There is a particular kind of quiet that exists in Charlottesville in July — the Corner is not as busy and the Lawn has more grass than people. Virginia Athletics apparently did not get the memo.
While students scattered across the world, many Cavalier athletes spent the summer doing what they do the rest of the year — competing at the highest level. Several programs broke records and won world championships. Five Cavalier baseball players heard their names called in the MLB Draft. Coaches changed out, and fall sports had matchups before most students had begun to think about move-in.
So, if your mind was elsewhere this summer, consider this your Virginia Athletics catch-up — because the Cavaliers gave us a lot to talk about.
Swimming
The Virginia swimming team made many headlines this summer, starting with the U.S. National Championships in July, where nine current and former Cavalier athletes competed for 13 national titles.
Junior Katie Grimes won the 400-meter individual medley and 1,500-meter freestyle events, with the latter time of 15:55.69 breaking Class of 2017 Leah Smith's Virginia record that had stood since 2017.
Among the many events dominated by Cavalier swimmers, sophomore Madi Mintenko won the 400-meter freestyle event to gain her first national title. Simultaneously, Class of 2024 Alex Walsh’s 2:08.59 mark took gold in the 200-meter IM — her second after having previously won the title in 2021. Sophomore Teagan O'Dell stood on the podium with her in third place.
Then, Virginia swimming took its success overseas as 10 Cavaliers represented the U.S. at the Pan Pacific Championships — where Class of 2025 Gretchen Walsh and Class of 2023 Kate Douglass helped the Americans set a world record in the mixed 4x100-meter medley relay of 3:36.70. Walsh also won the 50-meter butterfly.
To top it all off, sophomore Sara Curtis had an incredibly impressive weekend. On Aug. 12, Curtis broke the world record in the 50-meter backstroke at the European Championships in Paris, touching the wall at 26.56. She broke her own record of 26.63, set the day prior. She also finished third in the 50-meter freestyle, setting an Italian record with a time of 23.99.
All told, Virginia swimming had a summer for the history books.
Rowing
After finishing fourth at the NCAA Championships in May — the Cavaliers’ best national finish since 2016 — several Virginia rowers took their talents across the Atlantic as six Cavaliers competed at the World Rowing U23 Championships in Duisburg, Germany. Representing five countries, two athletes returned with gold medals.
Senior rower Lila Henn helped the U.S. win the women's quadruple sculls event, while recent alumna Elsa Hartman was part of the American eight that won gold. Henn's quad defeated Great Britain by just under five seconds, giving the U.S. its first win in the event since 2007.
For a Virginia program that has spent years climbing back toward the top of the NCAA, these international results offer another indication of where the Cavaliers are headed and prove they can win anywhere.
Baseball
Virginia baseball players got a special kind of sendoff — five Cavaliers were selected in the MLB Draft. Notably, junior outfielder AJ Gracia was selected ninth overall to the Atlanta Braves, making him the 17th first-round pick in Virginia baseball history and the first Cavalier selected in the top 10 since Pavin Smith and Adam Haseley in 2017.
Junior infielder Eric Becker followed on the first night of the draft, going 58th overall to Cincinnati. And later, three more Cavaliers heard their names called — junior outfielder Kyle Johnson in the sixth round, junior infielder Joe Tiroly in the seventh and graduate pitcher Tyler Kapa in the 14th.
For first-year Coach Chris Pollard, the draft was the final punctuation mark on a promising future for the program, as Virginia went 37-23 and returned to the NCAA Tournament. This year, the Cavaliers will aim for the same success with an influx of young talent.
One Virginia team, on the other hand, decided not to change much.
Men’s Basketball
While the transfer portal continued to turn college basketball rosters over at an increasing speed, the Cavaliers’ men’s basketball team managed to hold on to much of its core.
Virginia went 30-6 last season and lost several important players including Malik Thomas, Jacari White, Ugonna Onyenso, Dallin Hall and Devin Tillis. But, first-team All-ACC sophomore forward Thijs De Ridder returned — so did sophomore guard Chance Mallory, senior guard Sam Lewis and sophomore center Johann Grünloh.
For Coach Ryan Odom entering his second season in Charlottesville, that continuity is significant. Last summer was about assembling a team, while this off-season has been about figuring out what that team can become. In a time of so much change amid the rise of NIL, Odom seems to be doing a solid job of showing players what is so special about Virginia.
While it may be too early to call the Cavaliers a national contender this season, it is not too early to notice that Odom has something increasingly valuable in college basketball — familiarity.
Another team, however, had exactly the opposite.
Women's Basketball
Coach Aaron Roussell took over the women's basketball program in April after seven seasons at Richmond, where he led the Spiders to three consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. His first Virginia roster features five returners, four freshmen and four transfers.
The Cavaliers spent eight weeks of summer workouts learning Roussell's system — emphasizing pace, spacing and quick decisions. There is a lot to absorb and convert before playing a single game.
Virginia will get its first major test against Mississippi State in the SEC/ACC Challenge in December — until then, the team needs to continue figuring out what this new version of Cavalier women's basketball is going to look like.
Men's Lacrosse
Virginia men's lacrosse also has a new head coach in Kevin Cassese — although the program did not exactly turn its back on the past when building its new staff.
Former Cavaliers, Class of 2019 Mikey Herring and Class of 2025 Matthew Nunes, both returned to Charlottesville as coaches. Herring, a member of Virginia's 2019 national championship team, is now the offensive coordinator while Nunes — who spent four seasons as the Cavaliers’ starting goalkeeper — will work with the defense and goalkeepers. Chris Feifs also joined as associate head coach and defensive coordinator after a decade at Vermont.
This summer produced plenty to keep track of — world championships in swimming and rowing, new professional baseball players and several programs beginning new eras. At the same time, it reinforced something that was already becoming difficult to ignore.
Virginia is not relying on one sport to carry its athletic department — the Cavaliers finished fifth in the final Learfield Directors’ Cup standings for 2025-26, their third top-five finish in four years, and won five ACC championships in the past academic year. This summer merely strengthened the evidence of Virginia's dominance.
Now, with the students back and another athletic year brewing, the only question is which Cavalier squad will begin their dominance first.
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