Michigan junior Maggie MacNeil finally, finally broke through to become the first woman to break 49 seconds in the 100 butterfly with a 48.89 as she smashed the NCAA & US Open record that she co-held with Louise Hansson at 49.26. Those two were expected to be on a collision course heading into the 2020 NCAAs that ultimately never happened, leaving swimming fans deprived of one of the greatest races never to be swum. MacNeil last year was expected to challenge for that 48 between Hansson, Tennessee’s Erika Brown and Virginia’s Kate Douglass.
In 2021 however, MacNeil and Douglass were able to line up head to head and produce one of the best 100 butterfly races in history. After going head to head in the 50 freestyle with Douglass coming out on top, MacNeil took round two between arguably the two best swimmers in the NCAA with a 48.89 to Douglass’ 49.55, which puts her sixth all-time in the 100 butterfly.
“Definitely not (expecting that fast). It has been a goal of mine for a while, so it was amazing to achieve that, especially at NCAAs,” Maggie MacNeil said after the race. “Kate is such a great racer, so I knew she would be out fast, so my focus was challenging the first 25 and first 50. That is definitely showing that my front-end speed has improved. We have been through such a crazy year. Whatever happens this summer will be a miracle.”
Also in the race were two of the best swimmers in the NCAA, with NC State’s Kylee Alons in third at 50.35, fresh off a 49.2 relay split last night in the 400 medley relay, and Cal’s Izzy Ivey in fourth at 50.68, as she is fresh off a blistering anchor leg in the 200 free relay last night. Ivey will also be swimming in the 100 back final later on alongside Alabama’s Rhyan White, who placed fifth here at 50.99.
Michigan picked up big points with Olivia Carter in sixth at 51.19, to put the Wolverines in sixth place overall, just a half point behind Ohio State.
Texas freshman Olivia Bray (51.44) and Virginia’s Lexi Cuomo (51.80) also placed in the championship final.
This is Maggie MacNeil’s first NCAA title in her career and the first for Michigan on the women’s side since Emily Brunemann won the 1650 in 2008.
All-Time Rankings:
- 48.89, Maggie MacNeil, Michigan, 2021
- 49.26, Louise Hansson, USC, 2019
- 49.38, Erika Brown, Tennessee, 2018
- 49.43, Kelsi Worrell, Louisville, 2016
- 49.51, Claire Curzan, TAC Titans, 2021
- 49.55, Kate Douglass, Virginia, 2021
- 49.70, Torri Huske, Arlington, 2021
- 49.97, Katie McLaughlin, California, 2019
Listen to MacNeil’s audio interview via Zoom below. Due to technical difficulties, questions were written down in the Zoom chat bar so only MacNeil’s voice is heard.
Event 9 Women 100 Yard Butterfly
=========================================================================
NCAA: N 49.26 3/22/2019 Louise Hansson, USC
Meet: M 49.26 3/22/2019 Louise Hansson, USC
American: A 49.38 2/20/2020 Erika Brown, Tennessee
US Open: O 49.26 3/22/2019 Louise Hansson, USC
Pool: P 49.81 3/20/2015 Kelsi Worrell, Louisville
Name Year School Prelims Finals Points
=========================================================================
=== Championship Final ===
1 MacNeil, Maggie JR Michigan 50.23 48.89N 20
r:+0.63 22.67 48.89 (26.22)
2 Douglass, Kate SO Virginia 49.94 49.55P 17
r:+0.66 23.07 49.55 (26.48)
3 Alons, Kylee JR NC State 50.86 50.35 16
r:+0.64 23.35 50.35 (27.00)
4 Ivey, Isabel JR California 50.75 50.68 15
r:+0.74 23.45 50.68 (27.23)
5 White, Rhyan JR Alabama 50.75 50.99 14
r:+0.67 23.80 50.99 (27.19)
6 Carter, Olivia JR Michigan 51.29 51.19 13
r:+0.64 24.05 51.19 (27.14)
7 Bray, Olivia FR Texas 51.44 51.44 12
r:+0.69 23.81 51.44 (27.63)
8 Cuomo, Lexi SO Virginia 51.49 51.80 11
r:+0.72 23.90 51.80 (27.90)
=== Consolation Final ===
9 Gati, Izzy JR Kentucky 51.85 51.81 9
r:+0.68 24.28 51.81 (27.53)
10 Wheal, Emma SO Stanford 52.06 51.83 7
r:+0.69 23.89 51.83 (27.94)
11 Sticklen, Emma FR Texas 52.03 51.91 6
r:+0.64 23.94 51.91 (27.97)
12 Harter, Abby FR Virginia 51.82 51.93 5
r:+0.71 24.49 51.93 (27.44)
13 Guevara, Miriam JR Northwestern 51.90 51.99 4
r:+0.64 24.08 51.99 (27.91)
14 Gillilan, Coleen SO Notre Dame 51.60 52.14 3
r:+0.58 24.28 52.14 (27.86)
15 Nava, Jessica JR Virginia 52.13 52.15 2
r:+0.68 24.14 52.15 (28.01)
16 Rothrock, Trude JR Tennessee 51.95 52.20 1
r:+0.65 24.15 52.20 (28.05)
Women - Team Rankings - Through Event 9 1. Virginia 236 2. Texas 151 3. NC State 145 4. California 129 5. Ohio St 123.5 6. Michigan 123 7. Stanford 111 8. Alabama 104 9. Kentucky 101 10. Georgia 85 11. Louisville 64 12. UNC 61 13. Missouri 55 13. Tennessee 55 15. Florida 53.5 16. Indiana 45 17. Texas A&M 37 18. Northwestern 32 19. Wisconsin 23 20. Virginia Tech 22 21. Southern California 21 22. Minnesota 20 22. Miami 20 24. Arkansas 16 25. Arizona 15 26. Notre Dame 3 26. Nebraska 3 26. Akron 3 29. Duke 2 30. Houston 1
