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Friday, April 19, 2024
The Observer

Irish fall to sixth place in conference championship

The Irish find themselves in sixth place after the second day of the ACC Tournament, at the Greensborough Aquatic Center.

Irish junior Suzanne Bessire swims the freestyle during the  Shamrock Invitational on Jan. 31.
Irish junior Suzanne Bessire swims the freestyle during the Shamrock Invitational on Jan. 31.
Irish junior Suzanne Bessire swims the freestyle during the Shamrock Invitational on Jan. 31.
Notre Dame has earned 264.5 points over the past two days of competition, trailing Virginia (516), North Carolina State (362), Florida State (357), North Carolina (346) and Virginia Tech (273). Heading into the third day, the Irish are still ahead of Duke (202), Miami (194.5), Pittsburgh (192.5), Georgia Tech (174.5), Boston College (98) and Clemson (17).

As the Irish prepare for the next day of events, the team is working on remaining mentally focused, junior Emma Reaney said.

“We have to carry the momentum from good swims onto the next one,” Reaney said. “As long as we all stay engaged and invested in each other and everyone's swims, I know we will stay focused and have fun.”

Recently, the Irish have seen improved results across the board.

“[Sophomore] Genevieve Bradford did amazing today in her 200 IM,” Reaney said. “She dropped almost two seconds and has improved her technique tremendously.”

Reaney said her 200-meter medley relay, which consists of freshman Catherine Mulquin, junior Courtney Whyte and senior Kelly Ryan, is still the race she is most proud of at this tournament. The relay team finished with record-breaking time of1:37.61.

“The 200 medley relay has been the best race of the meet in my opinion,” Reaney said. “It was the first event, and all four of us were on our game right out of the gate. “It was so cool to see us all click with each other and get an NCAA A cut and a school record.”

Reaney and the rest of the Irish might use this race as motivation to continue to push the team through its first-ever ACC-tournament appearance.

“Our coach made a point to say [to us] that our most important swim is our next one, meaning here at the conference level, everyone and every race matters,” Reaney said. “I am so happy with our relays last night and can't wait to share the NCAA experience with those girls.”

The Irish head into the third day of the ACC Tournament tomorrow at Greensboro Aquatic Center in Greensboro, N.C.

Contact Kit Loughran at kloughr1@nd.edu