Swimming & Diving
Bailey Bonnett - Swimming & Diving - University of Kentucky Athletics

BaileyBonnett

  • position Breaststroke/im
  • class Fifth Year
  • Hometown Pittsburgh, Pa.
  • Major Elementary Education
  • High school Highlands High School

Top Times (SCY):
100 Breaststroke: 59.11 (2022 SEC Championships, 2/17/22)
200 Breaststroke: 2:06.91 (2019 NCAA Championships, 3/23/19)
200 IM: 1:55.49 (2022 NCAA Championships, 3/17/22)
400 IM: 4:04.86 (2022 NCAA Championships, 3/18/22)

Top Times (LCM):
100 Breaststroke: 1:10.18 (Phillips 66 National Championships, 8/3/19)
200 Breaststroke: 2:27.35 (Phillips 66 National Championships, 7/26/18)
200 IM: 2:16.60 (Phillips 66 National Championships, 8/3/19)
400 IM: 4:44.62 (Phillips 66 National Championships, 8/2/19)
 
Career Notes:

  • 2021 U.S. Olympic Trials qualifier
  • 2018, 2019, 2020*, 2021, 2022 NCAA qualifier
  • 2022 All-America in 400 IM, All-America Honorable Mention in 200 IM, 200 breast, 400 medley relay
  • 2021 All-America Honorable Mention in 200 breast, 400 IM
  • ^2020 All-America in 200 breast, 200 IM, 400 IM, 400 medley relay
  • 2019 All-America in 200 breast; All-America Honorable Mention in 400 medley relay
  • 2018 All-America in 200 breast, All-America Honorable Mention in 400 medley relay
  • 2022 SEC bronze medalist in 200 medley relay, 400 medley relay
  • 2021 SEC bronze medalist in 200 medley relay, 400 medley relay
  • 2020 SEC bronze medalist in 200 breast, 400 IM, 400 medley relay
  • 2019 SEC bronze medalist in 200 breast, 400 medley relay
  • 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 All-SEC Second Team
  • 2018 SEC Freshman Female Swimmer of the Year
  • 2018 SEC All-Freshman Team
  • 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 CSCAA Scholar All-America First Team
  • 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 SEC Winter Academic Honor Roll
  • 2018 SEC First-Year Academic Honor Roll
  • 2019 silver medalist at Phillips 66 National Championships in 400 medley relay

In the Record Book:

  • No. 1 in 100 breast (2022), 200 medley relay (2021), 400 medley relay (2022), 400m IM (2019)
  • No. 2 in 400 IM (2022)
  • No. 3 in 200 breast (2022), 200 IM (2022)

2021-22 (Fifth Year): Named to the All-SEC Second Team … Finished fourth in the 200 breast (2:07.96), fourth in the 400 IM (4:06.37) and sixth in the 100 breast (59.11) at the SEC Championships … Her time in the 100 breast set a new school record … Also swam the breaststroke legs on the bronze-medal 200 and 400 medley relays at SECs with respective splits of … 26.86 and 58.27 … Placed seventh in the 400 IM (4:07.09), 13th in the 200 breast (2:08.15) and 14th in the 200 IM (1:56.40) at the NCAA Championships … Split 58.83 on the breaststroke leg of the 400 medley relay that broke the school record and placed 13th at NCAAs … Raced to second in the 400 IM (4:06.96), third in the 200 IM (1:57.19), fourth in the 200 breast (2:09.24) and sixth in the 100 breast (1:00.63) at the midseason Ohio State Invitational … Had 18 top-4 finishes throughout the dual meet season, highlighted by wins in the 100 breast (59.89) at Louisville and the 400 IM (4: 14.35) versus Cincinnati … Earned a trio of runner-up finishes in the season-opening tri-meet against Indiana and Indiana State … Finished third in the 200 IM (2:01.81) and 100 breast (1:01.65) against Auburn and NC State … Was the 100 breast (1:01.74) runner-up against Tennessee … Won the Captain’s Award at the program’s annual award banquet.

2020-21 (Senior): Qualified for the U.S. Olympic Trials, finishing 17th in the 200m breast (2:30.44), 20th in the 400m IM (4:47.78), 36th in the 200m IM (2:17.63), and 43rd in the 100m breast (1:11.24) … Named to the All-SEC Second Team … Finished fourth in the 400 IM (4:07.83), seventh in the 200 breast (2:08.04), and eighth in the 200 IM (1:58.61) at the SEC Championships … Earned bronze in the 200 medley relay and 400 medley with breast splits of 27.26 and 59.93, respectively, as UK clinched their first conference title in program history … Placed 11th in the 400 IM (4:06.41) and 16th in the 200 breast (2:09.92) at the NCAA Championships, while also taking 17th in the 200 medley relay with a 27.78 breast split … Won the 200 breast and 200 IM against Alabama … Recorded nine top-3 finishes throughout the dual meet season … Earned the Captain’s Award at the program’s annual awards banquet … Inducted into the Frank G. Ham Society of Character … Named to SEC Winter Academic Honor Roll … Named to the CSCAA Scholar All-America First Team.

2019-20 (Junior): Named to the All-SEC Second Team … Responsible for scoring 77 individual points at the 2020 SEC Championships … Earned her second straight bronze medal in the 200 breast at the conference meet, going 2:07.92 … Earned her first bronze medal in the 400 IM at the conference meet, recording a career-best 4:05.62 … Bonnett also finished in eighth place in the 200 IM, recording a career-best 1:56.68 … Additionally, Bonnett helped the 400 medley relay team to a bronze finish at the conference meet, swimming the second leg in 59.50 for a full time of 3.29.69, an NCAA “A” cut … Qualified for the NCAA Championships in the 200 breast and the 200 and 400 IM … Qualified for the 2020 U.S. Olympic Trials in the 100 and 200 breast and the 200 and 400 IM … Earned the Booster Club Award at the program’s annual awards banquet … Named to the CSCAA Scholar All-America First Team … Named to SEC Winter Academic Honor Roll.

2018-19 (Sophomore): Named to the All-SEC Second Team … Helped UK’s 400 medley relay team to a bronze medal at the SEC Championships with a 3:31.27 … Finished in fifth place in the 100 breast at the SEC Championships on a time of 59.72 … Earned her first SEC Championships individual medal by claiming bronze in the 200 breast on a time of 2:07.19 … Qualified for the NCAA Championships in the 100 and 200 breast and the 200 IM … Earned First Team All-America in 200 breast earning fifth place, resetting her school-record time of 2:06.91 … Earned All-America Honorable Mention in 400 medley relay, swimming the second leg and helping UK to a 15th-place finish on a time of 3:32.24 … In December of 2018, she earned a 2020 U.S. Olympic Trials cut time at Winter Nationals in the 200 breast on a time of 2:32.08 … Named to CSCAA Scholar All-America First Team … Named to SEC Winter Academic Honor Roll.

2017-18 (Freshman): Named the 2018 SEC Female Freshman Swimmer of the Year and named to the SEC All-Freshman Team … Three-time SEC Freshman Swimmer of the Week … Lowered the school record in the 200 breast four times throughout the season, including her top time of 2:07.17 at the SEC Championships … Owns the second-fastest time in school history in the 100 breast at 59.48, which earned her fourth place at the SEC Championships … Earned First Team All-America honors in the 200 breast, finishing fifth overall with a time of 2:07.22 at the NCAA Championships … Also earned All-America Honorable Mention as part of Kentucky’s 400 medley relay team, which finished 13th … Named to CSCAA Scholar All-America First Team … Named to SEC First-Year Academic Honor Roll.

Prior to UK: 2016 U.S. Olympic Trials qualifier in 400 IM and 200 breast … Pennsylvania high school record holder in 100 breast … 2017 Pennsylvania AA State Champion in 100 breast and 200 IM and 2015 and 2016 Pennsylvania AA State Champion in 500 free … Also competed for Fox Chapel Killer Whales Club Team … Member of National Honor Society.

Personal: Parents are Jennifer and Brad Bonnett … Has three siblings, Breea, Brenna, and Bella.

*The NCAA Championships were canceled because of the COVID-19 public-health threat.
^The CSCAA board adjusted the All-America selection criteria to recognize a group of individuals who would have had the opportunity to compete for All-America status at the canceled 2020 NCAA Championships.

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