Until Saturday night, no one on the women's swimming and diving teams, save head coach Bob Thompson, had known what it felt like to finish anywhere but dead last in the ACC Championships. All that changed, however, when the Blue Devils defeated N.C. State by a 33-point margin in a meet that witnessed the demise of 11 Duke records.
"We've come in last the past three years," said senior co-captain Amy Halligan, who has known nothing but the ACC's basement. "So to beat a scholarship team, that was just a really special moment for everybody."
Halligan shined in her team's final meet of the year. She finished seventh in the 400 IM, clocking in with a time of 4:21.19, a race that qualified for the NCAA "B" standard and broke the 23-year Duke record in the event. Halligan also conspired with Katie Ness, Nora Stupp and Julia Lewis to set a new school record in the 400 freestyle relay with a time of 3:28.60.
In that 400 freestyle relay, Ness's 51.45 leadoff leg broke the Duke record in the 100 free. Ness, who could already be considered one of the most prolific swimmers in Blue Devil history, broke the school record in the 100 butterfly with a time of 54.05, an NCAA "B" qualifying time and also finished sixth in the 100 back. The Ohio native now holds an ACC Championship in the 200 IM, six individual Duke records, and has participated in four record-breaking Duke relays.
Standout freshman Jackie Rodriguez also contributed greatly to her team's success. She joined in on the record breaking by swimming the 1650 freestyle in a Duke-best 16:41.62. Rodriguez also finished sixth in the 200 breaststroke.
Despite the fact that Duke posted unprecedented times throughout the meet, many Blue Devils felt a bit unfulfilled with their seventh-place finish after completing the first two days of competition in fifth position.
"It was disappointing," Duke assistant coach Lynzee Sharp said. "We thought the last day would be our strongest day, we have great 200 strokes, but the other teams just swam better than us."
Nevertheless, no one can take away the remarkable progress the Blue
Devils have made over the past year and the respect they undoubtedly earned this weekend in Charlottesville, Va.
"You can't be more proud of the girls," Sharp said. "Everyone who made those ["B" standard] times...impressed me. Even if you're not a fast swimmer, making a best time is still a great accomplishment. So for a team to make all these cuts, it's amazing. As a coach it makes you feel great."
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