East Carolina has added two transfers for the upcoming 2026-2027 season. Orla Macinnes will arrive from Youngstown State and Sophie Hay will arrive from Washington State.
Both are international students as Macinnes is originally from Scotland and Hay is from New Zealand.
Macinnes arrives after spending her freshman season at Youngstown State. She had a strong showing at the 2026 Horizon League Championships as she was 2nd in both the butterfly events. She swam to a 55.53 in the 100 fly as well as a 2:03.08 in the 200 fly. Her 200 fly time was a lifetime best. She also helped Youngstown State’s 200 medley relay to a win as she split a 24.69 on the butterfly leg.
Macinnes’ Best SCY Times Are:
- 100 fly: 54.44
- 200 fly: 2:03.08
Based on her best times, Macinnes would have been 2nd on the roster in the 100 fly only behind Tanith Mueller who led the team with a 54.09 from midseason. Macinnes’ best time in the 100 fly would have been on the border of the 2026 American Conference Championships ‘A’ and ‘B’ finals while her 200 fly would have made the ‘B’ final.
Hay arrives after spending her freshman season at Washington State. She was an exhibition swimmer at the 2026 Mountain West Championships but swam a huge personal best 4:55.87 in a time trial in the 500 free, a time that would have been on the border of the ‘B’ and ‘C’ final.
Hay’s Best SCY Times Are:
- 200 free: 1:53.69
- 500 free: 4:55.87
- 1650 free: 17:10.72
Hay’s best time in the 500 free would have made the 2026 American Conference Championships ‘B’ final while her 1650 free time would have been 15th. Emilee Hamblin was the team’s fastest 500 freestyler this past season with a 4:55.91 so Hay is a strong addition to the distance group.
The East Carolina women finished 3rd out of nine teams at the 2026 American Conference Championships with 1009.5 points. The team sent one diver, Frida Zuniga Guzman, to the 2026 NCAA Championships.
