Women’s Recruiting Class Rankings Revisited: Top 12 Schools For 2019-2023

Every summer, we rank down the top recruiting classes snagged by each team. But what do those rankings look like four years later, when each swimmer has had an opportunity to complete a full NCAA career of competing and scoring?

We’ve already looked back at our top 20 individual athletes in the high school graduating class of 2019, re-ranked when they were high school seniors in the summer of 2019. Now it’s time to look back at our team-by-team recruiting class rankings to see which teams got most from their recruiting hauls.

• Revisiting Recruiting Ranks: Top 20 Athletes From High School Class of 2019

Back in September 2019, we ranked out the top 12 recruiting classes nationwide. You can look back on our ranks here:

• #9-12
• #5-8
• #1-4

We’ve re-published each of the 12 classes below, verbatim from how they were listed in our 2019 post. Then we tracked down some stats on each class, plus a short analysis of each class along with any extra swimmers who wound up being part of the class.

Bear in mind that international swimmers throw a wrinkle into this sort of analysis, given the difficulty in projecting ahead of time when an international recruit will join an NCAA program and officially start their eligibility.

Note: The ‘number of NCAA Scorers’ section refers only to individual scorers, and only among athletes included in our original recruiting class rankings. Late additions to the classes are noted when we can find them.

*Special 2023 note: with the 2020 NCAA Championships canceled, any 2020 references below refer to psych sheet scoring, including the team finish, marked with an asterisk.

#12: MICHIGAN WOLVERINES

Top-tier additions: Kaitlynn Sims (TX – distance/IM), Megan Glass (OH – fly/free)
The rest: Katii Tang (Hong Kong – free), Octavia Lau (Canada – free/fly), Sophia Kudryashova (NJ – free)

• NCAA finishes over 3* years: *5th*, 6th, 7th, 23rd
• Number of NCAA scorers in class: 2 (Kaitlynn Sims, Mariella Venter)

Michigan’s top recruit in this class, Kaitlynn Sims, scored 14 points in 2021 and was seeded for 33 in the canceled 2020 championships, but was unable to recreate that form over the latter half of her career. She placed third at Big Tens in the 1650 free as a freshman, and was fifth in the event at NCAAs the following season (2021). Sims transferred to UCLA in 2022 and raced a few meets for the Bruins in the second semester this past season.

Megan Glass never managed to score individually at NCAAs, serving as a relay-only swimmer in 2021 and then placing 40th in the 200 free and 56th in the 100 free last season.

The three other recruits initially in this class didn’t earn NCAA invites, but South African Mariella Venter joined the Wolverines in 2019-20 and scored in the 200 back as a sophomore.

#11: STANFORD CARDINAL

Top-tier additions: #12 Alexandra Crisera (CA – back/free), Emma Wheal (TX – free/fly), Kira Crage (CA – sprint free)
The rest: Julia Wortman (FL – diver)

• NCAA finishes over 3* years: *7th*, 9th, 3rd, 3rd
• Number of NCAA scorers in class: 1 (Emma Wheal)

Given Stanford’s wealth of talent in recent recruiting classes, it’s a little strange to look back and see such a small group of freshmen that joined the team in 2019-20.

Alexandra Crisera was seeded to score in 2020 before the cancelation, but never quite managed to do so in the three years after, though she did earn an invite every time.

Emma Wheal scored in the 50 free and 100 fly as a sophomore, and came close again last year before serving relay duties this season. Kira Crage never earned an NCAA invite but did compete at Pac-12s all four years for the Cardinal, while diver Julia Wortman qualified for NCAAs twice in the platform event.

#10: FLORIDA GATORS

Top-tier additions: HM Talia Bates (FL – fly/free/back), Kathleen Golding (FL – free/IM), Chade Nersicio (FL – sprint free)
The rest: Allie Piccirillo (KY – fly), Ria Malhotra (FL – sprint free), Tylor Mathieu (CT – distance)

• NCAA finishes over 3* years: *13th*, 17th, 13th, 9th
• Number of NCAA scorers in class: 4 (Talia Bates, Tylor Mathieu, Kathleen Golding, Katie Mack)

An Honorable Mention in our recruiting ranks, Talia Bates had a standout showing at the 2021 NCAAs as a sophomore, placing second in the 200 free and scoring 24 total points. She added six more last season, with her total of 30 ranking 16th in the class overall. She has entered the transfer portal as a graduate senior for next season.

Given she wasn’t listed in the “Top-tier” category, Tylor Mathieu really excelled during her time in Gainesville, scoring at NCAAs in all three of her opportunities, including 11 points last year. Kathleen Golding (4) and Katie Mack (1.5) also chipped in points (Mack having come over from NC State in a transfer).

Chade Nercisio, a native of Curaçao, showed promise in the handful of meets she raced in for the Gators but ultimately never got a full season under her belt.

#9: PRINCETON TIGERS

Top-tier additions: #11 Zephy Koh (CA – fly), Emily Trieu (CA – back/fly), Ellie Marquardt (NC – free), Amelia Liu (TX – sprint free), Addison Smith (TN – free/fly)
The rest: Christina Bradley (WA – sprint free), Jennifer Secrest (FL – fly/IM)

• NCAA finishes over 3* years: *28th*, 39th (0 points), 40th (0 points), 41st (0 points)
• Number of NCAA scorers in class: 0

Princeton’s class never ended up fulfilling the potential it had four years ago, with a large part of that due to 11th-ranked Zephy Koh never competing for the Tigers.

Ellie Marquardt had the best meet of her career at the 2020 Ivy League Championships, winning three conference titles, but that momentum was halted by the pandemic. She was seeded for 12 NCAA points as a freshman, but hasn’t earned an invite these past two seasons.

#8: UCLA BRUINS

Top-tier additions: Gabby Dang (WA – free/fly), Sophia Kosturos (CA – back/fly/free), Brooke Schaffer (CA – sprint free), Rachel Rhee (CA – free/breast), Daniella Hawkins (CA – distance free)
The rest: Stephanie Su (CA – distance free), Lauryn Johnson (NY – distance free/fly), Lindsay Stenstrom (CO – sprint free), Katelynn Shaheen (CA – diver), Hannah Butler (NY – diver)

• NCAA finishes over 3* years: *37th* (0 psych points), 39th (0 points), 34th, 34th
• Number of NCAA scorers in class: 0

UCLA had a massive class with no one true standout pre-college, and none of them quite broke through to make an impact at the NCAA level individually.

Gabby Dang earned NCAA invites in three straight seasons, placing 38th in the 100 fly in 2021 and 2022 and then 45th this past season. Sophia Kosturos had top-10 finishes at Pac-12s in all four seasons, and swam relays at NCAAs in her sophomore and senior years.

#7: KENTUCKY WILDCATS

Top-tier additions: #8 Caitlin Brooks (FL – back), Gillian Davey (IA – breast/IM), Kaitlynn Wheeler (IL – IM/free), Lauren Poole (MD – IM/back)
The rest: Beth McNeese (TX – distance free), Ashley Neas (GA – distance free), Emily Baeth (IA – free), Tori McCullough (MD – distance free), Trinity Ward (PA – sprint free/fly), Maddie Deucher (TX – back), Morgan Southall (OH – diver)

• NCAA finishes over 3* years: *9th*, 11th, 12th, 19th
• Number of NCAA scorers in class: 5 (Caitlin Brooks, Lauren Poole, Gillian Davey, Beth McNeese, Kaitlynn Wheeler)

Kentucky’s class turned out extremely well with Lauren Poole and Gillian Davey ranking second and tied for fourth among unranked recruits in terms of individual points scored.

Poole has been an ‘A’ finalist in the 400 IM in each of the past three years, including a third-place finish in 2021, to score 56 points, while Davey was fifth in the 200 breast last year and finished with 29 points. Caitlin Brooks, Kaitlynn Wheeler and Beth McNeese also chipped in on the scoreboard.

#6: CAL GOLDEN BEARS

Top-tier additions: #9 Ayla Spitz (CA – multi), HM Chloe Clark (CA – multi), Rachel Klinker (KY – free/fly/IM), Sarah Dimeco (WA – free/fly/IM), Danielle Carter (CA – back), Ashlyn Fiorilli (TX – fly/IM)
The rest: Anna Kalandadze (PA – distance free), Eloise Riley (Australia – sprint free), Emma Davidson (CA – sprint free), Cassie Graham (MD – diver)

• NCAA finishes over 3* years: *3rd*, 4th, 8th, 11th
• Number of NCAA scorers in class: 3 (Rachel Klinker, Ayla Spitz, Anna Kalandadze)

Rachel Klinker emerged as a consistent scorer for Cal, scoring points in all three championship appearances while also being seeded to do so in 2020, while Ayla Spitz played a critical relay role for the Bears and had a big 2021 performance with 20 points.

Anna Kalandadze was among the swimmers to speak out against Cal’s former head coach Teri McKeever, which led her to transfer to Penn. Kalandadze went on to score in the mile this past season, and won 2023 Ivy League titles in both the 500 and 1650 free. Honorable mention Chloe Clark was another notable name to transfer, heading to Arizona after her freshman year.

Eloise Riley was an NCAA qualifier and relay contributor for the Bears during her career but didn’t score individually, and the same goes for Emma Davidson, who had a strong senior season that included a 26th-place finish in the 100 free and several relay swims. Sarah Dimeco made NCAAs twice and finished as high as 18th in the 1650 free in 2021.

#5: GEORGIA BULLDOGS

Top-tier additions: #2 Zoie Hartman (CA – breast/IM), Ashley McCauley (NC – breast/IM)
The rest: Jillian Barczyk (LA – free), Mady Bragg (GA – free), Raquel Mason (FL – diver)

• NCAA finishes over 3* years: *6th*, 8th, 15th, 16th
• Number of NCAA scorers in class: 1 (Zoie Hartman)

Georgia’s class was ranked this high primarily due to the presence of #2 ranked Zoie Hartman, who had a very impressive four-year career that included 41 points as a sophomore and 73.5 over three championships. She also won six individual SEC titles and was largely the Lady Bulldogs’ biggest star over the course of four seasons.

The other “top-tier” addition, Ashley McCauley, never managed to surpass her high school best times in her primary breaststroke events. Jillian Barczyk emerged as an NCAA qualifier in both 2021 and 2023, finishing as high as 31st in the 500 free.

#4: NC STATE WOLFPACK

Top-tier additions: #3 Katharine Berkoff (MT – back/free), Katie Mack (NC – back/free), Parker Timken (OH – sprint free), Kay Foley (IN – distance free), Maddy Flickinger (NC – back/free), Heather MacCausland (PA – sprint free/breast), Victoria Fonville (Oklahoma Baptist transfer – sprint free)
The rest: Faith Hefner (NC – free), Elle Giesler (MI – free), Abby Kriegler (NC – distance free), Helene Synnott (WA – diver), Katelyn Cook (NC – diver)

• NCAA finishes over 3* years: *4th*, 2nd, 5th, 5th
• Number of NCAA scorers in class: 2 (Katharine Berkoff, Heather MacCausland, Katie Mack)

Katharine Berkoff was the centerpiece of NC State’s 2019 recruiting class, and was a driving force behind the team finishing in the top five over the past three seasons. Berkoff’s 137 points ranks third in the class overall, as she was incredibly consistent with point totals of 44, 48 and 45 in 2021, 2022 and 2023, respectively.

Heather MacCausland played a critical role on relays throughout her career and broke through this year by scoring individually in both breaststrokes, placing fifth in the 100.

Katie Mack ended up scoring 1.5 points after transferring to Florida, while diver Helene Synnott qualified for NCAAs this past season and placed 40th.

#3: TEXAS LONGHORNS

Top-tier additions: #10 Kelly Pash (IN – multi), #20 Mary Smutny (FL – free/fly), Miranda Heckman (CA – free), Bridget Semenuk (CT – sprint free), Kyla Leibel (Canada – sprint free/fly)
The rest: None

• NCAA finishes over 3* years: *19th*, 3rd, 2nd, 2nd
• Number of NCAA scorers in class: 3 (Kelly Pash, Jordan Skilken, Janie Boyle)

Kelly Pash was one of just four swimmers from this class to score more than 100 individual points over three NCAA appearances, playing a key role in Texas’ three consecutive top-three finishes (and two straight runner-ups).

Diver Jordan Skilken also scored in every national championship she competed in, including putting up 23 as a junior last season, to finish tied for second amongst divers in the class with 43 total points. Janie Boyle also contributed on the boards for the Longhorns, scoring five points in 2021 and then 15 last season.

Bridget Semenuk and Kyla Leibel were both NCAA qualifiers and relay contributors during their careers, while Miranda Heckman transferred out of Texas following the 2020-21 season. 20th-ranked Mary Smutny never really improved beyond the form she showed in high school.

#2: INDIANA HOOSIERS

Top-tier additions: #4 Emily Weiss (IN – breast/IM), #15 Cora Dupre (OH – sprint free/back), #17 Ashley Turak (MI – sprint free), Ryley Ober (FL – free), Carla Gildersleeve (IN – fly)
The rest: Katrina Sommer (CA – back/IM), Grace Pangburn (IN – sprint free), Alexis Doherty (GA – sprint free), Samantha Muma (NC – free/back), Carmen Hernandez (NC – diver), Zain Smith (MI – diver)

• NCAA finishes over 3* years: *20th*, 15th, 11th, 7th
• Number of NCAA scorers in class: 2 (Cora Dupre, Ashley Turak)

This class never lived up to the billing for Indiana.

Fourth-ranked Emily Weiss was seeded to score points prior to the 2020 cancelation as a freshman, and then after coming close as a sophomore, she medically retired during the 2021-22 season.

Cora Dupre had a strong collegiate career, which included winning the Big Ten title in the 200 free in her freshman year, but transferred out of Bloomington in the offseason and headed to Alabama, where she scored 41 points in two NCAA appearances.

#17 Ashley Turak hit a career-best in the 50 free this year to score for the first time in the 50 free, while Ryley Ober and Carla Gildersleeve both swam their last meets for Indiana in early 2021.

#1: VIRGINIA CAVALIERS

Top-tier additions: #1 Kate Douglass (NY – multi), #6 Ella Nelson (TN – breast/IM), #14 Madelyn Donohoe (VA – distance free), #16 Lexi Cuomo (VA – free/fly/back), Ella Collins (TX – free/fly), Caroline Kulp (VA – distance)
The rest: Jennifer Bell (NY – diver), Katie Cronin (FL – sprint free), Charlotte Bowen (CA – diver)

• NCAA finishes over 3* years: *1st*, 1st, 1st, 1st
• Number of NCAA scorers in class: 4 (Kate Douglass, Ella Nelson, Madelyn Donohoe, Lexi Cuomo)

This class certainly bore fruit for Virginia, as Kate Douglass and Ella Nelson went 1-2 in class scoring with a combined 312 individual points over three NCAAs, and Madelyn Donohoe and Lexi Cuomo also finished in the top 15.

Douglass cemented herself as one of the greatest collegiate swimmers in history with her performances over the last three seasons, winning seven national titles and finishing in the runner-up spot twice in her individual NCAA career.

Nelson also scored 42+ points every year, while Donohoe had a sixth-place finish in the mile last year (36 total individual points) and Cuomo emerged as a key relay contributor to go along with her 31 career points.

Diver Jennifer Bell also qualified for three straight NCAAs, with a career-high finish of 26th coming this past season on 3-meter.

RE-RANKING THE CLASSES

Certainly, individual points don’t encapsulate everything a recruiting class brings to a program over four years. But they are the easiest way to rank the classes against each other four years later. Here’s a look at all the classes represented, ranked by individual points from all swimmers in this graduating class:

Two notes to factor in.

1: 2020 psych sheets points aren’t accounted for.

2: In the case of swimmers who transferred, points are attributed to the team they scored for. Example: Kristen Stege initially committed to ECU, but transferred to Tennessee after her freshman year. The points she’s scored with the Vols are attributed to them.

And our new top 12, purely in terms of individual NCAA points:

The far left column tracks each swimmer’s final rank within the class. The next column tracks their individual ranking in our top 20 recruits post. HM means “honorable mention.” NR means “unranked” and INTL means “international”, as we don’t rank international swimmers in our top 20 post. “DIVE” refers to divers, also not ranked in our top 20 lists.

#1 VIRGINIA (–)

#2 TEXAS (+1)

#3 NC STATE (+1)

#4 KENTUCKY (+3)

#5 LOUISVILLE (+)

#6 OHIO STATE (+)

#7 MIAMI (FL) (+)

#8 GEORGIA (-3)

#9 TENNESSEE (+)

#10 FLORIDA (–)

#11 CAL (-5)

#12 USC (+)