UVA's Sara Curtis Dives Beneath 51 in the 100 Fly at the Cavalier Invite, Day 2 Finals
The Cavalier Invite continued its second day in Charlottesville, showcasing a range of events as part of the three-day championship schedule. The 100 fly, 400 IM, 200 free, 100 breast, and 100 back were the stars of the show.
For the second time that day, Virginia's Sara Curtis made headlines in the 100 fly. This morning, she broke the 52-second barrier for the first time. Tonight, she further improved her personal best by 0.35 seconds, finishing in 50.68 and securing the fifth spot in the nation this season. Her teammate, Carly Novelline, closely followed in 51.09, shaving almost half a second off her personal best.
As Curtis, who represents Italy internationally, embarks on her first season of competing in yards, the question of her third individual event for the championship lineup arises. However, after today's performance, it's clear that she'll be adding the 100 fly to her repertoire, joining the 50 and 100 free, and likely participating in most of the Cavaliers' relays. So far this season, only a handful of swimmers, including Torri Huske, Claire Curzan, Miranda Grana, and Gigi Johnson, have outpaced Curtis.
Curtis's time is expected to shine at the NCAA Championships, where a 50.68 would have secured a fifth-place finish last year. While Claire Curzan swam the 200 free tonight, winning in a season-best time of 1:43.00, moving her up to 17th in the nation, Cavan Gormsen took second in 1:43.91, just 0.5 seconds shy of her lifetime best. Nina Jazy, a newcomer to yards, claimed third in 1:45.93, setting a new personal best.
Sophia Umstead, a freshman, added another Cavalier victory in the 400 IM, pulling away with a 4:07.49 win, closing the freestyle leg in under 59 seconds. This marked a significant personal best for Umstead, propelling her from 36th to 19th in the national rankings this season.
Zoe Skirboll secured the win in the 100 breaststroke with a time of 58.89, shaving 0.20 seconds off her season best. Virginia's women's program closed with another victory in the 100 backstroke, as Sylvia Roy, a freshman, touched first in 52.92, just 0.4 tenths shy of her lifetime best.
The session began with Campbell's A and B relays taking first and second places in the 200 medley relay, with the A squad touching in 1:45.72, led by Natalie Kingsbury, Bella Butera, Julia Garcia, and Nicole Rubino. William & Mary's A relay was disqualified.
On the men's side, UVA freshman Thomas Heilman opted for the 200 free over the 100 fly and won in 1:34.24. Heilman owns a personal best of 1:32.26 from December 2024 but hadn't raced the event collegiately before.
Jay Gerloff of UVA claimed the 100 breaststroke in 53.03, setting a new personal best. David King closed the session with a win in the 100 backstroke in 45.69, just off his midseason time of 45.61. King narrowly held off teammate Spencer Nicholas, who was 0.03 seconds shy of his season-best time.
The only race the Cavalier men didn't win was the 100 butterfly, where William & Mary's Blaise VanSlyke touched out Towson's Julian Najarro Sedar, 49.88 to 50.14. Towson placed three swimmers in the top four. No men's teams competed in the 200 medley relay this evening.
The Cavalier Invite continues tomorrow morning with prelims for the 200 back, 100 free, 200 breast, and 200 fly, and we anticipate seeing several top UVA swimmers who haven't competed yet, including Katie Grimes, Aimee Canny, Maximus Williamson, and Jack Aikins, at least individually.
