After we took a deep dive into the archives and produced a list of the 10 fastest mid-major swimmers of all-time in every individual event (thank you to everyone who chimed in with swims that were missing), it’s now time to do the same for the relays.
The list only includes one relay per program.
Some notes on the data:
- The women have a different program holding the #1 time in all five relay events: Boise State, Hawaii, Harvard, Akron and SMU.
- The Dean Farris-era Harvard men hold the top time across all five male relays.
- Four programs hold a spot inside the top 10 in all five women’s events: San Diego State, Boise State, SMU and Akron.
- Three programs hold a spot inside the top 10 in all five men’s events: Harvard, UNLV and Princeton.
Note that due to a lack of reliable data, the rankings are potentially missing times from the early 2000s and earlier, so if there are certain swims you notice are missing, please let us know in the comments below.
Women’s 200 Freestyle Relay
| Rank | Team | Time | Season |
| 1 | Boise State | 1:28.31 | 2016-17 |
| 2 | SMU | 1:28.48 | 2011-12 |
| 3 | Akron | 1:28.54 | 2018-19 |
| 4 | San Diego State | 1:28.65 | 2013-14 |
| 5 | FGCU | 1:28.76 | 2016-17 |
| 6 | Princeton | 1:28.85 | 2022-23 |
| 7 | UNLV | 1:28.96 | 2021-22 |
| 8 | FIU | 1:28.99 | 2017-18 |
| 9 | Hawaii | 1:29.20 | 2022-23 |
| 10 | Denver | 1:29.35 | 2016-17 |
Women’s 400 Freestyle Relay
| Rank | Team | Time | Season |
| 1 | Hawaii | 3:12.76 | 2022-23 |
| 2 | SMU | 3:14.16 | 2005-06 |
| 3 | Akron | 3:14.42 | 2018-19 |
| 4 | Harvard | 3:14.48 | 2019-20 |
| 5 | FIU | 3:15.23 | 2016-17 |
| 6 | Princeton | 3:15.25 | 2022-23 |
| 7 | Boise State | 3:15.38 | 2015-16 |
| 8 | Yale | 3:16.48 | 2018-19 |
| 9 | San Diego State | 3:16.60 | 2013-14 |
| 10 | Denver | 3:16.89 | 2014-15 |
Women’s 800 Freestyle Relay
| Rank | Team | Time | Season |
| 1 | Harvard | 6:59.92 | 2019-20 |
| 2 | Boise State | 7:03.96 | 2016-17 |
| 3 | Princeton | 7:04.23 | 2019-20 |
| 4 | SMU | 7:04.87 | 2007-08 |
| 5 | Nevada | 7:05.98 | 2015-16 |
| 6 | Navy | 7:06.23 | 2018-19 |
| 7 | Houston | 7:06.29 | 2019-20 |
| 8 | Yale | 7:06.35 | 2016-17 |
| 9 | San Diego State | 7:06.64 | 2013-14 |
| 10 | Akron | 7:06.81 | 2018-19 |
Women’s 200 Medley Relay
| Rank | Team | Time | Season |
| 1 | Akron | 1:36.28 | 2018-19 |
| 2 | San Diego State | 1:36.30 | 2019-20 |
| 3 | FIU | 1:36.79 | 2021-22 |
| 4 | SMU | 1:36.84 | 2011-12 |
| 5 | Princeton | 1:36.89 | 2022-23 |
| 6 | Rice | 1:37.04 | 2014-15 |
| 7 | FGCU | 1:37.05 | 2014-15 |
| 8 | Denver | 1:37.19 | 2016-17 |
| 9 | Boise State | 1:37.22 | 2018-19 |
| 10 | Yale | 1:37.30 | 2017-18 |
Women’s 400 Medley Relay
| Rank | Team | Time | Season |
| 1 | SMU | 3:31.66 | 2013-14 |
| 2 | Akron | 3:31.67 | 2021-22 |
| 3 | San Diego State | 3:32.28 | 2018-19 |
| 4 | Harvard | 3:32.72 | 2019-20 |
| 5 | Denver | 3:33.85 | 2016-17 |
| 6 | FGCU | 3:33.92 | 2015-16 |
| 7 | Houston | 3:34.11 | 2019-20 |
| 8 | Yale | 3:34.22 | 2017-18 |
| 9 | Boise State | 3:34.40 | 2016-17 |
| 10 | Hawaii | 3:34.56 | 2018-19 |
Men’s 200 Freestyle Relay
| Rank | Team | Time | Season |
| 1 | Harvard | 1:15.88 | 2021-22 |
| 2 | UNLV | 1:16.62 | 2022-23 |
| 3 | Denver | 1:17.09 | 2019-20 |
| 4 | Yale | 1:17.10 | 2022-23 |
| 5 | SMU | 1:17.17 | 2022-23 |
| 6 | William & Mary | 1:17.19 | 2019-20 |
| 7 | Grand Canyon | 1:17.21 | 2018-19 |
| 8 | Queens (NC) | 1:17.26 | 2022-23 |
| 9 | Pacific | 1:17.29 | 2017-18 |
| 10 | Princeton | 1:17.35 | 2014-15 |
Men’s 400 Freestyle Relay
| Rank | Team | Time | Season |
| 1 | Harvard | 2:48.24 | 2021-22 |
| 2 | UNLV | 2:50.70 | 2021-22 |
| 3 | Yale | 2:51.53 | 2022-23 |
| 4 | Princeton | 2:51.87 | 2021-22 |
| 5 | SMU | 2:51.96 | 2022-23 |
| 6 | Denver | 2:51.99 | 2019-20 |
| 7 | Penn | 2:52.26 | 2018-19 |
| 8 | Southern Illinois | 2:52.45 | 2022-23 |
| 9 | Grand Canyon | 2:52.57 | 2015-16 |
| 10 | Oakland | 2:52.70 | 2022-23 |
Men’s 800 Freestyle Relay
| Rank | Team | Time | Season |
| 1 | Harvard | 6:11.73 | 2018-19 |
| 2 | Princeton | 6:16.77 | 2022-23 |
| 3 | Navy | 6:18.54 | 2020-21 |
| 4 | UNLV | 6:20.04 | 2019-20 |
| 5 | Yale | 6:21.00 | 2017-18 |
| 6 | UC Santa Barbara | 6:21.23 | 2018-19 |
| 7 | SMU | 6:21.56 | 2022-23 |
| 8 | Air Force | 6:22.67 | 2022-23 |
| 9 | Cincinnati | 6:22.84 | 2021-22 |
| 10 | Penn | 6:22.90 | 2017-18 |
Men’s 200 Medley Relay
| Rank | Team | Time | Season |
| 1 | Harvard | 1:22.42 | 2021-22 |
| 2 | Grand Canyon | 1:24.33 | 2017-18 |
| 3 | Hawaii | 1:24.57 | 2018-19 |
| 4 | Denver | 1:24.63 | 2019-20 |
| 5 | SMU | 1:24.64 | 2021-22 |
| 6 | UNLV | 1:24.85 | 2022-23 |
| 7 | Queens (NC) | 1:24.85 | 2022-23 |
| 8 | Cal Baptist | 1:24.88 | 2021-22 |
| 9 | Delaware | 1:24.92 | 2022-23 |
| 10 | Princeton | 1:24.95 | 2014-15 |
Men’s 400 Medley Relay
| Rank | Team | Time | Season |
| 1 | Harvard | 3:03.24 | 2021-22 |
| 2 | Princeton | 3:05.95 | 2022-23 |
| 3 | Grand Canyon | 3:06.74 | 2018-19 |
| 4 | Navy | 3:07.32 | 2021-22 |
| 5 | Yale | 3:07.36 | 2022-23 |
| 6 | UNLV | 3:07.45 | 2022-23 |
| 7 | Denver | 3:07.53 | 2019-20 |
| 8 | Hawaii | 3:07.75 | 2018-19 |
| 9 | Delaware | 3:07.92 | 2022-23 |
| 10 | Columbia | 3:08.31 | 2019-20 |
I love these lists! Thank you for putting this together!
Would be really interesting to see which of these relays were bolstered by one stand-out performer, like Dean Farris, and which just happened to be firing on all cylinders that day!
or Leah Thomas
Lia Thomas isn’t on any relays on this list.
Well, just from top of my head – Hawai’i’s medleys had Olli Kokko on breast and Metin Aydin on back. GCU had Mark Nikolaev on back. Air Force’s 8 free relay had Wen Zhang. W&M’s 2 free relay had Colin Wright. Denver’s relays had Cameron Auchinachie and Sid Farber. Not to say they didn’t also have other really good swimmers, but those are the standouts I can think of there.