2026 ACC Champ Day 7 Ups/Mids/Downs: Pair Of Title Defences Seem Odds-On In The ACC

2026 Atlantic Coast Conference Championships

• Dates:
  • Diving: Sunday, February 15–Tuesday, February 17
  • Swimming: Tuesday, February 17–Saturday, February 21
• Location: McAuley Aquatic Center, Atlanta, GA
• Defending champions: UVA women (6x); Cal men (1x)
• Live Results
• Live Video: ESPN+ ($)
• Schedule of Events (PDF)
• Championship Central
• Pre-Scratch Psych Sheet
• Live Results
• Live Recaps
  • Prelims: Day 4|Day 5|Day 6|Day 7
  • Finals: Day 1|Day 2|Day 3|Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 6
• Teams: Boston College, Cal, Duke, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Louisville, Miami (women swimming & diving/men diving), NC State, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, SMU, Stanford, Virginia, Virginia Tech

For those unfamiliar with swimming terminology, the concept of “Ups” and “Downs” is a good way to track which teams performed best at prelims. In prelims, swimmers qualify for one of three finals heats: the top 8 finishers make the A final, places 9 through 16 the B final and places 17 through 24 the C final. In finals, swimmers are locked into their respective final, meaning a swimmer in the B heat (spots 9-16) can only place as high as 9th or as low as 16th, even if they put up the fastest or slowest time of any heat in the final.

With that in mind, we’ll be tracking “Ups,” “Mids” and “Downs” after each prelims session. “Up” refers to swimmers and divers in the A final, “Mid” to B finalists, and “Down” to C finalists.

Scores After Day 6

Women:

1. Virginia – 1028.5
2. Stanford – 798
3. California – 860.5
4. Louisville – 653
5. NC State – 591.5
6. Pittsburgh – 450
7. North Carolina – 387.5
8. Miami – 296
9. Florida State – 304
10. Notre Dame – 310
11. Duke – 328.5
12. Virginia Tech – 274.5
13. Georgia Tech – 238
14. SMU – 203
15. Boston College – 48

Men:

1. California – 827
2. Stanford – 799
3. NC State – 665
4. Louisville – 663
5. Virginia Tech – 541.5
6. Florida State – 499.5
7. North Carolina – 446.5
8. Virginia – 433.5
9. Notre Dame – 397
10. SMU – 326
11. Pittsburgh – 324
12. Georgia Tech – 293
13. Miami – 162
14. Duke – 109
15. Boston College – 86

Women’s Day 7 Ups/Mids/Downs

Day 7 Prelims Scoring + Relay Seed + 1650 Free Seed Scoring:

Virginia are once again set to be the biggest scorers of the night, and should extend their advantage to over 400 points. They have a total of 13 scoring swims tonight, over half of which are ‘A’ finals, and are seeded for at least 50 points in every event. The 100 breast is their biggest, with a quarter of all scoring swimmers in that event this evening coming from the Wahoos.

The battle for Stanford and Cal behind them will come down to the wire, but after a strong prelims session it is the Cardinal who look like finishing strongest. Cal got just one ‘A’ finalist this morning, Mary-Ambre Moluh in the 100 free, while Stanford have five and are set to outscore the Golden Bears by over 80 points. As long as they do not DQ their relay, as they did last night, they should just about manage to overhaul their erstwhile Pac-12 rivals.

Louisville and NC State had strong mornings of their own, both set to score over 200 points tonight. The Cardinals should lock down 4th spot, but NC State put three women into the 200 back ‘A’ final including top seed Erika Pelaez. Pitt are set to overtake UNC behind them in the battle for 6th, although the Tar Heels are seeded for nearly 50 more points than they are, with UNC led by newly-crowned school record holder Sophia Frei in the 200 back ‘A’ final.

Duke and Virginia Tech are in line to overhaul Florida State and Notre Dame, thanks to some big points in the mile and the 400 free relay.

Scores Through Day 6 + Day 7 Finals Projected Scores

Women

1. Virginia – 1403.5
2. Stanford – 1078.5
3. California – 1054.5
4. Louisville – 915
5. NC State – 813.5
6. Pittsburgh – 541
7. North Carolina – 524.5
8. Duke – 444
9. Virginia Tech – 403.5
10. Florida State – 368
11. Notre Dame – 345
12. Miami – 322
13. Georgia Tech – 288
14. SMU – 252
15. Boston College – 72

Men’s Day 6 Ups/Mids/Downs

Day 7 Prelims Scoring + Relay Seed + 1650 Free Seed Scoring:

NC State have the most ‘A’ finalists of anyone tonight with six, as the Wolfpack make up half of the 100 free ‘A’ final tonight. Stanford and Cal have a quartet of ‘A’ finalists apiece, as well as all four of the top seeds in the mile between them, and should remain closely matched on the overall leaderboard throughout the night. Cal are set for 25 more points than their West Coast neighbours, and should close out the Championship win to defend their maiden title from last year.

NC State should decisively move away from Louisville, who currently trail them by only two points. The Cardinals have seven finals swims tonight including three ‘A’ finalists, but can’t match the 100+ points that NC State are set to score in the 100 free. Virginia Tech are in line to maintain their hold on 5th ahead of FSU, who have no ‘A’ finalists tonight and are only seeded 10th in the 400 free relay. After placing 6th on the 200 free relay, FSU will hope to move up from seed and for some other swims to break their way to take 5th place overall.

Despite having two ‘A’ finalists in the 200 back, Virginia are set to remain in 8th place behind UNC, who are projected to score one point more than them tonight. SMU should stay ahead of Pitt, with both schools getting an ‘A’ finalist tonight – Julian Koch in the 100 free for Pitt, Jack Berube in the 200 back for SMU after his school record of 1:39.29 this morning.

Scores Through Day 6 + Day 7 Finals Projected Scores

1. California – 1147
2. Stanford – 1098.5
3. NC State – 960
4. Louisville – 890
5. Virginia Tech – 707.5
6. Florida State – 636.5
7. North Carolina – 582.5
8. Virginia – 550.5
9. Notre Dame – 488
10. SMU – 403
11. Pittsburgh – 382
12. Georgia Tech – 350.5
13. Miami – 162
14. Duke – 140
15. Boston College – 112