Stanford captures second-straight, 10th all-time NCAA Women's Swimming and Diving Championship
Columbus, Ohio – Stanford claimed its 10th all-time and second-straight NCAA Championship in record fashion, claiming the Pac-12’s 505th all-time. Pac-12 teams and individuals topped the podium in 15 out of the possible 18 swimming events and 15 of 21 total events at the 2018 NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships that included six NCAA, six American, six U.S. Open, nine meet and 11 pool records by five Pac-12 teams and 10 Pac-12 individuals. Thirteen of those 15 titles came from NCAA Champion Stanford.
Stanford dominated the team competition, winning by over 200 points with a total score of 593. California finished second with 373 points, USC finished 12th with 127 points, Arizona finished 20th with 46 points, Arizona State finished in 23rd with 34 points and UCLA finished 26th with 31 points.
Led by 2016 Olympians Katie Ledecky and Simone Manuel, the Cardinal claimed its second-straight NCAA Championship, the first time the Cardinal has won back-to-back championships since winning five-straight from 1992-1996. The Cardinal has won more national titles than any program (nine NCAA, one AIAW) and has finished in the top three at the NCAA meet in each of the last five years, including runner-up in 2014 and 2016. Stanford claimed all five relays, all in record fashion, including three races clocking new NCAA, American, U.S. Open, meet and pool records (200-yard freestyle relay, 1:25.43; 400-yard medley relay, 3:25.09; 200-yard medley relay, 1:33.11) and another two pool records in the first and last relays of the meet (800-yard freestyle relay, 6:46.93; 400-yard freestyle relay, 3:07.94). The Cardinal also claimed 8 individual titles, each one breaking records. The 13 NCAA titles tied the record for the most at an NCAA Women’s Swimming and Diving Championship.
Stanford junior Ledecky won the first individual title of the meet for the Cardinal in the 500-yard freestyle (4:26.57). Stanford junior Ella Eastin, the NCAA Swimmer of the Meet, then set an NCAA, American, U.S. Open, meet and pool record in the 200-yard IM (1:50.67). Senior Manuel followed suit by winning the 50-yard freestyle in a new pool record (21.18). Eastin continued her record setting tone set the previous day with a win and NCAA, American, U.S. Open, meet and pool record in the 400-yard IM (3:54.60) to open competition on Friday. After two third place finishes and missing the podium in the 100-yard breaststroke, senior Ally Howe returned the Cardinal to winning fashion, topping the podium in the 100-yard backstroke in a new championship and pool record of 49.70. Ledecky kicked off the final day of competition with a win in the 1650-yard freestyle in a new meet record of 15:07.57. Manuel won the 100-yard freestyle in a new pool record of 45.64, just .09 seconds off of her NCAA record set at this meet in 2017. Eastin claimed the last individual title for Cardinal, taking her third individual title in the 200-yard butterfly in a new meet and pool record of 1:50.01.
After Stanford won the first seven swimming events of the NCAA Championships, USC sophomore Louise Hansson broke Stanford’s winning streak by topping the podium in the 100-yard butterfly in a new pool record of 49.80. Hansson also won the event at the 2018 Pac-12 Women’s Swimming and Diving Championship.
The Golden Bears took home one NCAA title and visited the podium nine times, just missing the podium with three fourth places, to finish second with 373 points. California has finished among the top three teams in the country each of the last 10 years - the longest current streak in the nation. 2016 Olympic silver medalist Kathleen Baker won the 200-yard backstroke in a new NCAA, American, U.S. Open, meet and pool record time of 1:47.30. The Golden Bears were on the podium for all five relays, finishing with three second-place finishes and two third-place finishes.
Pac-12 women’s swimming and diving has claimed a total of 16 out of a possible 36 NCAA team titles and has posted at least a top two finish at the NCAA Championships in each of the last 11 years. The Pac-12 now owns 505 NCAA Championship titles all-time.