Victoria Ireland Brings Diversity to UNC Class of 2020 With Verbal Commitment

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Victoria Ireland from Middletown, New Jersey has become the latest verbal commitment to the University of North Carolina in the class of 2020 as Mark Gangloff begins to pick up recruiting steam as the team’s new head coach. She is the program’s 3rd announced commitment on the women’s side and will give the class some diversity while joining 1:56.0 200 backstroker Grace Kayal and 1:57.8 200 backstroker Katie Wright.

Ireland is primarily a breaststroker whose best time last season would have ranked 4th among varsity Tarheels, behind a freshman and 2 sophomores. That breaststroke group right now is a strength talent-wise for Gangloff and his new program, which meshes well with his specialty as a competitor (he won 2 Olympic gold medals as a medley relay breaststroker).

I am super excited to announce my verbal commitment to swim at the University of North Carolina!! I can’t wait to be challenged by the school’s amazing academics and the team’s outstanding coaching staff. Thank you so much to my coaches, teammates, and family who helped me get through everything along the way. #goheels

Ireland is progressing at a rapid rate: as a sophomore, she improved her 100 breaststroke best from 1:08.7 to 1:04.4, as a junior, she improved her 100 breatstroke best from 1:04.4 to 1:02.2, which earned her 3rd place at the YMCA National Championships. Her jumps in the 200 have been even more substantial: as a junior she improved from 2:23.8 to 2:16.2. This comes after a bit of a focus shift from butterfly to breaststroke swimming, though she still showed improvement in the 100 fly as a junior, cutting over a second from her best time.

Technique Video:

Middletown South’s Victoria Ireland’s record-setting swim in the 100 breast at the Monmouth County Championship pic.twitter.com/UoGmtJss7P

— EvanSlavitHS (@EvanSlavitHS) January 5, 2019

Best TImes in Yards:

• 100 breast – 1:02.22
• 200 breast – 2:16.24
• 100 fly – 55.73

Ireland swims for Middletown High School South in Middletown, New Jersey and for the Red Bank YMCA.

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