UK Women’s Swimming & Diving Set for 2021 NCAA Championships
GREENSBORO, N.C. – One year after the 2020 NCAA Women’s Swimming and Diving Championship was canceled just six days before its opening event, the 2021 Southeastern Conference Champions, the University of Kentucky women’s swimming and diving team, will at last compete on the national stage at the Greensboro Aquatic Center in Greensboro, North Carolina, March 17-20.
Fifteen Wildcats were invited to compete at the 2021 NCAA Women’s Swimming and Diving Championship (14 swimmers and one diver), combining for 38 individual entries (35 swimming entries and three diving entries). Kentucky has the fourth largest team at the meet, behind Florida (18), Virginia (17) and Tennessee (16).
In addition to the 15 UK swimmers and divers that individually qualified for the big dance, Kentucky is also eligible to compete in three relay events –800 freestyle relay, 200 medley relay and 400 medley relay.
Ahead of the meet, six swimmers own a seed time that is in the top eight in the nation, which would reach All-America First Team status if the meet ended today.
- Riley Gaines, No. 2 seed in the 200 free in 1:42.70
- Gillian Davey, No. 3 seed in the 200 breast in 2:05.59
- Lauren Poole, No. 3 seed in the 400 IM in 4:03.90
- Sophie Sorenson, No. 6 seed in the 200 back in 1:50.94
- Izzy Gati, No. 7 seed in the 200 fly in 1:53.73
- Caitlin Brooks, No. 7 seed in the 200 back in 1:51.55
Eight of the 15 UK swimmers and divers invited to the meet this season were also invited last season, before both it and the 2020 NCAA Zone C Diving Championships were abruptly canceled because of the COVID-19 public-health threat. Just five of the 15 Wildcats have competed on the national stage at all, including Bailey Bonnett in 2018 and 2019, and Riley Gaines, Izzy Gati, Kyndal Knight and Sophie Sorenson in 2019.
ESPN3 will provide digital broadcast coverage for preliminary and finals sessions Wednesday through Saturday. Additionally, ESPNU will air a two-hour show at 7 p.m. ET, Tuesday, April 6.
The meet schedule is as follows:
| Wednesday, March 17 | ||
| 6 p.m. ET | Swimming Finals | 800 free-r* |
| Thursday, March 18 | ||
| 10 a.m. ET | Prelims (swimming) | 500 free 200 IM 50 free 1m diving 200 free-r* 400 med-r* |
| 12:30 p.m. ET | Prelims (diving) | |
| 6 p.m. ET | Finals (swimming, diving) | |
| Friday, March 19 | ||
| 10 a.m. ET | Prelims (swimming) | 400 IM 100 fly 200 free 100 breast 100 back 3m diving 200 med-r* |
| 12:30 p.m. ET | Prelims (diving) | |
| 6 p.m. ET | Finals (swimming, diving) | |
| Saturday, March 20 | ||
| 10 a.m. ET | Prelims (swimming) | 1,650 free 200 back 100 free 200 breast 200 fly Platform 400 free-r* |
| 12:15 p.m. ET | Prelims (diving) | |
| 3:45 p.m. ET | Prelims (1,6500 free) | |
| 6 p.m. ET | Finals (swimming, diving) | |
* Denotes relay events do not compete in prelims.
Fans are encouraged to refer to the meet central page for the most up to date information, including a pysch sheet, the schedule, live results, final results and broadcast updates.
The UK women’s swimming and diving team earned 14th place at the national meet in 2017 and 2018, while it earned 15th place in 2019. The Wildcats scored the most points in school history in 2017, racking up 106 points. The squad scored 100.5 points in 2019, just the second time in school history it eclipsed the 100 mark at the NCAA Championships.
For the latest on the Kentucky swimming and diving program, follow @UKSwimDive on Twitter and on Instagram, on Facebook and on the web at UKathletics.com.
