Due to “COVID-related protocols within the UNC swimming and diving program,” Friday’s ACC showdown between NC State and UNC was postponed. Despite the postponement, the Wolfpack showed no signs of disarray on Saturday morning as it pulled off a pair of easy wins over Duke at home in Willis R. Casey Aquatic Center.
Saturday morning’s competition kicked off with men’s and women’s diving. Although Duke generally outscored the Wolfpack in the deep end of the pool, junior Bayne Bennett finished first by a combined total of nearly 45 points in the 1- and 3-meter diving events. Other than Bennett’s impressive performance, freshman and Raleigh native Ashton Zuburg finished second in the women’s 3-meter diving event with 289.13 points.
Right off the bat, both NC State men and women swept the 1,000-yard freestyle events. Freshman Grace Sheble, typically an I.M. and butterfly specialist, finished in third with an impressive 10:20.81 to tack on three points for the Wolfpack. Junior Ross Dant was noticeably missing from the men’s 1000-yard freestyle lineup, but NC State’s talented distance squad was still able to sweep the podium by a margin of over 10 seconds.
Junior Katharine Berkoff, fresh off of an impressive stint at the FINA World Championships in Abu Dhabi, finished first in the women’s 100-yard backstroke by over two seconds. Following her sub-53 performance, the Wolfpack men swept the podium yet again in the men’s 100-yard backstroke, with junior Noah Bowers taking the lead in 49.95.
Both senior stars Sophie Hansson and Kylee Alons were absent from today’s lineup. Granted, NC State finished so well ahead of the Blue Devils that they weren’t terribly missed from the pool, but neither women competed in any of their top events.
Dant also had a slightly different lineup than usual, taking on the 200-yard butterfly instead of another freestyle distance event. He still finished with a very impressive 1:50.88 to tie teammate Aiden Hayes, who currently holds the national high school record in the 100-yard butterfly. Freshman Sam Hoover also pulled off another individual win, this time in the 100-yard freestyle, touching in 43.84 to beat out the field nby a little under a second.
The men followed with a couple more sweeps in the 200-yard backstroke and 200-yard breaststroke. Despite the event being one of the team’s weakest disciplines, senior Rafal Kusto, sophomore Conall Monahan and senior Jack Moranetz all finished under 2:02 in the 200-yard breaststroke. Monahan, who’s more often competing in the 200- and 400-yard individual medley, finished less than a second over his college best.
Across the men’s 500-yard freestyle and 200-yard individual medley events, all NC State men were swimming in the exhibition heats — meaning none of their swims counted for any points. Despite this, Dant, sophomore Will Gallant and senior Curtis Wiltsey would have easily swept the men’s 500-yard freestyle if their times had counted.
Finishing on a sweet note, sophomore and Raleigh native Abby Arens had an incredible meet, placing first in both the women’s 100- and 200-yard butterfly events. Arens, who entered NC State primarily as a breaststroker, is quickly gaining experience and skill in butterfly, and it’s not hard to imagine a top-eight finish at ACC’s in her future.
Despite the absence of some key swimmers, NC State was able to take care of business and knock down the Blue Devils. The No. 5 women won with a final score of 139-87, and the No. 2 men won by an even bigger margin — 167-56. The women have a couple of tough meets coming up, at No. 1 Virginia on Jan. 22 and versus No. 2 Texas on Jan. 28, so NC State swim and dive fans won’t have to wait long to watch some intense competition between some of the nation’s best swimmers.
