Kate Douglass Registers #3 All-Time 200 Breast Performance With 2:03.14

2022 Cavalier Invitational

• February 4-6, 2022
• Aquatics and Fitness Center, Charlottesville, VA
• Championship Format
• SCY
• Results on Meet Mobile as “2022 Cavalier Invitational”

Still a week or two away from the main rounds of conference championships, swimmers across the country all already lighting up the pools with some very fast times.

Case in point — UVA’s Kate Douglass torched the Aquatic and Fitness Center pool during a 200 breast time trial after the prelims session of the Cavalier Invite this morning. The junior swam to a 2:03.14 that moves her up to #2 all-time on the 200 yard breast top perfomers list. That’s also the third-fastest swim in history.

All-Time Top Performers, Women’s 200 Breast

1. Lilly King, 2018 – 2:02.60
2. Kate Douglass, 2022 – 2:03.14
3. Bethany Galat, 2018 – 2:03.26
4. Kierra Smith, 2017 – 2:03.55
5. Sydney Pickrem, 2019 – 2:03.65

All-Time Top Performances, Women’s 200 Breast

1. Lilly King, 2018 – 2:02.60
2. Lilly King, 2019 – 2:02.90
3. Kate Douglass, 2022 – 2:03.14
4. Lilly King, 2017 – 2:03.18
5. Bethany Galat, 2018 – 2:03.26

With the ACC Swimming & Diving Championship just over a week away, the big question is, will Douglass actually swim this event at ACCs and/or NCAAs?

Last year, she also swam a speedy 200 breast at the Cavalier Invite, setting a new ACC record in the event, with a 2:03.93. However, Virginia has a lot of depth in this event, she didn’t swim it at either ACCs or NCAAs, opting for the 100 free instead. She won the 100 free at ACCs, and took 2nd behind Maggie MacNeil at NCAAs.

Meanwhile, NC State’s Sophie Hansson wrested the ACC record from Douglass with a 2:03.86 victory at NCAAs. Douglass reclaimed the record with a 2:03.58 last fall at the Tennessee Invite before breaking her own record in the event today.

We’ll do a full-day recap later, but here are a couple quick highlights from this morning’s session:

• UVA freshman Gretchen Walsh went 1:45.74 in the 200 free. That’s her fastest time in a few years, although she doesn’t swim the individual event that often. Walsh is currently ranked 8th in the NCAA in both the 50 free and the 100 free, and ability to make the A-final in the 100 free could be a factor in Douglass opting for the 200 breast over the 100 free for championship season.
• Another UVA freshman, Jack Aikins, lowered his personal best in the 200 free from 1:36.10 to 1:35.87. Aikins, primarily a backstroker, has been quiet so far this season, hardly even swimming on the Cavaliers’ medley relays. But, if he’s rounding into form, that should play a huge role in the UVA men’s quest for another top-ten finish at NCAAs, as his lifetime best of 1:39.85 should make the A-final at NCAAs, and would’ve won the ACC title last season.