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Maren Berg of Columbus, Ohio has announced her commitment to swim and study at the University of North Carolina, starting in the fall of 2027. She trains year-round with Upper Arlington Swim Club and attends Upper Arlington High School.
Berg publicized the news on Instagram, writing:
“I am ecstatic and blessed to announce my verbal commitment to further my athletic career for Division I swimming at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill! I would like to give a huge thanks to my family, teammates, and friends that have unconditionally supported me throughout this process. I would also like to recognize and thank my coaches, especially Coach Toddy and Coach John who have shaped me into the athlete and person I am today. A final thanks to all of the coaches and staff at UNC, especially Coach Mark Gangloff, for welcoming me on this journey and allowing me to be a member of the North Carolina family! GO HEELS!
Berg is a sprint freestyle specialist who can go up to the 200.
Her first breakthrough meet of the 2024-25 season was the Ned Reeb meet, which took place in December. She helped Upper Arlington High School win both the 200 and 400 free relays, which included a personal-best 23.58 leadoff on the 200 free relay. She won the 100 free in 51.77 and took third in the 200 with her current best time of 1:52.52, before shifting her focus to the individual 50 and 100 frees for the rest of the season.
Berg’s target meets all came in February when she competed at the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) Sectionals, Southeast Championships, and State meet.
At Sectionals, Berg won the 100 free in 51.45, clipping her best time by three hundredths. She was the runner-up in the 50 free (23.44) too, slicing her lifetime best by 0.14 in the process. She once again helped Upper Arlington sweep the free relays, leading off the 200 free relay in 23.48 and splitting 51.60 on the second leg of the 400 free relay.
Berg’s improvement continued into the Southeast Championships, where she only swam her two individual events and threw down best times in both. She kicked things off with a bronze medal-worthy 23.28 in the 50 free, before shattering her 100 free best and breaking 51 for the first time in 50.78 to take the win.
She wrapped up her season at State, where she claimed double bronze in the 50 and 100 free. She chopped a hundredth off her 50 best at 23.27 and swam her second-fastest 100 free time in 51.16. She helped the 200 medley relay win with a sub-23 anchor of 22.80 and led off the 400 free relay that took runner-up with a 51.05—faster than her individual and now her second-fastest ever.
Top SCY Times:
- 50 Freestyle: 23.27
- 100 Freestyle: 50.78
- 200 Freestyle: 1:52.52
Under the direction of head coach Mark Gangloff, the Tar Heel women finished sixth out of 15 teams at the 2025 Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Championships.
The conference meet offers ‘A’, ‘B’, and ‘C’ finals, and it took times of 22.41, 48.72, and 1:46.56 to make the top 24 in her primary events last season.
According to the team’s 2024–25 depth chart, she would have ranked eighth in the 50 free, 11th in the 100 free, and 13th in the 200 free. Seniors Greer Pattison and Georgia Nel led the way, with Pattison going 22.07 in the 50 free, while Nel topped the 100 and 200 free at 48.29 and 1:45.26.
With two full seasons to continue improving before she arrives in Chapel Hill, Berg is poised to make an immediate impact.
Berg joins Sloane Barr, Maddy Boland, Sofie Vanyo, and Maren Byrne in committing to UNC’s Class of 2031.
If you have a commitment to report, please send an email with a photo (landscape, or horizontal, looks best) and a quote to [email protected].
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Maren Berg and Maren Byrne on the same team? When have there been two different swimmers with very similar names on the same team? This would make an interesting article.
Y’all crowdsource it and we’ll polish it up and publish.
Would it really make for an interesting article???
So much for academics….
GDTBATH
I just saw the picture and for a second thought this was going to be about Claire Curzan transferring.
She looks like Temu Claire Curzan.