Prelims Results | Finals Results
GREENSBORO, North Carolina — The No. 17 Irish men are tied for tenth place after the second day of the ACC Championships Thursday, headlined by sophomore Jack Hoagland’s ACC Championship in the 500 Free.
Hoagland clocked a 4:11.26, a personal best, in the 500 Free A Final, earning him his first-career ACC title and fourth-career medal. It marks the second-consecutive season an Irish swimmer has won the 500 Free title, as former Notre Dame swimmer Zach Yeadon won in 2020, while Hoagland placed third.
His time is the fifth-fastest time across 500 Free performances in Division I this season, also an NCAA A-Cut, marking the first Irish A-Cut of the season. Already the second-fastest performer in the event in program history, Hoagland improved upon his previous time by almost .90 seconds.
“It feels really good to win for my first time as a sophomore,” Hoagland expressed. “Last year coming in, I had no expectations and the coaches didn’t know what I could do. Getting third in this event last year really motivated me for this year to get going, and go even faster throughout the year, just training hard and working on the details. I put it all together today, and I can’t wait to do it more at NCAAs.”
“It was a really good, competitive field,” head swim coach Mike Litzinger shared. “Jack handled it beautifully and got his hands on the wall. He’s an ACC champion, and we couldn’t be more thrilled for him.
“I think Jack Hoagland was kind of a secret last year,” Litzinger noted. “Now, I think he has a better idea of the ACC landscape, and that gave him a better idea on how he could be competitive in this league, and he certainly did that.
“All year long, he had his sights set on the 500 Free,” he continued. “He knew he had been swimming well all year long. To come here and put that plan into action and finish it off by getting his hands to the wall first really legitimizes Jack at a true national level.”
Prelims
In the prelims race for the 500 Free, Hoagland touched the wall in 4:13.04 (B Cut), which made him the No. 2 seed heading into finals. Fellow sophomore Liam Hutchinson placed 13th with a 4:20.57 (B Cut), earning a spot in the B Final, and junior Max Miranda (19th, 4:21.98) and freshman Liam Smith (21st, 4:22.51) both posted B-Cut times and cemented spots in the C Final.
Senior Sadler McKeen also competed in the 500 Free prelim, placing 31st with a 4:24.35, as did sophomore Thacher Scannell, who came in 33rd with a 4:24.96.
Freshmen led the way for the Irish in the 200 IM prelim, as newcomer Tyler Christianson led Notre Dame swimmers with a B-Cut 1:45.09 for 11th, placing him in the B Final. The swim made him the sixth-fastest performer in Irish records in the event. Classmate Sean Faikish tied for 17th with a B-Cut 1:46.03, earning him the top seed in the C Final. Junior Josh Bottelberghe also punched a ticket to the C Final, posting a 1:46.41 (B Cut).
Sophomore Jack Fitzpatrick narrowly missed a finals berth in the 200 IM, touching the wall in 1:47.23 (26th), as senior Will Cumberland placed 29th with a 1:47.42 and senior JP Becker came in 41st with a 1:50.16.
In the 50 Free prelim, two Irish swimmers took on the sprint, as sophomore Topher Stensby placed 30th (20.03) and freshman Kaden Smesko came in 55th (20.89).
FINALS
Before Hoagland’s title race, Hutchinson clocked a 4:19.76 (B Cut) for 13th overall, and Smith posted a 4:20.24 (B Cut) for 18th. Smith’s time made him the ninth-fastest performer in the event in program history. Miranda rounded it out, touching the wall in a B-Cut 4:20.29 (19th).
In the A Final, Hoagland was in a tight race, as no one swimmer owned a significant lead at any point. In the last 150 yards, the sophomore pulled away from the pack, winning the race by almost a full second.
“In the last part of my race, I knew I really had to get going,” Hoagland explained. “In my training, I’ve been really trying to practice going at the end and getting up early. So, with that first part, I knew I got up early, was doing good, and I knew that last 150 [yards], I really had to push it. Seeing the competition right there next to me and even ahead of me just gave me the fuel to go even faster.”
In the 200 IM, Christianson placed 14th, notching a B-Cut 1:45.16, while Bottelberghe came in 20th (1:46.72, B Cut) and Faikish followed in 21st (1:46.83).
To wrap up the night, the Irish team of Brendan Santana, Stensby, Cason Wilburn and McKeen clocked a 1:18.39 in the 200 Free Relay for ninth. Santana’s leadoff split of 19.78 made him the fourth-fastest performer in the 50 Free in program records.
UP NEXT
Prelim races for the 100 Fly, 400 IM, 200 Free, 100 Breast and 100 Back will begin at 10 a.m. ET Friday. Finals for those events, as well as the 400 Medley Relay, will take place starting at 6 p.m. ET Friday.
Even with the point deficit, the Irish are poised to turn in quality races.
“I would rather have the guys race with a chip on their shoulder,” Litzinger shared.
“Now is about getting to the NCAAs, about competing together as a team. They do a really great job on that, and I was really pleased with some of the 500 swims tonight, and the IMs. We’re ready to go. We just have to execute tomorrow.
“This league is just amazing, and it’s fun competing at this level. I heard another coach mention today that this is like the NCAAs, that’s how fast it is. It’ll be a really good test for our guys, and we’re just looking forward to competing. I know they’re very excited about it.”
Broadcast coverage will be available on ACC Network Extra. Follow along at @NDSwimDive on Twitter for updates.
STANDINGS
1.Virginia Tech – 487 points
2. Louisville – 470
3. NC State – 456
4. North Carolina – 372
5. Florida State – 354
5. Virginia – 335
7. Georgia Tech – 307
8. Pitt – 208
9. Miami – 207
T-10. Notre Dame – 203
T-10. Duke – 203
12. Boston College – 98