Record Book Update: Closing Out 2020

Record Book Update: Closing Out 2020

3/26/2020 1:51:00 PM | Swimming & Diving

DURHAM, N.C. – The Duke swimming and diving program put together a strong showing at the 2020 ACC Championships before the 2019-20 season came to an abrupt end due to COVID-19 concerns. Overall this season, Duke placed 68 new entries in the programs top-10 lists.

Of those 68 new marks, 30 (20 from the women and 10 from the men) broke the top-five spots in school history. As a team, Duke broke five school records.

Individually, senior Alyssa Marsh led the women's side, breaking three records in the 50 freestyle, 100 freestyle and 100 butterfly. The Davidson, N.C., native set both freestyle records at the 2020 ACC Championships, toppling her previous records in both. She touched the wall in 21.78 in the 50 freestyle and 48.10 in the 100 freestyle.

Senior Miles Williams matched the school's best time in the 50 freestyle, touching the wall in 19.54 at the 2020 ACC Championships to tie James Peek's time in 2016.

Duke set one relay record this season, an 'A' cut swim in the 200 medley relay at the 2020 ACC Championships. Freshman Emma Shuppert, sophomore Halle Morris, Marsh and freshman Sarah Snyder swam a 1:35.93 for Duke's only automatic time this season.

The Blue Devils had nine additional times from the 2020 ACC Championships that placed top-five in program history.

Freshmen Kayle Park and Shuppert had stellar inaugural seasons for Duke. Park, a native of Arlington, Va., swam career-best times of 1:01.05 and 2:12.05 in the 100 and 200 breaststroke, respectively. Both times place second all-time at Duke in their respective charts. Shuppert, who hails from Cincinnati, Ohio, swam a 52.34 in the 100 backstroke, reaching the A Final at the event. Her time clocked in at third in program history.

Juniors Connie Dean and Quinn Scannell also placed top-five times. Dean took the third slot in the 200 breaststroke charts with a career-best 2:12.29 at the ACC Championships while Scannell moved to fourth on the 200 freestyle list after swimming a 1:47.54.

On the boards, freshman Ali Watson scored a 267.65 in the platform event at the Championships. She placed third in the event, being the lone Blue Devil to earn All-ACC Honors.

Williams placed a second time in the top-five charts over the course of the four-day conference meet. The Hong Kong native swam the second fastest time in Duke history in the 100 butterfly with a 46.87.

In his last meet as a Duke swimmer, senior Sheldon Boboff's time of 1:46.05 in the 200 individual medley placed him fourth in the Duke record books. Sophomore Matthew Whelan set a career best in the 200 butterfly (1:46.55) at the meet to move to second in Blue Devil lore.

Before the NCAA announced the cancellation of the Winter and Spring NCAA Championships, the Blue Devils were set to send 10 student-athletes, seven individual qualifiers and three relay-only representatives, to the NCAA Championships. The group representing Duke was Nathaniel Hernandez, Kylie Jordan, Shayna Hollander, Marsh, Morris, Melissa Pish, Snyder, Shuppert, Williams and Watson.

In addition, Duke had 10 student-athletes prepped to compete at the 2020 Olympic Trials in Omaha, Nebraska. With the postponement of the now 2021 Olympics, the trials were also postponed until next year. The 10 student-athletes set to compete were Brendan Driscoll, Shayna Hollander, Jordan, Marsh, Pish, Shuppert, Snyder, Whelan, Cabell Ann Whitlow and Colson Zucker.

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