2026 ACC Championships: Day 6 Finals Live Recap

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

After a week of exciting racing, we have reached the penultimate night of finals at the 2026 ACC Swimming & Diving Championships. On tap tonight is the 200 butterfly, 100 backstroke, and 100 breaststroke, as well as finals of the women’s 400 medley relay.

Coming out of prelims, the big story was Virginia’s Claire Curzan. She became the third-fastest performer in women’s 100 backstroke history this morning, swimming a 48.83. She’ll likely get two cracks lowering that time tonight, first in the individual final and then again leading off the 400 medley relay, where Virginia are the NCAA record holders.

While we may not see the same historic times in the men’s 100 backstroke it should nevertheless be a thrilling race. The top five swimmers are separated by .24 seconds. Kaii Winkler leads the pack with a 44.74, closely followed by Marcus Reyes-Gentry (44.87), Hudson Williams (44.94), Tommy Janton (44.94), and Aiden Hayes (44.98).

We’re also set for a thriller in the women’s 100 breaststroke, where first years Eneli Jefimova and Anastasia Gorbenko tied for the top time out of prelims (57.39). It’s not just a two-way race though as Stanford’s Lucy Bell is sitting at 57.86 and Emma Weber is lurking with a 58.12.

Cal sophomore Yamato Okadome has a firmer grip on the men’s 100 breaststroke heading into tonight’s final. He was the only man to break 51 seconds this morning, swimming a 50.78. Virginia Tech’s Eli Martin follows him as the #2 seed in 51.29 with Stanford’s Daniel Li bringing a 51.54 into the final.

Before we get there though, the 200 butterfly events kick off the session. On the women’s side, Tess Howley posted a 1:52.58 for the top seed out of prelims. Cal’s breakout swimmer Mia West logged a 1:52.89 with 200-meter butterfly U.S. World Championship qualifier Caroline Bricker qualified third in 1:52.96. Stanford’s Josh Zuchowski looks to follow up his 400 IM ACC title from last night with a 200 fly title to match. He swam 1:40.63 in prelims and will swim out of lane four. Florida State sophomore Logan Robinson will be next to him in lane five (1:40.98) and displayed a wicked ability to close his races in last night’s 200 freestyle when he split 22.92 on the final 50 yards to win silver.

WOMEN’S 200 Butterfly – Finals

• NCAA Record: 1:49.11, Emma Sticklen (Texas) – 2025
• ACC Record: 1:49.16, Alex Walsh (Virginia) – 2024
• ACC Championship Record: 1:49.16, Alex Walsh (Virginia) – 2024
• Pool Record: 1:50.61, Kelsi Worrell (Louisville) – 2016
• 2026 NCAA Qualifying Time: 1:57.11

Final: 

1. Mia West (Cal) — 1:51.52
2. Tess Howley (Virginia) — 1:51.60
3. Caroline Bricker (Stanford) — 1:52.46
4. Carli Cronk (Notre Dame) — 1:52.59
5. Bailey Hartman (Virginia) — 1:53.33
6. Charlotte Hook (Stanford)/Lilou Ressencourt (Cal) — 1:54.92
7. —
8. Ava Chavez (Cal) — 1:55.21

In a breakthrough year, California’s Mia West has reached yet another level, becoming an individual ACC champion. The sophomore took the women’s 200 butterfly championship final out hard, opening her race in 24.67. She led the race from start to finish, turning at the halfway point in 52.96. Virginia’s Tess Howley outsplit her on the final three 50s but West’s opening speed had given her too much of a lead for Howley to overcome.

West touched in a lifetime best 1:51.52, dropping 1.37 seconds from the lifetime best 1:52.89 she swam in prelims this morning. Before today, West had never broken 1:53.

Howley grabbed the silver medal in 1:51.60, swimming a lifetime best of her own. She dropped from the 1:51.79 she swam at the 2025 NCAA Championships.

Caroline Bricker rounded out the top three with a season-best 1:52.46. She had the championship final’s fastest final 50 yards with a 29.57 closing split, which helped her out-touch Notre Dame’s Carli Cronk (1:52.59).

MEN’S 200 Butterfly – Finals

• NCAA Record: 1:36.41, Luca Urlando (Georgia) – 2025
• ACC Record: 1:37.92, Nicolas Albiero (Louisville) – 2022
• ACC Championship Record: 1:37.92, Nicolas Albiero (Louisville) – 2022
• Pool Record: 1:37.92, Nicolas Albiero (Louisville) – 2022
• 2026 NCAA Qualifying Time: 1:43.79

Final: 

1. Logan Robinson (Florida State) — 1:38.78
2. Thomas Heilman (Virginia) — 1:39.35
3. Seb Lunak (UNC) — 1:39.75
4. Josh Zuchowski (Stanford) — 1:40.69
5. Casper Puggaard (Cal) — 1:40.77
6. Gibson Holmes (Stanford) — 1:40.81
7. Landon Gentry (Virginia Tech) — 1:41.49
8. Hayden Bellotti (Virginia) — 1:42.26

After a fifth-place finish last year, Logan Robinson is the 200 butterfly ACC champion. Robinson attacked the race from the first 50 yards like West did in the women’s championship final. He opened his race in 21.75 and was the only man in the ‘A’ final sub-22 seconds at the beginning of the race. He was also the only swimmer under 47-seconds at the halfway mark as he turned in 46.98 with 2025 bronze medalist Seb Lunak in second at 47.48 and Virginia freshman Thomas Heilman in third at 47.64.

Robinson split 25.72 on his third 50, then came home in 26.08 to stop the clock in a lifetime best 1:38.78. This is Robinson’s first sub-1:40 swim, breaking his previous personal best (1:40.23) by skipping past the 1:39-mark entirely.

Heilman turned in a season-best by over two seconds to pick up the silver medal in 1:39.35. He out-touched Lunak by four-tenths as Lunak repeated as the bronze medalist for the second-straight year. Lunak’s 1:39.75 is also his first time breaking the 1:40-barrier, improving from the 1:40.12 he swam for bronze last year.

Casper Puggaard improved on the 1:41.46 lifetime best he swam in prelims with a 1:40.77 for 5th. The 4th through 6th place finishers–Zuchowski, Puggaard, and Gibson Holmes, were separated by .12 seconds.

WOMEN’S 100 Backstroke – Finals

• NCAA Record: 48.10, Gretchen Walsh (Virginia) – 2024
• ACC Record: 48.10, Gretchen Walsh (Virginia) – 2024
• ACC Championship Record: 48.10, Gretchen Walsh (Virginia) – 2024
• Pool Record: 48.74, Katharine Berkoff (NC State) – 2022
• 2026 NCAA Qualifying Time: 52.65

Final: 

1. Claire Curzan (Virginia) — 48.38 *Pool Record*
2. Erika Pelaez (NC State) — 49.54
3. Mary-Ambre Moluh (Cal) — 49.64
4. Claire Jansen (Pitt) — 50.32
5. Leah Shackley (NC State) — 50.48
6. Ali Pfaff (Duke) — 50.73
7. Kennedy Noble (NC State) — 51.07
8. Camille Murray (Louisville) — 51.23

Curzan electrified the women’s 100 backstroke prelims this morning by becoming the third-fastest performer in event history. She one-upped herself during the championship final, dropping another .45 seconds and posting a 48.38 to pass Katharine Berkoff (48.55) and become the second-fastest performer all-time.

This morning, Curzan split 23.51/25.35. Tonight, she swam 23.30/25.08, out-splitting her prelims self on both the first and second 50 yards. Coming into the meet, Curzan’s lifetime best was the 49.11 she swam to win the 2025 NCAA title.

Curzan sped away from the competition but there was also an exciting race for silver behind her. California’s Mary-Ambre Moluh was out in 23.89 compared to NC State’s Erika Pelaez opening in 24.16. But Pelaez pushed her second 50, closing in 25.38 and hitting the wall second. The time is a lifetime best for Pelaez and her first time cracking the 49-second barrier for the first time in her career. Moluh swam a lifetime best herself, touching in 49.64 for third and shaving four-hundredths from her best.

Pelaez’s swim makes her the eighth-fastest performer in event history, which bumps Moluh to 10th in spite of her new lifetime best.

All-Time Performers, Women’s 100 Back (SCY)

1. Gretchen Walsh (Virginia), 48.10 – 2024
2. Claire Curzan (Virginia), 48.38 — 2026
3. Katharine Berkoff (NC State), 48.55 – 2024
4. Bella Sims (Florida), 48.97 – 2025
5. Regan Smith (Riptide), 49.16 – 2021
6. Beata Nelson (Wisconsin), 49.18 — 2019
7. Charlotte Crush (Lakeside), 49.46 — 2024
8. Erika Pelaez (NC State), 49.54 — 2026
9. Miranda Grana (Indiana), 49.62 — 2025
10. Mary-Ambre Moluh (Cal), 49.64 — 2026

MEN’S 100 Backstroke – Finals

• NCAA Record: 43.20, Hubert Kos (Texas) – 2025
• ACC Record: 43.83, Kacper Stokowski (NC State) – 2023
• ACC Championship Record: 44.04, Coleman Stewart (NC State) / Kacper Stokowski (NC State) – 2020/2023
• Pool Record: 43.35, Luca Urland0 (Georgia) – 2022
• 2026 NCAA Qualifying Time: 46.29

Final: 

1. Evan Petty (Cal) — 44.21
2. Quintin McCarty (NC State) — 44.46
3. Kaii Winkler (NC State) — 44.62
4. Tommy Janton (Notre Dame) — 44.68
5. Hudson Williams (NC State) — 44.83
6. Aiden Hayes (NC State) — 44.93
7. Max Wilson (Florida State) — 44.99
8. Marcus Reyes-Gentry (Notre Dame) — 45.06

Fifth-year Evan Petty broke away from the field to win the men’s 100 backstroke ACC title. Tommy Janton led the race at the halfway mark with a 21.08 opening split. Petty flipped second in 21.13, three-hundredths ahead of Quintin McCarty. Petty came home in 23.08 to win in a lifetime best 44.21. His lifetime best coming into the meet stood at 44.83 from earlier this season. That ranked him sixth in the Golden Bears’ history and he now ranks 5th, passing Gabriel Jett (44.54).

McCarty earned silver in a lifetime best 44.46. He and his sophomore teammate Winkler made it two NC State swimmers on the podium as Winkler clocked 44.62. Winkler shaved another .12 seconds from his lifetime best with a 44.62. Three weeks ago, Winkler raced the 100-yard backstroke for the first time in more than two years.

The Wolfpack finished 2-3-5-6 in this race as Williams and Hayes clocked 44.83 and 44.93, respectively. Seven of the eight ‘A’ finalists were sub-45 seconds.

WOMEN’S 100 Breaststroke – Finals

• NCAA Record: 55.73, Lilly King (Indiana) – 2019
• ACC Record: 56.09, Jasmine Nocentini (Virginia) – 2024
• ACC Championship Record: 56.72, Sophie Hansson (NC State) – 2022
• Pool Record: 56.85, Lilly King (Indiana) – 2016
• 2026 NCAA Qualifying Time: 1:00.30

Final: 

1. Eneli Jefimova (NC State) — 56.77 *Pool Record*
2. Anastasia Gorbenko (Louisville) — 57.03
3. Lucy Bell (Stanford) — 57.74
4. Emma Weber (Virginia) — 57.77
5. Kaelyn Gridley (Duke) — 57.83
6. Elle Scott (California) — 58.19
7. Zoe Skirboll (Virginia) — 58.82
8. Mia Cheatwood (Louisville) — 58.94

This morning, NC State freshman Jefimova and Louisville sophomore Gorbenko tied for the top time of the morning. Tonight, Jefimova left no doubt, pulling away from Gorbenko and the rest of the championship final over the back half of the race to win the women’s 100 breaststroke title.

Gorbenko led the race at the 50-yard mark, splitting 26.56 with Jefimova turning second in 26.71. Jefimova came home in 30.06, passing Gorbenko and hitting the wall in a lifetime best 56.77 that takes down Lilly King‘s 56.85 pool record from 2016. She also narrowly missed Sophie Hansson‘s championship meet record by five-hundredths.

Jefimova now ranks 9th all-time in event history.

All-Time Performers, Women’s 100 Back (SCY)

1. Lilly King (Indiana), 55.73 — 2019
2. Jasmine Nocentini (Virginia), 56.09 — 2024
3. Alex Walsh (Virginia), 56.49 — 2025
4. Molly Hannis (Tennessee)/Mona McSharry (Tennessee), 56.64 — 2017/2024
5. —
6. Kaitlyn Dobler (USC), 56.67 — 2024
7. Sophie Hansson (NC State), 56.72 — 2022
8. Alexis Wenger (Virginia), 56.76 — 2022
9. Eneli Jefimova (NC State), 56.77 — 2026
10. Gretchen Walsh (Virginia), 56.86 — 2025

Gorbenko swam a lifetime best 57.03 for the silver medal, which ties her with Lydia Jacoby for 12th fastest all-time. Gorbenko had the fastest final 25 yards in the field (15.03) but her third 25 split was 15.44, the second-slowest in the field, which Jefimova took full advantage of.

Lucy Bell took bronze in a season-best 57.74, just .14 seconds from her lifetime best.

MEN’S 100 Breaststroke – Finals

• NCAA Record: 49.51, Julian Smith (Florida) – 2025
• ACC Record: 50.27, Denis Petrashov (Louisville) – 2025
• ACC Championship Record: 50.62, Denis Petrashov (Louisville) – 2025
• Pool Record: 49.90, Max McHugh (Minnesota) – 2022
• 2026 NCAA Qualifying Time: 52.58

Final: 

1. Yamato Okadome (Cal) — 50.32 *ACC Championship Record*
2. Eli Martin (Virginia Tech) — 51.36
3. Luca Gissendaner (Cal) — 51.48
4. Daniel Li (Stanford) — 51.63
5. Hank Rivers (Cal) — 51.68
6. Ben Delmar (UNC) — 51.69
7. Tommaso Baravelli (Florida State) — 52.15
8. Ethan Maloney (Virginia Tech) — 52.18

Yamato Okadome jumped from a third-place finish in the 100 breaststroke at last year’s ACC Championships to winning the title this season in championship record time.

It was Okadome’s teammate Luca Gissendaner that led the race at the halfway point, turning in 23.90 five-hundredths head of Okadome. Okadome turned on the jets on the third 25, splitting a field best 13.04 to move into the lead with 25 yards to go. He closed in a field best 13.33 (for a 26.37 second 50 split), hitting the wall in 50.32. His time erases the championship record Denis Petrashov swam last year and also improves his position as the second-fastest swimmer in Cal’s history. Okadome’s former lifetime best was a 50.48.

Okadome won the race by over a second with Virginia Tech sophomore Eli Martin winning silver in 51.36. Martin’s time added six-hundredths from the lifetime best he swam this morning. After leading at the halfway point, Gissendaner held on for bronze in 51.48. The Golden Bears went 1-3-5 in this race, with Hank Rivers clocking 51.68 for 5th, sandwiched between Daniel Li (51.63) and Ben Delmar (51.69). Delmar also finished 6th last year.

Women’s 400 Medley Relay — Finals

• NCAA Record: 3:19.58, Virginia (Curzan, A. Walsh, G. Walsh, Moesch) — 2025
• ACC Record: 3:19.58, Virginia (Curzan, A. Walsh, G. Walsh, Moesch) — 2025
• ACC Championship Record: 3:19.58, Virginia (Curzan, A. Walsh, G. Walsh, Moesch) — 2025
• Pool Record: 3:26.14, Stanford (Howe, Haase, Hu, Neal) — 2016
• 2026 NCAA ‘A’/’B’ Cuts: 3:30.89/3:32.51

Final: 

1. Virginia (Curtis, Canny, Curzan, Moesch) — 3:20.42
2. NC State (Pelaez, Jefimova, Shackley, Nel) — 3:24.65
3. Louisville (Murray, Gorbenko, Welch, Dennis) — 3:25.16
4. California — 3:27.15
5. Duke — 3:28.64
6. UNC — 3:30.83
7. Notre Dame — 3:32.63
8. Pitt — 3:32.86

DQ: Stanford 

The Virginia women ran away with the women’s 400 medley relay title, popping a 3:20.42 that puts them within a second of the NCAA record Curzan, Alex Walsh, Gretchen Walsh, and Anna Moesch swam a year ago.

With Moesch still on anchoring duties, the Cavaliers put Sara Curtis on the backstroke leg and Curzan (newly minted as the second-fastest 100 backstroker in event history) on the butterfly leg. Curtis led off in 50.07, which would have placed 4th in the individual final earlier today. The Cavaliers took a lead into the breaststroke leg with NC State running second after Pelaez’s 50.15 lead off.

Virginia extended their lead on the breaststroke leg with Aimee Canny splitting 56.38, which puts her in a three-swimmer tie for 8th fastest 100 breaststroke relay split in history. The Wolfpack were about a half-second off Virginia’s pace with Jefimova splitting 56.81 in a follow-up to her 100 breaststroke win this session.

Curzan split 48.44 on the butterfly leg, which marks the 5th fastest 100 butterfly split all-time. It’s Curzan’s first entry on this top 10 list as she had backstroke duty on this relay last year. Finally, Moesch anchored in 45.53, which takes over as the 10th fastest split in history.

The Virginia women clocked 3:20.42, winning by over four seconds ahead of NC State as Pelaez, Jefimova, Leah Shackley (50.70), and Olivia Nel (46.99) clocked 3:24.65. Louisville’s quartet of Camille Murray (51.40), Gorbenko (56.54), Ella Welch (51.07), and Julia Dennis (46.15) swam 3:25.16.

Notably, Stanford’s relay was disqualified for a false start.

Men’s 400 Medley Relay — Finals

• NCAA Record: 2:55.66, Florida (Marshall, Smith, Liendo, Painter) — 2025
• ACC Record: 2:59.12, California (Tomac, Okadome, Rose, Lasco) — 2025
• ACC Championship Record: 3:01.10, NC State (Stokowski, Hunter, Korstanje, Miller) — 2023
• Pool Record: 3:00.36, California (Lasco, Whitley, Julian, Seeliger) — 2022
• 2026 NCAA ‘A’/’B’ Cuts: 3:04.96/3:06.20

Final:

1. Cal (Petty, Okadome, Puggaard, Wrede) — 3:00.74 *ACC Championship Record*
2. Florida State (Wilson, Baravelli, Arkhangelskiy, Robinson) — 3:01.08
3. NC State (McCarty, Bustos, Hayes, Fox) — 3:01.66
4. Virginia — 3:01.75
5. Virginia Tech — 3:01.86
6. Stanford — 3:02.58
7. Louisville — 3:03.04
8. Pitt — 3:05.02

The Golden Bears won the men’s 400 medley relay title to close out the session. The quartet was powered by the newly crowned 100 backstroke and 100 breaststroke champions as Petty (44.40) and Okadome (50.20) held things down on the front half of the Golden Bears’ relay.

The pair handed a strong lead to the back-half of the relay which Puggaard (44.96) and Martin Wrede (41.18) held onto. This is a very young relay for Cal, only Petty is an upperclassman; Puggaard and Wrede are freshmen while Okadome is a sophomore.

Florida State’s squad of Max Wilson (44.72), Tommaso Baravelli (51.76), Michel Arkhangelskiy (43.84), and Logan Robinson (40.76) swimming a 3:01.08. They were able to get distance over a tight race for third between NC State, Virginia, and Virginia Tech. The three schools were separated by two-tenths. NC State took bronze with a team of McCarty (44.75), Arsenio Bustos (51.67), Hayes (44.69), and Jerry Fox (40.55). Fox’s 40.55 anchor was the fastest freestyle leg in the field.

Like Cal, the Virginia Cavaliers put two freshmen on the back half of their relay. After a lead off from Jack Aikins (45.43) and a breaststroke leg from Matthew Heilman (51.63), the team turned things over to Thomas Heilman (43.81) and Maximus Williamson (40.88).

Team Scores Thru Day 5

Women

1. Virginia, 1028.5
2. California, 860.5
3. Stanford, 798
4. Louisville, 653
5. NC State, 591.5
6. Pitt, 450
7. UNC, 387.5
8. Duke, 328.5
9. Notre Dame, 310
10. Florida State, 304
11. Miami (FL), 296
12. Virginia Tech, 274.5
13. Georgia Tech, 238
14. SMU, 203
15. BC, 74

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. UNC, 446.5
8. Virginia, 433.5
9. Notre Dame, 397
10. SMU, 326
11. Pitt, 324
12. Georgia Tech, 293
13. Miami (FL), 162
14. Duke, 109
15. BC, 86