#4 Texas Longhorns Def. #19 University of North Carolina Tar Heels (Women Only)
- January 29, 2022a
- Koury Natatorium, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
- SCY duel meet
- Meet results
- Team Scores:
- Texas W 141 def. University of North Carolina W 102
Olivia Bray of Texas won two individual events (100 butterfly, 500 freestyle) and was part of the winning 200 medley relay as the Longhorns beat the Tar Heels in North Carolina.
On Friday, UNC beat Duke 154-146, where they posted several seasons and lifetime bests. The Tar Heels changed their lineup almost entirely from the Duke meet, and Saturday marked their senior day festivities.
In spite of losing the meet, UNC continued their fast swimming with more season-best times.
The Longhorns started with a win by two-seconds in the 200 medley relay (1:35.68). The team consisted of Julia Cook (24.35), Anna Elendt (26.60), Bray (22.04), and Bridget Semenuk (22.04). UNC finished at 1:37.27 with Greer Pattison (24.69), Lilly Higgs (27.62), Ellie Vannote (23.50), and Grace Countie (21.46).
The Longhorns swept the 1,000 freestyle, which was led by Erica Sullivan (9:40.86), 2nd was McMurray (9:51.91), and Abby Pfeifer took 3rd (10:02.95). Mia Duus of UNC took 4th (10:17.60). She was two seconds faster in the event against Duke.
In the 100 breaststroke, Texas’s Eledt won in 58.08, which set a pool record. The previous record was 59.28 by Andrea Podmanikova of NC State.
For the German sophomore Elendt, this year has been an overall breakout season. On Friday, against NC State, she swept the breaststroke in 59.25/2:08.13. On Saturday, where there was no 200 breast on the race schedule, she managed to find more than a second off that 100 breast time.
She has been better at every turn this season than last season. Her 58.08 from Saturday almost matched her personal best of 58.06, from Texas’ Covid-season opening meet against TCU last year, and was 8-tenths of a second faster than she was at NCAAs last year.
Elendt was one of two Pool Records set at the meet, with the other being set by her teammate Olivia Bray.
In the 100 butterfly, Bray broke the pool record in a winning time of 51.33 seconds. The previous record was owned by Kylee Alons of NC State (51.52). That swim is already faster than Bray was at last year’s NCAA Championship meet, though still well short of her lifetime best of 50.19 from high school.
Taking 2nd was fellow Longhorn Kelly Pash (52.15), and in 3rd was Vannote of UNC (53.47). In UNC’s meet against Duke on Friday, Vannote won the 100 butterfly in 52.66 seconds.
Bray wrapped up her meet by winning the 500 freestyle (4:44.32), three seconds ahead of teammate Olivia McMurray (4:47.89).
Elendt and Bray also broke pool records nearby at NC State on Friday.
Grace Countie was the Tar Heels’ sole individual winner of the day. In the 50 freestyle, she touched first in 22.10 seconds, which is a season-best result from her and about matches her swim from ACCs last year. She swam 22.29 at UNC’s mid-season invitational this year, and her lifetime best from 2021 NCAAs is 21.81.
That win and season best comes a day after she swam a season best in the 100 free against Duke in 48.41. She didn’t do the sprint double in either meet; instead, on Saturday, she won the 200 IM (2:02.86) and swam both relays instead.
Against Duke on Friday, UNC’s Heidi Lowe won the 50 freestyle (22.91), but against Texas slipped in time and place, finishing 6th (23.12).
The meet was already out-of-hand, but UNC got a confidence boost by winning the meet-ending 200 freestyle relay (1:29.30). The lineup consisted of Countie (22.28), Olivia Nel (22.21), Sophie Lindner (22.66) and Lowe (22.15), and that’ a new season-best time for the Tar Heels. Depth in the sprint group continues to be a strength for the UNC women. They now rank 4th in the ACC this season in the event, jumping Louisville by .01 seconds.
UNC narrowly edged Texas, who finished 2nd in a time of 1:29.36 seconds. Texas’ top split came from their anchor Sticklen (21.96).
Texas went 1-2-3 in the 100 backstroke which was led by Cook (52.65), followed by Pash (52.99), and Emma Sticklen (53.02). Countie’s time from Friday, 52.51, would have won this race on Saturday.
Sticklen is primarily a butterflier, but with a deep Texas fly group, she didn’t swim any butterfly races at this meet. Instead, individually she swam that 100 back and the 200 free, which she won in 1:47.82. VanNote was 2nd in 1:48.19, which is a new personal best time.
Other Event Winners:
- Evie Pfeifer of Texas won the 200 IM (1:59.63). Taking 2nd was Rudolph (2:01.00). She was 5th in the event against Duke (2:02.55).
- UNC Olympian diver Aranza Vazquez took 1st in the 1 meter and 3 meter diving events.
- Cooper of Texas won the 100 free (49.91), with UNC’s Pattison touching 2nd (50.33). In 3rd was Kyla Leibel (50.36)
Grace Countie’s best time in the 50 is 21.6.
Olivia McMurray is a huge name (8:35.3 in the 800 FR). World JR’s top 8 finisher, 2x member of JR team, and potential NCAA scorer in the mile coming out of high school. She will defiantly have a huge conference season if she’s going 4:47/9:51 in a dual meet!
Are you also CA Mom… commenting “huge name” on other swim swam articles about different swimmers
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There’s no problem if she is. It’s not the same thread. And more importantly she’s saying positive things about other swimmers which can’t be a bad thing!