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Freestyle and fly specialist Caroline Short of Lexington, Kentucky has opted to stay in-state, committing to swim for Division III Centre College. The school is located in Danville, a small city of less than 20,000 people, about an hour’s drive south of Lexington.
“I’m very blessed and excited to announce my verbal commitment to Centre College to continue my athletic and academic career!” She adds, “thank you to all my coaches, teammates, friends, and my family for supporting and encouraging me throughout this journey. roll kerns!!💛💛”
Short represents Highbridge Aquatics year-round. At the 2022 Kentucky 13 & Over LCM Championships meet, she hit several personal bests, placing 9th in the 100 free (1:01.84), 12th in the 200 free (2:14.25), and 16th in the 400 free (4:56.19). Her prelims time of 4:51.96 in the 400 free was a personal best.
Short did not contain herself to just personal bests in freestyle, however. She clocked 2:38.25 and 2:41.26 in the 200 fly and 200 IM, respectively.
At the SCY Kentucky 13 & Over Championships this past March she showed off the same range as she did in meters. In the 100 fly, she touched the wall in 58.26, a new personal best and good for 10th place. She also finished 15th in both the 200 fly (2:18.75) and 100 free (54.28).
Best SCY Times
- 50 Free – 24.77
- 100 Free – 53.31
- 200 Free – 1:56.19
- 100 Fly – 58.26
- 200 Fly – 2:16.16
Centre College competes in the Southern Athletic Association. At the 2023 championships, the Centre Colonels were runners-up, 50.5 points behind the champions, Rhodes.
Short’s best times would have placed her into multiple ‘A’ finals. In the 50 free, her time would place her in 8th after prelims, in the 100 free, 6th, and in the 200, 4th. Despite three potential ‘A’ finals in the freestyle, Short may be of more help to head coach, Dean Brownley, in the fly events.
She would have qualified 4th in the 100 fly and 7th in the 200 fly. While relatively equal to her would-be placings in the 100 and 200 free, the fly distances are weaker events for the Colonels. In the 100 fly, only future teammate and champion Callie West would have had a faster time than her. Whereas in the 50 free, the Colonels took the top three spots with co-champions Callie West and Caroline Lee tying with 23.68.
The team of senior Elise Burch, freshman Caroline Lee, junior Greer Manger, and sophomore Callie West finished 15th in the 400 free relay (3:28.76) at the 2023 D3 NCAA meet.
Short will be joined on campus this fall by fellow Kentuckians, Ava Fears, Katie Bridwell, Sophie Anderson, Haley Mickelwait and Abby Emerson. Hailing from out of state are Mississippi’s Parker Reily and Colorado’s Kimberly Whitmore.
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