Queens Junior Danielle Melilli Lowers NCAA Division II 50 Free Record to 22.15

2022 NCAA Division II Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships

• Dates: Wednesday, March 9 – Saturday, March 12, 2022
• Location: Greensboro Aquatic Center, Greensboro, NC (Eastern Time Zone)
• Times: Prelims 10:00 AM / Finals 6:00 PM
• Defending Champs: Queens women (6x) & Queens men (6x) – (Results)
• Live Stream
• Live Results
• Psych Sheet – Women
• SwimSwam Fan Guide – Women
• Day 1 Finals Heat Sheets

Women’s 50 Freestyle – Finals

• NCAA DII Record: 20 – Bailee Nunn, Drury (2017)
• Meet Record: 20 – Bailee Nunn, Drury (2017)
• 2021 Champion: Danielle Melilli, Queens (NC) – 22.57

Podium:

1. Danielle Melilli, Queens – 22.15
2. Monica Gumina, Queens – 22.73
3. Johanna Buys, Indy – 22.75
4. Elizaveta Bazarova, Tampa – 22.76
5. Ester Rizzetto, West Florida – 22.81
6. Luna Mertins, Lynn – 22.84
7. Yasmin Preusse, Drury – 22.94
8. Kate Flynn, MSU Mankato – 23.19

Junior Danielle Melilli of Queens successfully defended her NCAA national title in the 50 free but this time she took a .05 bite out of the Division II and meet record. Melilli clocked a 22.15 to become the fastest 50 freestyler in the history of the Division.

Last year, she won this event with a lifetime-best time of 22.57. This year, she came into the meet as the third seed with an entry time of 22.65.

In prelims on Wednesday morning, she unleashed a 22.33 to improve her PB by .25 and lead the finals qualifiers by .39. Her night swim was .18 faster.

Melilli was out with the field and flipped third at the 25 wall before accelerating over the final 25 yards to win by half a body length. She improved both 25s with each successive PB:

Comparative splits:

• Previous PB (2021): 10.93 / 11.64 = 22.57
• Prelims (2022): 10.88 / 11.45 = 22.33
• Finals (2022): 10.82 / 11.33 = 22.15

Melilli, who also excels in breaststroke (she is the defending NCAA Division II champion the 100), is entered in the 200 free, 100 breast, and 100 free on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.