For the second year in a row, the Virginia women's swimming and diving team came up just short of victory in the ACC Championships. But the Cavaliers are not going to let it get them down.
Last year, Virginia was nipping at North Carolina's heels and despite winning eight events - the most by any school - the Cavaliers lost to the Tar Heels by a slim 149-point difference.
Unfortunately, this year was not any different. Virginia won four events and once again finished second behind Carolina.
"I think the team was disappointed that we came in second," senior tri-captain Megan Iffland said. "But [we're] happy with the way our team came together and the way we gelled."
In the end, the Cavalier women may have lost the ACC Championship, but they walked away with something more important to them: a better team environment.
Finishing second in the ACCs "wasn't too much of a disappointment," sophomore Cara Lane said. "We exceeded our expectations and swam really well, and did it as a team. We knew it would be difficult to beat Carolina because they're so deep. The main part was coming together."
When Iffland set a new pool record of 1 minute, 58.64 seconds and won the 200-yard backstroke, her teammates were quick to congratulate her. Iffland leaves after this year, and her win at the ACCs punctuated an illustrious Virginia career as the Cavaliers' top backstroker.
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"It was just amazing," Lane said. "The whole team was in tears. I'm so happy for her. She was such a key player all four years. I'll miss her."
Iffland, however, was just happy that she won.
"I was really happy because I finally got my individual title in the 200 back," Iffland said.
Although the swimming season is winding down, the Cavaliers are approaching the NCAA Championship on March 15 with heads held high. Not everyone on the team will swim in the meet, but the individuals who are need the support of their teammates.
Lane notched three out of Virginia's four wins at the ACCs, finishing first in the 500 freestyle, 1650 free and 200 butterfly. Her times in the 1650 free and 200 fly automatically qualified her for NCAAs. Lane also repeated as the ACC Championship's Most Valuable Swimmer for the second year in a row.
"She's gonna do some damage," Iffland said. "Her main focus is on the NCAAs and she's ready to swim."
Even as she was swimming in the ACCs, Lane had bigger things on her mind. For a swimmer of her caliber, ACCs are just a primer for the hotly contested NCAAs.
"The ACCs helped prepare me for the NCAAs a lot better," Lane said. "Last year I was just a first year. Everything's new. But this year, I'd been through it before and knew what to expect."
Virginia sophomore Mirjana Bosevska also automatically qualified for the NCAAs in the 200 fly. Her time of 1:59.83 seconds in the ACCs earned her second place and a berth in the NCAAs. Bosevska led Lane for much of the race, but in the end, Lane just out-touched her teammate.
So before you call Virginia's second-place finish in the ACCs a disappointment, understand that the team did swim away with an important victory. When Virginia swimmers head to the NCAAs in March, they'll have the whole team standing behind them from start to finish.
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