2025 VA NCAP Elite Qualifier
- June 26-29, 2025
- Jeff Rouse Swim and Sport Center, Stafford, Virginia
- Long Course Meters (50 meters), Prelims/Finals
- Results available on Meet Mobile: “2025 NCAP Elite Qualifier”
While the rest of her Texas teammates competed at the Indy Summer Cup in Indianapolis, Erin Gemmell got her final racing reps in before Worlds at the NCAP Elite Qualifier meet, held June 26–29.
Gemmell, who just wrapped up her sophomore year, dove in for the 200 freestyle on night one of the competition, clocking 1:57.23 to win the event, after logging 1:58.89 to nab the top seed in the morning. She split 27.62/29.46 (57.08)/30.64 (1:27.72)/29.51 en route to the win, exactly two seconds shy of her lifetime-best 1:55.23 from the U.S. Nationals during the first week of June.
Her time represents her third-fastest time ever outside of a major taper meet, just outside the 1:57.10 she popped at the 2025 Fort Lauderdale Pro Series about a month before Nationals, as well as the 1:57.11 recorded at the Speedo Sectionals in Richmond in May of 2023. Before that, her best time was 1:55.97 leading off Team USA’s silver medal-winning 4×200 free relay at Worlds, which stood until just earlier this month.
At Nationals, she tied for 4th with Indiana senior Anna Peplowski in 1:55.82, a best time for both swimmers. In the swim-off, Gemmell prevailed in 1:55.23 to Peplowski’s 1:55.70, again personal bests for both. With Katie Ledecky (2nd) and Torri Huske (3rd) opting out of the individual event, Gemmell is slated represent Team USA in the individual event at Worlds.
Both Gemmell and Peplowski will feature on Team USA’s women’s 4×200 free relay at the upcoming Worlds in Singapore, whether that be in prelims or finals remains to be determined. Both swimmers helped Team USA to silver at the 2023 Worlds and 2024 Olympic Games, with Gemmell swimming in the finals on both occasions and Peplowski participating in prelim-only duties.
Gemmell did swim other events this past weekend, notching 25.19 in the 50 free, 4:07.64 in the 400 free, and 1:01.39 in the 100 fly, but only did prelims and scratched the finals of all races. All three performances represented season-best times, with her personal bests in those races resting at 25.00, 4:05.07, and 1:00.82, with the latter two stemming from 2022 while the 50 free was set at the Olympic Trials last summer.
Her 400 free was particularly notable because it was not only her fastest in two years but also her fourth-quickest ever, and significantly better than the 4:09.04 she checked in with at the U.S. Nationals for 3rd in prelims before opting out of the final.
Gemmell notably did not contest the 100 free in Stafford, the event she had a big-time breakthrough in Indianapolis last month by breaking 54 for the first time with 53.61 in prelims, then backed it up with 53.51 in finals for 5th to make Team USA’s 4×100 free relay pool for the first time.
