NEW COMMIT: Port Matilda, Penn. native and high school junior Matt Brownstead has announced his verbal commitment to the University of Virginia as a member of the class of 2024.
Brownstead does his club swimming with State College Area Y Aqualions and is a five-time Winter Juniors (or faster) qualifier which includes a U.S. Open cut in the 50 free. He capped off his long course season with a pair of runner-up finishes at Richmond Futures after notching two lifetime bests at Middle Atlantic Seniors. He also won the 100 fly at Christiansburg Speedo Sectionals in March where he recorded three additional finals appearances.
Brownstead, who recently attended the USA Swimming National Select Camp in October, is a four-time Pennsylvania 3A State Championship finalist. He placed second in the 50 free and fourth in the 100 free during his sophomore season after finishing third and fourth, respectively, in those events as a freshman. He has also earned NISCA All-American honors twice in his career.
He told Swimming World:
“I chose UVA because when I went on my visit I immediately felt at home with the team and the staff there. Todd and the staff have an energy that the entire team feeds off of and it builds a winning mindset among the swimmers. The University of Virginia provides a world-class education in business. The combination of an incredible team, a motivating group of coaches and a world-class education is irresistible to my family. As soon as I said ,” I want to go to UVA” I knew it was the right decision and I couldn’t imagine it any other way.”
His best times include:
- 50 free – 20.08
- 100 free – 45.23
- 200 free – 1:39.42
- 100 back – 50.78
- 100 fly – 49.25
Although he currently sits outside of scoring range at the ACC Championships, Brownstead still has just under two seasons of club swimming still to go before suiting up for Virginia in the fall of 2020. He has made tremendous improvements over the past year – especially in long course – dropping 1.5 seconds from his 50m free, three from the 100m free, eight from the 200m free and four from the 100m back.
If you have a commitment to share, please send a photo and quote via email to hs@swimmingworld.com.
