eye on in this race. NC State’s Leah Shackley has been taking the collegiate swimming world by storm throughout her freshman season and is poised to make just as big of a splash at NCAAs.

The #4 seed in the 100 fly, Shackley could walk away with a medal if she can deliver a strong performance. She is entered with her season best time of 50.33, which she posted at the ACCs in February, where she placed 4th overall. That race saw Shackley beat out competitors like Welch, Carvalho and Sydney Gring, all of whom she will face again at NCAAs.

Shackley turned in her lifetime best time of 50.29 last March, and her performance at the ACCs shows a return to top form. While there is still nearly a second separating Shackley and Sticklen, Sticklen has been churning out personal best performances in the 100 fly all season, which could make it harder for her to replicate that again at NCAAs. If Shackley can pull off a best time, she has a good chance of at the very least closing the gap between her and Sticklen and a small chance of even overtaking the grad swimmer.

Indiana sophomore Miranda Grana is another young one in the mix. Grana contested the 100 fly at the 2024 NCAAs, placing 25th in 51.76, and has made significant improvements in the event since then. After winning the 100 fly in a lifetime best time of 50.80 at the Big 10 Conference Championships a few weeks ago, she currently sits in the #6 spot, just .06 behind Welch.

A native of Guadalajara, Grana doesn’t have a long SCY history, but her times have tended to go up and down a fair amount; this season, they have ranged between 53.79 and 50.80. If Grana can hold onto her recent upwards momentum, then she should be in good shape to land safely in the top 8, but if her time dips down again, she’ll be much harder pressed to secure one of the top spots.

Fellow sophomore Sydney Gring of Pitt is also one to keep an eye on. The #12 seed, she just threw down a personal best time of 51.25 at the ACCs, placing 10th overall. This will be her first time competing at NCAAs, so it will be interesting to see how she performs at such a high level competition like this. Gring has been on something of an upward trend over her last few races in the 100 fly, meaning she could make a jump towards the top 8 if that continues. Even if she doesn’t make it into the A-final, she should be a lock for one of the top spots in the B-final.

Arizona State freshman Julia Ullmann will be looking to make a splash in her NCAA debut and could turn in a surprising performance. Although not ranked as high as Shackley or some of the others, the Swiss swimmer is still a threat in the water. The #15 seed, Ullmann just threw down a personal best time of 51.40 to win the 100 fly at the Big 12 Conference Championships. Given that this is her first season racing SCY, it is hard to compare exactly where she is at, but Ullmann certainly has the potential to drop more time and sneak her way up towards that top 8.

Take A Chance On Them

A few more finalists from the 2024 NCAAs are back in the field this year, although the rankings have certainly shaken up since last season.

Olivia Bray (photo: Jack Spitser)

Texas’s Olivia Bray, who placed 3rd last year in 50.52, comes in as the #13 seed. While she was a dominant force last year, posting a season best 50.33 at NCAA prelims, Bray skipped most of the fall 2024 semester and hasn’t been performing as well this season. With a season best of 51.26, she hasn’t been sub-51 since last March. Last year, it took a time of 51.07 to qualify for the A-final, so Bray would have to make significant strides to get back to a point where she could squeeze into the top 8.

Louisville’s Gabi Albiero and Texas’s Abigail Arens both earned spots in the B-final last year, placing 10th (51.10) and 15th (51.55), respectively. Albiero’s times this season have dipped slightly below where she was a year ago; her top time last season was 50.68, while her current season best is 51.18. Albiero heads into NCAAs as the #11 seed, and while she could throw down a top performance to land herself in the A-final, her races this season were slower than last season virtually across the board. Albiero has a lifetime best time of 50.04 but hasn’t been that fast since February 2023, so it’s questionable if she’ll be able to make it into the A-final or not.

On the flip side, Arens has been on top of her game this season. The #9 seed, her performances in the 100 fly have been very consistent this season, with all but one being faster than the 51.55 that she swam in finals at NCAAs last March. Arens posted a season best time of 51.01 at the Eddie Reese Texas Showdown in January and followed it up with a time of 51.03 at the SEC Championships a month later. There is just .1 separating Arens from #7 seed Carvalho, so Arens could easily find herself in the top 8 if she can continue to improve her time just a little bit more.

Moving up the rankings from last year, Pitt’s Sophie Yendell is sure to be pushing for the A-final. After finishing 17th last March (51.35) and just missing the B-final, Yendell is now seeded 10th overall with her time of 51.13 from the ACCs, where she placed 7th. This is the closest she has been to her lifetime best 50.87 since setting it at the 2024 ACCs, and she has been experiencing an upward trend in her performances since early January. If Yendell can get back down to the sub-51 mark, she could definitely be a significant threat for the top 8.

Also of note is the fact that Cal’s Mia Kragh, who placed 8th in 51.27 at NCAAs last season, would have been a returning A-finalist but hasn’t raced since the Minnesota Invitational in December 2024.

SwimSwam’s Picks

Dark Horse Pick: Cal’s Lilou Ressencourt just joined the NCAA this season but has already established a name for herself. The French Olympian placed 8th in 51.57 at the ACCs just after posting a personal best time of 51.29 in prelims. Ressencourt’s performance in prelims saw her beat out competitors like Welch, Gring and Albiero to secure her spot in the A-final, although they all turned in faster times than her in finals. Seeded 14th heading into this week’s competition, Ressencourt should be a lock for B-final as long as she can post a similar performance and could even break into the top 8 if she can improve her time even further.