At a meet where the Americans won more than half of the available gold medals, Team USA’s collegiate footprint was front and center. Of the 56 athletes who competed for Team USA at the 2018 Pan Pacific Swimming Championships that wrapped up Tuesday in Tokyo, all but three competed collegiately, and 24 are current student-athletes. Catch up on some of the collegiate highlights from the meet:
1) Medals Galore
Fifty-five percent of Team USA athletes medaled, with standout performances by Katie Ledecky (Stanford), Simone Manuel (Stanford) and Caeleb Dressel (Florida), who each earned five medals. Meanwhile, Leah Smith (Virginia) and Kathleen Baker (Cal) tallied four medals apiece in the pool.
2) Spanning The Country
USA Swimming’s Pan Pacs roster represented 20 universities: Cal (9 athletes), Stanford (6), Georgia (6), Auburn (3), Indiana (3), Louisville (3), Texas (3), Arizona (2), Florida (2), NC State (2), Northwestern (2), Southern California (2), Columbia, Duke, Emory, Michigan, Penn State, Tennessee, Texas A&M and Virginia.
3) The Rivalry Continues
Pac 12 rivals Stanford and Cal tied with 11 medals each.
4) Lucky Number 13
Thirteen total universities, from six conferences, produced medal-winning student-athletes.
5) First Time’s A Charm
First-time national team members Katie Drabot (Stanford), Zach Harting (Louisville) and Austin Katz (Texas) are each returning to school this fall with a medal.
6) Watch Out For Murphy
En route to three gold medals, Ryan Murphy (Cal) set a Pan Pac record in the 100-meter backstroke, nearly set a world record in the 200 backstroke and led the way for Team USA in the 400 medley relay.
7) Cruising In Open Water
Jordan Wilimovsky (Northwestern) and Haley Anderson (Southern California) each won gold in the men’s and women’s open water 10-kilometer.
8) Breaking It Down
Here’s a look at the medal breakdown by conference:
Pac-12: 24 medals (10 golds, 9 silvers, 5 bronzes)
SEC: 16 medals (7 golds, 4 silvers, 5 bronzes)
ACC: 8 medals (5 silvers, 3 bronzes)
Big 10: 7 medals (4 golds, 3 silvers)
Big 12: 4 medals (2 golds, 1 silver, 1 bronze)
UAA (DII): 1 medal (1 gold)
And by school:
Cal Berkeley: 11 medals (6 golds, 3 silvers, 2 bronzes)
Stanford: 11 medals (3 golds, 5 silvers, 3 bronzes)
Auburn: 5 medals (3 golds, 1 silver, 1 bronze)
Florida: 5 medals (2 golds, 1 silver, 2 bronzes)
Georgia: 5 medals (3 golds, 2 silvers)
Louisville: 5 medals (4 silvers, 1 bronze)
Indiana: 4 medals (2 golds, 2 silvers)
Texas: 4 medals (2 golds, 1 silver, 1 bronze)
Virginia: 4 medals (1 silver, 3 bronzes)
Northwestern: 3 medals (2 golds, 1 silver)
Arizona: 1 medal (1 silver)
Emory: 1 medal (1 gold)
Southern California: 1 medal (1 gold)
Pan Pacs, the biggest meet of the year for U.S. swimmers, was a display of American talent in the water, helped determine the roster for the 2019 world championships and gave Team USA athletes a glimpse of the city they hope to return to in less than two years for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020.
