UrsusArctosCalifornicus said:

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Actually our 2021 recruiting class are a mite dodgy on elite Backstrokers (Isabelle & Izzy will be our go-tos in this dept next season, supported by Alicia, Ayla & Tea), with "Breaststroke U" appearing to be the name of the game instead, though IM & Fly talent are also fairly well-represented in the class - just consider their HS *100/200 Breast* times:

Alicia Henry (1:00.20/2:12.58)
Melanie Julia (1:00.80/2:13.80)
Shelby Suppiger (1:01.31/2:12.41)
Annika McEnroe (1:02.01/2:10.44)
--------
Abigail Herscu (1:02.13/2:13.11) *2022

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Word is that Colorado State's top breaststroker Madison Ward will be joining the team as a grad transfer this coming season (thanks for the info, s19)

swimmer19 said:

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Originally from the Bay Area (Walnut Creek), Maddie's best times are 1:00.02/2:09.85 in the breaststrokes and also a 2:00 IMer, coming from her 2019 conference meet. That 200 breast would have received an invite to this year's NCAA meet. She swam one meet this last season prior to a season-long injury.

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UrsusArctosCalifornicus said:

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Keeping my fingers crossed that Teri & Dani haven't depleted their scholarship funds after a very sizeable 2021 recruiting squad (14), and are positioned to vie competitively for the remaining 2022 top play-makers, notably #1 Claire Curzan & #2 Charlotte Hook. Keep in mind that the later these top recruits announce their verbal commitments, the greater the chances that they may be bound for the Farm, or the Ivies (i.e. #10 Natalie Mannion possibly joining her sister @ Princeton?), due to the admissions timetables of those institutions.

Bears could have a shot at in-state #14 Katie Crom (#14 Nat, #3 CA), via the Mission Viejo Nadadores connection...although 'SC are reportedly going after her hard, and LSJU has to be in the running too.

Reckon Gigi Johnson (#43 Nat, #2 GA) and Kirsti McEnroe (#72 Nat, #1 SC) could be Baby Bear material (just a bit of wild speculation haha), the latter being the younger sibling of 2021 Bear signee Annika ... although Gigi has most certainly attracted interest from the Furd & the Horns too.

Speaking of LSJU, Meehan's surely gung ho on #1 Claire Curzan, #2 Charlotte Hook, #7 Lucy Bell, and #18 Kayla Wilson, amongst other notables.

---

TOP 20 NCAA SWIMMING RECRUITS IN THE GIRLS HIGH SCHOOL CLASS OF 2022


TOP 20 SWIMMERS FROM THE CLASS OF 2022 (***Uncommitted***)

1. Claire Curzan (Previous Rank: #1) - TAC Titans - Cardinal Gibbons High School - Cary, NC
Best Times: 100 fly - 49.51, 100 back - 50.03, 200 back - 1:49.35, 50 free - 21.50, 100 free - 47.23, 200 free - 1:45.47, 200 fly - 1:53.59, 200 IM - 1:58.87

What can you say about Curzan? She's one of the best recruits we've ever seen in college swimming. She would have made the 2021 NCAA A final in six different events (100/200 fly, 100/200 back, 50/100 free). She's the best sprint freestyle in the class by a longshot, and she might not even swim those events at the college level because of how good her fly and back are. Her lifetime-bests haven't had race videos available lately, but this long course swim from November shows how smooth and efficient her butterfly is. And her underwater kick speed is unbelievable, especially coming off the turn. Curzan is in lane 4.

2. Charlotte Hook (Previous Rank: #2) - TAC Titans - Cary Academy - Raleigh, NC
Best Times: 200 fly - 1:52.72, 200 IM - 1:54.79, 400 IM - 4:06.43, 500 free - 4:41.83, 200 free - 1:45.38, 100 fly - 52.20, 100 back - 52.85, 200 back - 1:55.28, 1650 free - 16:27.38, 1000 free - 9:42.51, 100 free - 49.98, 50 free - 22.81, 100 breast - 1:01.59, 200 breast - 2:13.91

Hook is Curzan's club teammate, and the two of them pretty well cover the butterfly events in this class with outstanding speed. Hook definitely qualifies as one of those IM/stroke types we mentioned above who don't really cross over into a lot of relay events. But she's got the best 200 fly and 200 IM in the class, and has a 200 free that should give her at least one high-level relay event early on in her career. Hook isn't quite the underwater rocket that Curzan is, but race videos show a really tough, disciplined swimmer. This is an older swim, but the way Hook (lane 4) paces this swim and then rips away from the field in the back half is veteran-level 200 fly strategy.

7. Lucy Bell (Previous Rank: #7) - Fort Collins Area Swim Team - Fossil Ridge High School - Fort Collins, CO
Best Times: 200 fly - 1:54.93, 100 fly - 52.17, 400 IM - 4:12.42, 200 IM - 1:56.54, 100 free - 49.17, 200 free - 1:49.33, 50 free - 22.99, 100 breast - 1:01.45

Bell is yet another 200 fly/200 IM type in our top 10. She's already got an NCAA scoring time in the 200 fly, and is right on the cusp in the 100 fly (.04 away from a 2021 scoring time) and 200 IM (0.6 away). Bell is also a pretty solid sprint freestyle who should find a way to contribute somewhere between the freestyle and medley relays. The Colorado prospect also has a handful of times that get an altitude-adjustment bump, so she might be an even bigger value depending on how much you weigh altitude. Here's a race video of Bell swimming her lifetime-best 200 IM against a field of high school boys (top lane). She really bounces off the walls well on her open turns, and her butterfly and breaststroke are especially smooth.

15. Kayla Wilson (Previous Rank: #17) - Tide Swimming - Norfolk Academy - Virginia Beach, VA
Best Times: 200 free - 1:44.90, 500 free - 4:47.37, 100 free - 49.30, 50 free - 23.03

Wilson is knocking on the door of the class's best 200 freestyle after dropping 1.3 seconds back in December. Here's that swim, with Wilson in lane 5 (blue cap). She's got a stroke that covers a lot of ground without needing crazy-high turnover, and that almost makes you more excited for her 200/500 than her sprints. But 49.3 is still one of the better 100 times in the class, and Wilson should have some relay potential no matter where she focuses in college.

17. Sophie Duncan (Previous Rank: Honorable Mention) - Nation's Capital Swim Club - Holton-Arms High School - Bethesda, MD
Best Times: 400 IM - 4:09.80, 200 IM - 1:59.56, 500 free - 4:45.74, 200 free - 1:48.79, 1650 free - 16:33.46, 1000 free - 9:49.76, 200 fly - 1:58.22, 200 back - 1:57.98

Just another sub-4:10 IMer in this class. To give some perspective on how that stacks up historically, NCAA runner-up Ella Nelson was just 4:10.8 as a high school junior. Duncan isn't far off what NCAA champ Brooke Forde was as a junior (4:07.4). Duncan is also on a great trajectory, dropping from 4:14.8 as of last spring. Here's that swim, with Duncan in lane 5. Freestyle is her strong point, with a good leg drive on each freestyle breakout. She might project best as a 500 free/400 IM/1650 free type at the college level, with good toughness in those daunting events.


HONORABLE MENTIONS (***Uncommitted***)

Natalie Mannion (Previous Rank: #10) - Sarasota YMCA Sharks - Buckingham Browne & Nichols School - Boston, MA
Best Times: 100 back - 53.07, 200 back - 1:54.24, 500 free - 4:45.93, 200 free - 1:46.83, 100 free - 49.70, 100 fly - 54.57, 200 fly - 1:59.68, 200 IM - 1:59.95

Mannion is going to make a very good NCAA scorer somewhere between backstroke and the mid-distance freestyles. She really didn't drop much as a junior, but she's already got a great range of events with NCAA scoring potential.


BEST OF THE REST (***Uncommitted***)

Sprint free:

• Kirsti McEnroe (22.9/49.4/1:47.2)

Breaststroke:

• Emily Lundgren (1:00.9/2:13.4)

Butterfly:

• Katie Crom (1:56.0, 4:46/1:48.4FR, 4:15IM)

IM:

• Gigi Johnson (1:57.7, 53.1FL)

--------------


COMMITS (as of 12 May 2021)
========

• *VIRGINIA*

5. Claire Tuggle
9. Zoe Dixon
12. Carly Novelline
13. Emma Weber
Honorable Mention: Zoe Skirboll

• *NC STATE*

6. Kennedy Noble
19. Katherine Helms
Best of the Rest: Aubree Brouwer

• *FLORIDA*

9. Zoe Dixon
14. Hayden Miller

• *LOUISVILLE*

10. Rye Ulett
20. Ella Welch
Honorable Mention: Paige Kuwata

• *USC*

3. Justina Kozan

• *WISCONSIN*

4. Blair Stoneburg

• *TEXAS*

8. Lydia Jacoby

• *OHIO STATE*

11. Lucy Malys

• *UNC*

16. Emma Karam
Best of the Rest: Michelle Morgan

• *INDIANA*

18. Kristina Paegle
Best of the Rest: Mya DeWitt

• *NOTRE DAME*

Honorable Mention: Gretchen Lueking
Honorable Mention: Renee Gillilan
Best of the Rest: Mary Codevilla

• *DUKE*

Best of the Rest: Tatum Wall
Best of the Rest: Kaelyn Gridley
Best of the Rest: Martina Peroni

• *MICHIGAN*

Best of the Rest: Riley Francis
Best of the Rest: Devon Kitchel

• *TENNESSEE*

Best of the Rest: Julia Burroughs

• *SOUTH CAROLINA*

Honorable Mention: Claire Dafoe

• *KENTUCKY*

Best of the Rest: Denise Phelan

• *UCLA*

Best of the Rest: Morganne Malloy

• *HARVARD*

Best of the Rest: Sydney Lu

• *YALE*

Best of the Rest: Jessey Li

• *PRINCETON*

Best of the Rest: Sabrina Johnston

• *ALABAMA*

Best of the Rest: Laci Black

• *NORTHWESTERN*

Best of the Rest: Hana Shimizu-Bowers


--------------

• UPDATE =>

Swimswam readers said:

---

Ghost asked: "Any suggestions as to where Curzan and Hook will land? No Stanford commits yet!"

Riccardo pointed out: "When top recruits are "uncommitted" this late in the process it likely means they are silently committed to Stanford or an Ivy and waiting on the word as to whether or not they've actually gotten in."

Bill replied: "At least 3 on the list will be Stanford commits."

Joel Lin rebutted: "That's pure projection. We also see no Cal commits on this list.
The Stanford sell is great academic prestige & location, but my guess is the cost of attending Stanford relative to other elite/selective schools doesn't resonate the same way it did in the 1980s-90s. Much of that is just one factor: despite the ridiculously high endowment, the tier of selective private universities have become much more expensive over the recent decades. The cost of college in has gone up a lot generally, but most acutely at private ones.
The Stanford sell, which worked well in decades past, was *come here because we have it all over the others* isn't a sell today & it won't be again because it just isn't true. Stanford is great. GREAT. But it does not have it all over Cal, Michigan, Virginia, UCLA, Texas or other legitimately elite state institutions which happen to be more affordable."

ReneDescartes quiped: "Your guess is way off. 3 on this list will be going to Stanford is extremely accurate."

Joel Lin explained: "I'm not guessing & that wasn't the point of my post. Recruits & their families should be eyes wide open to all the factors that lead to a college choice.
Geography is a factor & the Bay Area is very appealing to many for a lot of reasons. Last I checked there's another Bay Area D1 swimming program which is both a great academic institution & a program that has won NCAA titles in the recent decade as well."

Willswim argued: "Then how do you explain all the recent success on the recruiting trail? Stanford has definitely outperformed the other schools you mentioned THIS decade."

Bill wondered: "Who are the 3 you are projecting? Curzan, Hook and Bell?"

Nonrevhoofan queried: "When you rank the Classes, how do you intend to consider those who deferred arrival and those who chose to come early? Stanford's Class of 2020 will, primarily, arrive in 2021 will they be considered as 2021? UVA had one defer (Emma Weyant) and one arrive early (Reilly Tiltmann, who crushed her PBs at NCAAs) if you don't include either in the Class of 2021, you are undervaluing the class. Plans?"

Braden Keith {Admin} wrote: "A lot of the calculus comes down to in state or out of state, and we know that in general, athletes are more likely to go out of state anyway.
Stanford cost of attendance calculation: 78,898 (https://financialaid.stanford.edu/undergrad/budget/index.html)
Virginia cost of attendance calculation out of state: 68-81k, depending on major and year of study (https://sfs.virginia.edu/financial-aid-current-students/current-undergraduate-students/financial-aid-basics/estimated-0)
Michigan cost of attendance out of state: 71k (https://finaid.umich.edu/getting-started/estimating-costs)
There are, of course, all kind of caveats here. Stanford is tuition-free for all households up to $150,000 in income, which covers about 81% of American households. At Michigan, tuition is free for families with income under $65,000 and assets below $50,000, for in-state students only. I didn't find any kind of a sliding scale program for Virginia.
And even within these ranges there are more nuance about multiple kids in school, parent contributions, etc. etc. etc."

---

Chronicling the European Championships achievements of a pair of our 2021 international Baby Bears on this thread, for reference (quoted from this original topic Women's swim roster 2020-2021 now up! (2021 LEN EUROPEAN AQUATICS CHAMPIONSHIPS):

----------

HBear said:

---

OBear073akaSMFan said:

---

swimmer19 said:

---

Hungarian swimmer Fanni Fabian (#8 Nat) has verbaled to the Bears, per the team's IG announcement of a new commit from earlier this afternoon.

Strengths appear to lie in the mid-distance freestyles and the 200 fly, with LC times of 1:59/4:13 in the 200/400 freestyle and 2:09 in the 200 fly, achieved at the most recent Junior Worlds and Hungarian Junior Nationals.

---

Would be the highest rated so far for the class of 2021. Great get for the Bears!

---

Linking the SwimSwam announcement here:

EURO SUMMER JUNIORS SILVER MEDALIST FANNI FABIAN OF HUNGARY PICKS CAL

With her converted times, Fabian would've been invited to the 2020 NCAA Champs in the 200 fly, while she would've been just within reach of a 200 free invite. She would've been Cal's #2 200 butterflier and their #5 200 freestyler last year.

---

UrsusArctosCalifornicus said:

---

• Euro 2021 - Mixed 4x200 Free Relay (Morning Heats)

Fanni Fabian {HUN} - 2:00.78 split

Fanni anchored the host nation's mixed relay to qualify for evening finals in the #5 seeded position, a mere 0.04 second behind Israel.

Of note, Fabian's swim was about a sec & a half swifter than her veteran teammate Evelyn Verraszto's 2:02.27, the latter a former world record holder who has represented Hungary in the past 4 Olympics, in addition to golds in the W 4x200 Free @ Euro 2010 & 2016...

• UPDATE =>

Fanni was again tasked with anchoring responsibilities for Hungary in the finals, where she lowered her 2:00.78 time from this morning down to 2:00.10.

• Euro 2021 - W 200 Free (Morning Heats)

#18 Fanni Fabian {HUN} - 2:00.58 [PB = 1:59.37]

• Euro 2021 - W 200 Free (Semi-Finals)

#14 Fanni Fabian {HUN} - 2:00.06 [PB = 1:59.37]

• Euro 2021 - W 4 x 200 Free Relay (Morning Heats)

#6 {HUN} - 8:02.50: Fanni Fabian (3rd leg) - 2:00.50

• Euro 2021 - W 4 x 200 Free Relay (Finals)

#2 {HUN} - 7:56.26: Fanni Fabian (2nd leg) - 2:00.19 => Silver medal


(Fanni's in the dark jacket, I think)

---

----------

swimmer19 said:

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EURO JUNIORS BRONZE MEDALIST LEA POLONSKY COMMITS TO CAL CLASS OF 2021

---

UrsusArctosCalifornicus said:

---

• Euro 2021 - W 100 Breast (Morning Heats)

#50 Lea Polonsky {ISR} - 1:10.60 [PB = 1:08.97]

• Euro 2021 - W 200 Breast (Morning Heats)

#42 Lea Polonsky{ISR} - 2:35.94 [PB = 2:33.39]

=======

• Euro 2021 - W 200 Free (Morning Heats)

#32 Lea Polonsky{ISR} - 2:02.28 [PB = 2:01.02]

=======

• Euro 2021 - W 4 x 200 Free Relay (Morning Heats)

#2 {ISR} - 8:00.51: Lea Polonsky (leadoff) - 2:02.67 [PB = 2:01.02]

2021 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS: DAY 5 PRELIMS LIVE RECAP

Israel's squad established a brand new national record of 8:00.51, improving upon the country's previous fastest-ever mark of 8:06.91 (by 6+ seconds!). That former record was set earlier this year at the 2021 Swim Open in Stockholm by the same 4 women who raced today:

2021 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
Lea Polonsky 2:02.67
Andi Murez 1:57.31
Daria Golovaty 2:01.76
Anastasia Gorbenko 1:58.77
8:00.51

2021 SWIM OPEN STOCKHOLM
Andi Murez 1:57.97
Anastasia Gorbenko 2:01.84
Lea Polonsky 2:04.18
Daria Golovaty 2:02.92
8:06.91

SwimSwam readers said:

---

Braden Keith {Admin} wrote: "Polonsky has a "B" cut in the 400 IM, so she wouldn't necessarily have to be a relay only swimmer (for Israel @ Tokyo)."

Hannah wrote: "Polonsky is also about .1 away from the A cut in the 200 IM and Israel apparently has other qualifying opportunities in June. If she qualifies there she definitely won't be a relay only swimmer anymore. I'm assuming she didn't swim the event here because this is the last chance of qualifying the relay and they wanted to focus on that."

---

• Euro 2021 - W 4 x 200 Free Relay (Finals)

#8 {ISR} - 8:07.69: Lea Polonsky (3rd leg) - 2:02.47

---

----------

Was just randomly/wildly wondering if Teri has given any thought to recruiting Israel's swim star Anastasia Gorbenko, via the Lea Polonsky/Kathleen Baker/David Marsh pipeline?

Gorbenko has notably broken Israeli Records in 4 separate events at 2021 Euros this past week:

• 100 back: 59.78 (semifinals)
• 50 breast: 31.33 (opening split of 100 breast semifinals)
• 100 breast: 1:06.74 (100 breast semifinals)
• 200 IM: 2:10.35 (semifinals)
• 200 IM: 2:09.99 (finals)

Oh, never mind - just remembered that Anastasia competed for LA Current in the ISL, i.e. has turned pro...

Whilst we're on that train of thought re international prospects, well I know it's massively wishful thinking lol (i.e. she may have already turned pro??), but how about newly minted world record holder Benedetta Pilato (ITA), who had smashed Lily King's mark in the 50m Breast @ Euros? :p

Anyway, going back to Lea Polonsky:

STANFORD ADDS TOKYO QUALIFIER RON POLONSKY OF ISRAEL FOR 2021-22

Israel's Ron Polonsky has committed to swim for Stanford University starting in 2021-22 school year.

His sister, Lea Polonsky, will be begin her collegiate swimming career at the Cardinal's arch-rival, Cal, at the same time.

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CAL COMMIT ELLA MAZUREK CHASING 100/200 GOLD AT CENTRAL COAST CHAMPS



The Central Coast Section Championship Meet is set to take place this week at San Benito High School in Hollister, California. The diving portion of the meet will occur on Wednesday, May 26 while the swimming events are set for Friday and Saturday.

With no California High School State Championship meet scheduled for this year, this will be the season-ending event for participants. The meet is just a week before the start of Wave I of the U.S. Olympic Trials, and about three weeks before the start of Wave II of the U.S. Olympic Trials, so those athletes who are going to the big June meets may not be fully tapered here.

One of the names to watch at the meet will be Quicksilver Swimming Santa Cruz senior Ella Mazurek. Mazurek is set to wrap up her high school career this season and has committed to swim for the California Golden Bears beginning in the Fall of 2021. Having won silver at this meet in the 100 and bronze in 200 freestyle back in 2019, Mazurek will enter as top seed in both of those events this year. Mazurek holds a 51.01 in the 100 and a 1:51.42 in the 200.

Is Ella Mazurek a new Cal commit for 2021? She's from Santa Cruz out of my backyard of the Central Coast Section. Go Bears!

Schroeder71 said:

---

Is Ella Mazurek a new Cal commit for 2021? She's from Santa Cruz out of my backyard of the Central Coast Section. Go Bears!

---

=>

UrsusArctosCalifornicus said:

---

(1/31/2020)

Welcome to Bear Territory, Ella!

Ella Mazurek (#88 Nat, #6 CA), sprint free oriented commit from Quicksilver Swimming in Santa Cruz (reps Canada internationally) => Cal

Juniors Finalist Ella Mazurek of Quicksilver Swimming Sends 2021 Verbal to Cal

---

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WAY TOO EARLY RECRUIT RANKS: GIRLS HIGH SCHOOL CLASS OF 2023

THIS CLASS

• Distance-heavy group at the top
• Very much in-development
• Sprint free is deep, but without a clear frontrunner
• One-distance breaststrokers trying to develop range
• Thin back/fly groups

Right now, this is a distance-dominated class, without a ton of immediate-impact sprinters.

We've got three true distance swimmers in our top 6 for the time being, and the lowest-ranked of those three would be among the best 500 freestyles in any other sophomore class we've ranked.

On the flip side, the sprints are very much a work in progress. Really only one of our top 15 could be considered a true sprint freestyler in the 50/100 mold. But the class is exceptionally deep in those events, with a huge crowd of swimmers outside our top 20 still sitting in the 22-high/49-mid range. (Our top times in the entire class are 22.5/48.9, so you can see how densely-packed this group is).

As far as strokes go, this is a good breaststroke class - even better than the class of 2022's girls in that stroke. But none of the top breaststrokers really have really developed a 100 and 200 breast to the same level.

Breaststroke is pretty deep, but backstroke and butterfly are relatively thin in contrast. There are some very good flyers near the top of the class, but depth drops off. Backstroke is pretty thin as a whole, with even 53/1:55-type swimmers pretty rare.

----------

(Furd mentions removed by request)

Maddie Ward (5th Year transfer from Colorado State University) => Cal

Breaststroker (1:00.02 / 2:09.85)...

https://instagr.am/p/CO3t_4jnus7

Robin Neumann's back for the Bears this season! (5th year)

• UPDATE =>

Also 2 froski divers for 2021-2022...

Francesca Colby (redshirt) & Lara Phipps

Swimswam reader comments:

"There are 3 remaining uncommitted Top 20, who are all in the Top 10: Curzan, Hook, and Bell. Would they announce before or after the Olympics?"

"Did I miss the Cal recruits? Who are the Cal recruits in this class"

"I am worried where are the Cal recruits"

"Cal has one of their largest freshmen classes in history starting this school year, at something like 13 women. So I'm assuming this years class would need to be smaller."

Mia Motekaitis (#351 Nat, #38 CA) => Bears

https://instagr.am/p/CRj85FeNe1L

"I am super excited to announce that I will be continuing my academic and athletic career and transferring from UC Davis to the University of California, Berkeley. Thank you to all the teammates, family, and friends who have supported me over the many years. I am so excited to be apart of this amazing team! Go Bears!"

------------

UrsusArctosCalifornicus said:

---

Izzie & Isa have been fantastic Top 5 gets the past couple of cycles , but 2021 seemed to have been more about depth & breadth than top end superstars for Bears, with 2022 starting off with a single verbal in unranked breaststroker Abby Herscu to date.

---

USA SWIMMING NAMES 43 TO JUNIOR TEAM FOR 2021 FINA SWIMMING WORLD CUP

The U.S. team will compete at the 2021 FINA World Cup's leg 3 in Berlin, Germany on October 1-3 in Berlin and leg 4 in Budapest, Hungary on October 7-9.

SWIMMER | EVENT | CLUB | COACH

Abigail Herscu | 200 BR | Livermore Aqua Cowboys | Alex Silver

-----------

• UPDATE =>

Not exactly what we were rooting for here, but it's looking more & more likely that #1 Claire Curzan will be heading to either LSJU or UVa, having taken recruiting trips to both schools recently.

Note: Pleasantly surprised but at the same time dead chuffed with SwimSwam's ranking of our Bears @ #4!

Mentions of LSJU have been kept minimised here in case I get into further trouble

--------

RANKING THE 2021 WOMEN'S NCAA RECRUITING CLASSES

#16: Michigan Wolverines
#15: North Carolina Tar Heels
#14: Notre Dame Fighting Irish
#13: Indiana Hoosiers
#12: USC Trojans
#11: Wisconsin Badgers
#10: Texas Longhorns
#9: Auburn Tigers
#8: Florida Gators
#7: Ohio State Buckeyes
#6: Georgia Bulldogs

--------

#5: Virginia Cavaliers

This is where the rankings become a question of depth versus high-end ability, with Virginia bringing in one of the fastest high school sprinters of all time and, by and large, a very talented class, but not as many swimmers as some of the other schools.

All three of Virginia's swimmers are in a position to be instant scorers and have a long-lasting impact on relays for the duration of their careers.

Our #2-ranked recruit Gretchen Walsh is the marquee name of the group, having held the #1 spot each of the last two years only to be overtaken by Torri Huske after her phenomenal senior year.

--------

#4: CALIFORNIA GOLDEN BEARS

• Top-tier additions: #15 Mia Kragh (CA - fly/free), Fanni Fabian (Hungary - free/fly), Alicia Henry (GA - breast), Elizabeth Cook (OR - fly/free), Annika McEnroe (SC - IM/fly), Lea Polonsky (Israel - breast/IM/free), Ella Mazurek (CA - free), McKenna Stone (IL - free), Reed Broaders (IL - back/fly), Melanie Julia (CA - breast), Shelby Suppiger (CA - breast)
• The rest: Jessica Davis (CA - back), Stephanie Akakabota (FL - free), Daniela Cogswell (UAE - free/back), Lara Phipps (NY - diving)

Cal brings in a deep class that lacks one true standout but has several women brimming with potential.

#15 Mia Kragh highlights the domestic recruits as a 52.0/1:56.1 flyer, with her 100 time making her the class's third-best in the event behind Torri Huske and Gretchen Walsh. Kragh, also a 22.8/49.8 freestyler, is coming off a brilliant performance at the Speedo Summer Championships in August, winning the 100 fly and taking second to the 200 fly, so she comes into college riding momentum.

Hungarian Fanni Fabian and Israeli Lea Polonsky offer the Bears two extremely elite international recruits, with Fabian more of a free/fly specialist and Polonsky an all-arounder that should have more of a breast/IM focus.

Fabian has the ability to be an individual NCAA scorer in the 500 free, 200 free and 200 fly if conversions carry over, with respective bests of 4:04.57 (SCM), 1:59.37 (LCM) and 2:09.94 (LCM) translating towards times of 4:39.5, 1:44.6 and 1:54.5. The 500 is 'A' final worthy, and both 200s are close. She could also race some IM (2:02/4:13 conversions).

Polonsky is extremely well versed in fly, breast and IM, and could also be a free relay asset if needed. She projects to be a scorer in the 200 IM (2:12.6 LC, 1:56.6 conversion) and under the cutline in the 400 IM (4:44.8, 4:10.8), 200 fly (2:12.8, 1:57.1), and knocking on the door in both breaststrokes (1:00.3/2:10.7 conversions). Polonsky will most likely push to continue her medley training and dabble in both breast and fly and race wherever the team needs, at least early on.

Other swimmers set to enter the fold that have an event under last season's NCAA cutline are South Carolina native Annika McEnroe and Oregon's Elizabeth Cook.

McEnroe owns a lifetime best of 4:12.9 in the 400 IM, and also has a solid 1:59.2 200 medley and a 2:10.4 200 breast, giving her three strong events to key in on at Cal. Cook is under the cutline in the 200 fly (1:56.1), putting her a half-second within NCAA scoring range, and she's also 53.1 in the 100 fly (less than half a second off a cut) and is sub-50/sub-1:48 in the 100/200 free.

The Bears also add a ton of breaststroke depth from the U.S. ranks in Alicia Henry, Melanie Julia and Shelby Suppiger.

Henry is one of the fastest 100 breaststrokers in the class at 1:00.2, and made strides last season to get her 200 down to 2:12.5. California natives Julia (1:00.8/2:13.8) and Suppiger (1:01.3/2:12.4) give the class threefour if Polonsky focuses on breaststrokeswimmers that will challenge for a top-eight spot at Pac-12s. Last season the Bears had rising senior Ema Rajic and the now-graduated Alicia Harrison leading the breaststroke charge, so getting some new faces in the mix was critical, and they did just that.

Cal has always been known as a great backstroke school, and Reed Broaders will join a training group that already includes the likes of Izzy Ivey and Isabelle Stadden, who were fourth and fifth, respectively, at last season's NCAAs in the 100 back. Broaders owns a PB of 53.2 in that event, two-tenths off an NCAA cut, and she's also elite in the 100 fly (53.4).

Jessica Davis (54.4/1:58.9) is another backstroke addition with a high ceiling.

Two swimmers that figure to be future players on the sprint free relays are Illinois native McKenna Stone and in-state product Ella Mazurek. Stone is nearing the NCAA cutline in the 50 free (22.61), 100 free (49.12) and 100 fly (53.04), and is also a 2:00 IMer and 1:01.7 breaststroker. Mazurek's best event comes in the 100 free, where she's been 49.35, and also has potential in the 50 (23.0) and 200 (1:47.9).

All four members of Cal's NCAA-winning 200 free relay are returning this season (as well as the entire 400 free relay that placed third), meaning swimmers like Stone and Mazurek will get a chance to develop in an elite sprint group without the expectation that they need to step in and be counted on from the get-go.

Stephanie Akakabota (22.8 50 free) and UAE's Daniela Cogswell (22.8/49.9 conversions) add freestyle depth.

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#3: NC STATE WOLFPACK

NC State's freshman class isn't as big as Tennessee or Cal, but it's loaded with talent. The Wolfpack bring in two swimmers with instant NCAA 'A' final abilities and two more in range of the consols.

The Sheble twins, Grace and Caroline, are two cornerstone pieces of the class.

Stanford was the only other school to land two swimmers ranked inside the top 11 of our recruiting re-rank this season, as NC State also adds #11 Annabel Crush.

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#2: TENNESSEE VOLUNTEERS

Wow. Tennessee's class brings in a staggering 16 swimmers and one diver, including three transfers and a plethora of high-end freshmen, both American and international.

The sheer size and depth of the Lady Vols' class is remarkable, led by our ninth-ranked domestic recruit, Josephine Fuller, and German standout Julia Mrozinski.

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#1: STANFORD CARDINAL

After a relatively down year, Stanford delivers a mammoth recruiting class as the Cardinal women aim to charge back to the top of the NCAA mountain.

It's scary when you consider that Stanford claims the #1 spot while not even factoring in 2020 commits Regan Smith, Samantha Pearson and Lillie Nordmann, who all deferred enrollment for one season, not to mention the return of redshirt junior Taylor Ruck.

The Cardinal class is headlined by our top-ranked recruit this season, U.S. Olympic medalist Torri Huske, who is an absolute stud and can race an incredible number of events at a high level.

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Updates from the "peanut gallery" :p

SwimSwam commenters said:

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Toastedcoco: "Grad transfer Maddie Ward is using her 5th year at Cal. 1:00/2:12 breaststroker"

sticky rice: "Cal's done a pretty good job with developing talent the last few years but I'm not sure if I see a case for Cal over UVA. Cal's class is deep but it lacks projected NCAA scorers and doesn't bring in much sprint depth. Fabian could be huge asset for the bears but I always take LCM to SCY conversions with a grain of salt."

Huh: "How is Cal's class ranked higher than Virginia? Am I the only one who thinks this makes no sense."

Chief Erroneous: "Wait… WHAT?!? Where is Virginia? Desorbel put together a strong team through and through and had multiple Olympic medalists. And you put NC State, Tennessee, and Cal above then?"

Huh: "For some reason, SwimSwam is favoring the "quantity" over "quality"."

Ridiculous: "That could be the only way Cal is ranked better than Virginia. I hardly doubt there are 4 incoming classes that will out score Virginia's in coming class at NCAAs."

Mel: "UVA is safe. Meehan will screw this class up too."

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DCW67MSW said:

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Sure get tired of hearing about Stanford swimmers with their accompanying pictures. Is this a. Stanford University web site?

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I second that!!!

It's definitely not a Stanford website when we celebrate the results of the 400 free

SoCalie said:

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It's definitely not a Stanford website when we celebrate the results of the 400 free

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I must admit I was rooting for Titmus and her intense coach.

swan said:

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SoCalie said:

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It's definitely not a Stanford website when we celebrate the results of the 400 free

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I must admit I was rooting for Titmus and her intense coach.

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I have to admit I was doing the same with mixed emotions.

Maybe we need to start a 2022 or 2023 swimming recruit for Lydia Jacob! We missed out on Tiger Lilly. It's never too early. A shocking but fantastic swim from the 17 year old from Alaska!

Correction. looks like she has graduated this year. I'm guessing she has picked a school. Anyone knows her status.

Telecaster said Texas.

bearchamp said:

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Telecaster said Texas.

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Thanks. just checked on collegeswimming. Rated #20 nat and I assume #1 in Alaska.

solobear said:

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Not peaking at U.S. trials and Olympics, hopefully Claire Curzan will join Cal. McKeever has ways to help athletes after they hit a plateau or regress. She even helped Anthony Ervin at one point on his comeback.

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Not a good sign if Claire Curzan has not declared yet. There has been a lot of recent furd's activity and hopefully she is not waiting for acceptance there!

Looks like Maggie MacNeil the Olympic 100 fly champion & 2 time NCAA champ for Michigan is entering the transfer portal for the 2022/2023 year.

Quote:

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Two-time NCAA champion at Michigan and recently-crowned Olympic gold medalist Maggie MacNeil has entered the NCAA's transfer portal.
MacNeil, entered in the portal under her full name, Hannah Margaret McNair MacNeil, has had a standout three-year career thus far with the Wolverines.
The Canadian's entry in the portal indicates her transfer would be in order to be a graduate student, and that she plans to graduate after the 2021-2022 academic year.
MacNeil confirmed the news to SwimSwam, adding that she will be returning to the Wolverines in the fall.
"I entered the portal for graduate school but plan on finishing my degree at Michigan," she said, adding that she "would love to find a school with great swimming and academics" for grad school come September 2022.
If MacNeil were to transfer for only the 2022-23 season, she would only have one season left, the extra year granted to student-athletes after the COVID-19 pandemic canceled the end of the 2019-20 season, and her scholarship would count against her new team's total.
The 21-year-old was the NCAA champion this past season as a junior, winning titles in the women's 100 freestyle and 100 butterfly, setting a new NCAA and U.S. Open Record in the latter.
Having had such immense success under Rick Bishop, an associate head coach at Michigan for the last eight seasons, the first school that comes to mind that MacNeil could potentially transfer to would be LSU, where Bishop was recently named head coach.
However, with the added wrinkle that MacNeil wouldn't transfer until 2022-23, LSU is less of a slam-dunk than if she was planning to move schools in the upcoming season, though it's certainly still in the play.
It's also important to note that a student-athlete entering the portal doesn't necessarily mean they will transfer to another school, it just alerts coaches that they are considering a move.
MacNeil is also a 19-time All-American, 14-time Big Ten champion, and was the 2021 CSCAA Women's Swimmer of the Year.
On the international stage, MacNeil won Olympic gold just days ago in the women's 100 butterfly, and added a silver medal for Canada in the women's 400 freestyle relay.
MacNeil is also the reigning world champion in the women's 100 butterfly, having won gold at the 2019 World Championships in Gwangju, South Korea.
A native of London, Ontario, MacNeil is enrolled in the College of Literature, Science and the Arts at Michigan.

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https://swimswam.com/two-time-ncaa-champion-maggie-macneil-enters-transfer-portal/

Wouldn't it be nice to go from Go Blue to Blue & Gold!

Haven't heard much about the 2022 recruiting class. No scholarship $ available after the big 2021 class?

solobear said:

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Not peaking at U.S. trials and Olympics, hopefully Claire Curzan will join Cal. McKeever has ways to help athletes after they hit a plateau or regress. She even helped Anthony Ervin at one point on his comeback.

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Unfortunately Claire Curzan is going to the dark side too! Just announced she will be attending Furd University!

We miss you UAC! I'm ok with postings about furds. It's what it is! If you don't want to hear about them we need to so better. Every since the fab 4 recruiting our women recruiting has gone south..like our men's FB and BB team. What is up with our women recruiting? Negative recruiting?

Two recruiting classes in a row with zero top women's recruits. Texas and Florida seem to be getting the ladies we use to get.

I think furds will get theirs later in the season but Gators? Volunteer assist coach is Katie Ledecky there. Wonder if that has something to do with it.