Virginia’s Leah Smith, JB Kolod Set School Records Against Pittsburgh; Three Pool Records Fall

Laura Simon Women's NCAA Division I Championships

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Virginia, February 9. VIRGINIA’S Leah Smith and JB Kolod broke school and pool records while Laura Simon added a third pool record as the University of Virginia swimming and diving teams swept Pittsburgh on Senior Day yesterday afternoon.

Smith posted a sizzling time of 9:33.29 in winning the women’s 1000 free, a time that now stands as the fastest in the nation this year (ahead of Georgia’s Brittany MacLean at 9:36.85). Smith’s time cut more than three seconds off the previous school record of 9:36.25, set by Cara Lane in 2001. Her time also dipped under the ACC record of 9:35.45, set in 2009 by North Carolina’s Whitney Sprague. North Carolina’s Stephanie Peacock held the previous pool record at 9:37.14 from 2013. Smith, a freshman, now owns two school records, as she set the 500 mark earlier this season at 4:36.19.

Kolod broke his own school and pool records in the men’s 3-meter diving event, scoring 428.10 points. His previous best had been a 424.85 from 2013, while the pool record stood at 420.65, also from 2013. Laura Simon added a third pool record at the meet with a 2:12.63 in the women’s 200 breast, just under the previous record of 2:12.76 by Florida State’s Emma Dutton, set in 2004.

Virginia Press Release

The Virginia men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams celebrated Senior Day in style Saturday (Feb. 8), finishing first in 31 of 32 events en route to a sweep over Pittsburgh at the Aquatic and Fitness Center.

The Cavalier women conclude the dual meet portion of the season with an 11-1 record after defeating the Panthers, 189-103, while the UVa men finish with a dual meet record of 6-5 after a 179-112 win.

On a day when Virginia honored its senior class in between the diving and swimming portions of the meet, junior JB Kolod (Pittsburgh, Pa.) and freshman Leah Smith (Pittsburgh, Pa.) each broke UVa school and AFC pool records. Kolod claimed the men’s 3-meter diving event with a score of 428.10, breaking his own school record, while Smith won the women’s 1,000 free in a time of 9:33.29, the fastest time in the nation so far this season by over three seconds (Brittany MacLean of Georgia – 9:36.85).

Another freshman, Laura Simon (Simmern, Germany), broke the AFC pool record in the women’s 200 breaststroke in 2:12.63.

Junior Kelly Offutt (Reisterstown, Md.) won the women’s 200 and 500 free, while classmate David Ingraham (Spartanburg, S.C.) claimed the men’s 100 and 200 free. Senior Parker Camp (Brentwood, Tenn.) finished first in the men’s 200 fly and 200 IM and sophomore Courtney Bartholomew (Holland, Mich.) touched first in the women’s 200 back and 200 IM. Kolod also won the men’s 1-meter diving in addition to his 3m victory.

In the breaststroke events, sophomore Yannick Kaeser (Mumpf, Switzerland) won the men’s 100 and 200, while Simon posted wins on the women’s side.

Other event winners included seniors Jan Daniec (Mission Viejo, Calif. – men’s 1,000 free) and Emily Lloyd (Severna Park, Md. – women’s 100 free), juniors Kyle Dudzinski (Pittsburgh, Pa. – men’s 200 back), Alison Haulsee (Glen Allen, Va. – women’s 100 fly), Charlie Rommel (East Amherst, N.Y. – men’s 50 free) and Ellen Williamson (Ft. Mitchell, Ky. – women’s 100 back), sophomore Luke Papendick (Kinnelon, N.J. – men’s 100 back) and freshmen Kaitlyn Jones (Newark, Del. – women’s 200 fly), Austin Quinn (Chagrin Falls, Ohio – men’s 500 free) and Ellen Thomas (Guildford, United Kingdom – women’s 50 free).

Sophomores Katie Warburg (Wilton, Conn.) and Becca Corbett (Louisville, Ky.) went 1-2 on both women’s diving events, with Warburg winning the 1-meter event, while Corbett placed first on the 3-meter.

The Cavaliers also won all four relay events including the men’s and women’s 200 medley and 200 free relays.

Next up, some of Virginia’s squads will compete at the Cavalier Invite Feb. 14-15 at the AFC, while both ACC Championships will be held in Greensboro, N.C. The women’s meet will be held Feb. 19-22, while the men’s meet is the following week Feb. 26-March 1.

Pittsburgh Press Release

Despite strong performances across the board from the University of Pittsburgh men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams, ACC counterpart Virginia defeated the Panthers on Saturday afternoon at the Aquatic and Fitness Center.

On the women’s side, Virginia topped Pitt by a score of 189-103, while the men were defeated 179-112. The Panthers lost to a nationally ranked Virginia team.

“I have a lot of respect for the depth shown by the UVA team,” Head Coach Chuck Knoles said. “At this point in our season having just started tapering in earnest, our performances were a bit off, but not entirely unexpected.

“Our season is focused on the ACC Championship and performing well there,” Knoles added. “I’m confident our plan will be successful.”

The Panthers managed to swim strong throughout the after despite the loss, which was highlighted by senior Veronica Lee winning the 100-yard butterfly and 200-yard IM, and sophomore David Sweeney taking the men’s 100 fly and 200 free relay.

After exciting performances from Lee and Sweeney, the Panthers ended the meet on a high note with two winning performances in the relay events. The women’s 200 free relay placed first and set a new season best time of 1:35.74. The team of Dani des Tombe, Jessica Nederlanden, Melissa Pocsai and Lauren Mills made up the winning team.

For the men, Sean Heiden, Sweeney, Avery Warrington and Alex Rodenkirk swam their way to a first-place finish in a time of 1:22.84 in the 200 free relay. Luke Nosbisch impressed with two season best times in the men’s 100 (56.43) and 200 breast (2:02.52) events.

In diving, freshman Tony Galante performed very well on the 1M board, placing second overall. He finished with a total score of 336.45, which was his best score of the season by a Panther in dual-meet competition.

Pitt will now look toward the Women’s ACC Championships in less than two weeks, starting on Wednesday, February 19-22. The men’s ACC Championships will begin the following week on Wednesday, February 26 through March 1st.

Results For: Pittsburgh vs. Virginia

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