2020 COLONIAL ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS
- Wednesday, February 19-Saturday, February 22
- Christiansburg Aquatics Center, Christiansburg, Virginia (Eastern Time Zone)
- Defending Champion: James Madison women, William & Mary Men
- Live Video (requires subscription)
- Live Results
- Championship Central
The 2020 CAA Championships opened up today in Christiansburg, VA, with the 200 medley and 800 free relays for both men and women, as well as the men’s 1m diving. The William & Mary men are looking for their 6th-straight conference title, while the women of James Madison are aiming to make it three in a row.
In the first swimming event of the night, the women’s 200 medley relay, it was the same 1-2 as last year, although this time Drexel won by a much wider margin, dipping under 1:40 to win in 1:39.26, setting a new meet and CAA record. Alexa Kutch (24.97) and Gab Rudy (27.09) were also on this relay last year, while Hollie Hopf (24.56) and Lera Nasedkina (22.64) created a new back half. W&M and Towson dueled it out for 2nd place, with W&M just hanging out to touch 1:40.56 to 1:40.60.
The meet and conference record was demolished in the men’s 200 medley relay, as four W&M seniors – Colin Demers (21.17), Ian Bidwell (24.20), Jack Doherty (20.60), and Ian Thompson (19.45) combined for a 1:25.52. That time would’ve finished ahead of a couple schools yesterday at the SEC Championships, and put the Tribe 2.5 seconds ahead of 2nd-place UNCW.
The W&M women earned their first win of the meet in the 800 free relay. Megan Bull staked the Tribe to the lead with a 1:47.59 leadoff, and Inez Olszewski (1:50.20), Katie Stevenson (1:48.55), and Tara Tiernan (1:49.08) joined Bull for a 7:15.42 win. JMU took 2nd in 7:17.66.
Records continued to fall in the 800 free relay, which the W&M men won for the tenth-straight year, setting a new meet and CAA record in the process. Christopher Pfuhl led off in 1:37.45, Colin Wright smoked a 1:33.96, a split that’s among the best in mid-major swimming in the country, and Graham Hertwick (1:38.13) and Ben Skopic (1:37.32) closed things out as W&M won by nearly seven seconds.
Women’s Scores Through Day 1
1. William and Mary 74
2. Drexel University 66
3. Towson University 64
4. James Madison University 62
5. University of North Carolina W 58
6. Delaware 56
7. Northeastern University 24
UNCW men had five divers score, given them a fairly commanding lead after the first day. It’s worth mention that W&M does not have a diving program, leaving them in hole, but they typically climb back fairly quickly the next couple of days.
Men’s Scores Through Day 1
1. University of North Carolina W 102
2. Towson University 62
3. Drexel University 57
4. William and Mary 40
5. Delaware 37
And Colin Wright goes 18.98 to lead off the winning William and Mary 200 free relay during the evening session on Day Two. Go Tribe!
Alexa Kutch, like usual, throwing down huge swims. Wonder what she’ll go in the 100 with a split like that. Also… a 1:33? Insane! I wonder if he can repeat that in an individual.
How do you not get DQ’d for -.31 reaction time?