{"id":581675,"date":"2024-03-22T15:57:47","date_gmt":"2024-03-22T22:57:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?p=581675"},"modified":"2024-03-23T05:34:00","modified_gmt":"2024-03-23T12:34:00","slug":"ncaa-womens-championships-bella-sims-holds-off-peplowski-for-200-free-win","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/ncaa-womens-championships-bella-sims-holds-off-peplowski-for-200-free-win\/","title":{"rendered":"NCAA Women’s Championships: Bella Sims Holds off Anna Peplowski For 200 Free Win"},"content":{"rendered":"

The 2024 NCAA Division I Women’s Swimming and Diving Championship has been the Virginia and Bella Sims show.<\/p>\n

The swimming events have all been won by Virginia or involved Florida’s Bella Sims<\/strong> in the first eight swimming events.<\/p>\n

Sims won the 500 freestyle on Thursday and was part of the 800 free relay win on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

Friday, it was the 200 freestyle and Sims took over once again, winning her second individual event of the meet for the Gators.<\/p>\n

The freshman got to the wall in 1:40.90, what turned out to be just seven hundredths of a second ahead of Indiana’s Anna Peplowski<\/strong> (1:40.97).<\/p>\n

“It felt really good actually,” Sims said. “I was just trying to focus on just not dying, basically, but also taking it out really fast because I need to be able to trust my speed. I just kind of know myself and know not to go 100% out so I can have a little bit left in the tank. That helps me a lot.”<\/p>\n

Sims started fast as expected. She was at 23.25 after the 50, 48.50 after the 100, 1:14.73 at the 150 before holding off Peplowski, who came on strong in the final 100 to finish NCAA runner-up.<\/p>\n

It was a pool record for Sims, which Peplowski also beat.<\/p>\n

Florida teammate Isabel Ivey<\/strong> was just behind Sims at the halfway point, but faded to seventh (1:43.79), still a really strong race.<\/p>\n

“It is super awesome to have more than one Gator in the final,” Sims said.<\/p>\n

As records were falling left and right in this meet so far, this one wasn’t within striking distance. Cal’s Missy Franklin<\/strong> still holds the NCAA mark at 1:39.10, set in 2015.<\/p>\n

USC freshman Minna Abraham<\/strong> took third and finished in 1:41.96.<\/p>\n

Virginia sophomore Aimee Canny<\/strong> took fourth (1:42.33), followed by Texas A&M senior Chloe Stepanek<\/strong> (1:42.92) and Stanford sophomore Kayla Wilson<\/strong> (1:43.23).<\/p>\n

Tennessee’s Cammile Spink<\/strong> was disqualified for a false start.<\/p>\n