2026 ACC Champ Day 6 Ups/Mids/Downs: Cal And Stanford In A Dogfight For Both Men And Women

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
  • Finals: Day 1|Day 2|Day 3|Day 4 | Day 5
• 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 5

Women:

1. Virginia – 786
2. Stanford – 662
3. California – 621
4. Louisville – 507
5. NC State – 404.5
6. Pittsburgh – 354.5
7. North Carolina – 261.5
8. Miami – 248
9. Florida State – 223
10. Notre Dame – 220
11. Duke – 215.5
12. Virginia Tech – 208
13. Georgia Tech – 204
14. SMU – 155
15. Boston College – 48

Men:

1. California – 622
2. Stanford – 596
3. Louisville – 521
4. NC State – 505
5. Virginia Tech – 369.5
6. Florida State – 350.5
7. Notre Dame – 320
8. North Carolina – 299.5
9. Virginia – 281.5
10. SMU – 275
11. Pittsburgh – 244
12. Georgia Tech – 236
13. Miami – 162
14. Boston College – 86
15. Duke – 68

Women’s Day 6 Ups/Mids/Downs

Cal almost matched Virginia this morning, getting the same number of swimmers into ‘A’ and ‘B’ finals and one fewer into ‘C’ finals, but Virginia are expected to be tonight’s top scorers. The Bears had a big event in the 200 fly, put Mia West, Ava Chavez, and Lilou Ressencourt into the ‘A’ final, but only managed one ‘A’ finalist in each of the 100 back and 100 breast. That may still allow them to overtake Stanford tonight, with the Cardinal holding a 34 point lead but projected to be outscored by Cal in individual events by 31.5 points. Stanford are seeded second in the 400 medley relay at the end of the session, three spots ahead of Cal, although only finished one place ahead in the 200 medley relay.

NC State has a way to go to catch Louisville, but did their best to close the gap this morning. They have four ‘A’ finalists, including three in the 100 back, and are projected to be the fourth-highest scorers tonight. Louisville got three ‘A’ finalists of their own, including two in the 100 breast. UNC have seven scoring swims tonight but no ‘A’ finalists, but are still projected to halve the gap to Pitt in 6th. FSU have five of their own, and with the relay tonight may overtake Miami for 8th place. Duke will also be in the fight for that position, putting Claire Jansen and Kaelyn Gridley into the 100 back and 100 breast ‘A’ finals respectively.

Scores Through Day 4 + Day 5 Finals Projected Scores

Women

1. Virginia – 1043.5
2. Stanford – 850
3. Cal – 841.5
4. Louisville – 648
5. NC State – 586.5
6. Pitt – 446.5
7. UNC – 401
8. Duke – 330.5
9. Florida State – 306.5
10. Miami (FL) – 297
11. Notre Dame – 289
12. Virginia Tech – 282.5
13. Georgia Tech – 234
14. SMU – 201
15. Boston College – 72

Men’s Day 6 Ups/Mids/Downs

The men’s side saw Cal claim the most ‘A’ finals of anyone, but without adding a single ‘B’ or ‘C’ finalist. The Bears squad doesn’t seem to have the same depth as in recent years, and they are seeded to lose their slender advantage over Stanford in tonight’s session. The Cardinal are seeded for the most points tonight with 166, with Josh Zuchowski in line to challenge for another conference title in the 200 fly after winning the 400 IM last night.

NC State have four ‘A’ finalists in the 100 back, but no finalists at all in the other two events tonight – they will hope to rack up big points there and carry that momentum into the 400 medley relay. Kaii Winkler was the surprise top seed, although he has been in fantastic form so far this week and a title tilt would not be surprising from him tonight. Louisville are seeded for roughly the same number of points as the Wolfpack though, and may keep their 16-point lead intact. They have no ‘A’ finalists, but lead the way with six ‘B’ finalists including three in the 200 fly.

FSU lose out on some points after defending 100 back champion Michel Arkhangelskiy only made the ‘C’ final tonight in 46.20, nearly two seconds off the 44.49 he swam last year. Virginia Tech may well increase their lead over the Seminoles, matching them on ‘A’ finals tonight but putting two swimmers into ‘B’ finals.

UNC are slated to overtake Notre Dame for 7th, but a lot will depend on the 400 medley relay. The Fighting Irish are seeded just 11th there, but finished 3rd on their last ACC appearance back in 2024.

Scores Through Day 5 + Day 6 Finals Projected Scores

1. Stanford – 814
2. Cal – 797
3. Louisville – 686.5
4. NC State – 684
5. Virginia Tech – 528.5
6. Florida State – 501.5
7. UNC – 446
8. Notre Dame – 436
9. Virginia – 418.5.5
10. SMU – 339
11. Pitt – 312
12. Georgia Tech – 289
13. Miami (FL) – 162
14. Boston College – 112
15. Duke – 100