Texas women’s swim and dive earns 1st place in 1st ever SEC Championship appearance

Graduate Abby Arens hits the wall with a splash, closing out a second place finish in the 400-meter freestyle relay, securing the team’s 20th medal and picking up a school record in the event.

But most importantly, Arens’ finish meant the Texas women’s swim and dive team had clinched first place in its Southeastern Conference Championship debut.

The team scored 1,450 points and earned seven first place finishes between individual races and relays. They outscored the second place Florida team by 271 points, putting an end to its two-year win streak.

The win marked Texas’s 13th consecutive conference championship, the previous 12 in its dominant tenure in the Big 12 conference.

“Swimming against the best I think always makes you better,” head coach Carol Capitani said about the team’s transition into the conference.

Texas entered the tournament as the No. 1 seed, but its status as favorite didn’t hinder its ability to dominate the meet all six days.

Among several dominant performers was graduate Emma Sticklen. Earning SEC Swimmer of the Meet, Sticklen got to share the Commissioner’s Trophy, awarded to the highest scoring swimmer, with Tennessee’s Camille Spink. Both Sticklen and Spink recorded a total of 96 points.

Sticklen won the 100 fly with a time of 49.40, beating her own school record. She led the way in a program sweep of the 200 fly, setting a new SEC record of 1:49.17 and winning the event by over two seconds. This finish marked the second fastest 200 fly time in NCAA history.

Put simply, Sticklen’s first and last SEC championship meet performance was one that will be cemented into both her own legacy and the legacy of the conference as a whole.

Two other Longhorns made their mark with sophomore Campbell Stoll and graduate Olivia Bray both recording personal bests in the 200 fly, taking second and third place, respectively.

Freshman Jillian Cox followed her victory in the 500-meter free from earlier in the meet with a dominant win in the 1,650-meter free. She set a new SEC meet record and beat her school record by four seconds, with a final time of 15:30.33.

Another key piece to Texas’ historic win came from a strong showing on the diving side.

Texas divers scored 335 points in three events, setting a new SEC meet record. Freshmen Alejandra Estudillo Torres and senior Hailey Hernandez led the way, both medaling in two events.

Torres took home two silvers in the three-meter and platform events, earning a meet-high 81 points. Hernandez took home bronze in both the one and three-meter.

“I think when they learn how to perform in this environment they can perform at nationals, the Olympics, the Olympic trials and wherever there’s a big stage,” Capitani said.

Texas swim will prepare for one last competition: the NCAA Championships in Federal Way, Washington from March 20-23.