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14 CAVALIER CORNER would be back to help the Cavaliers in their quest for a second straight national title. Not only would UVA have its veteran core but two first-year phenoms were also set to join the team for the 2021-22 season. Alex Walsh's younger sister, Gretchen, and Emma Weyant headlined a highly touted first-year class. Douglass, Alex Walsh and Weyant spent the summer bursting onto the international stage, joining Madden as Tokyo Olympic med- alists in the summer of 2021. It was setting up to be one of the best all-around teams in col- legiate women's swimming and diving history. The season started much like the last two, with Virginia cruising through its dual meets to a 6-0 record at the end of the regular season. Winning a third straight ACC title was never in doubt behind Douglass and Alex Walsh's sweep of individual events, while Nelson, Tiltmann and Weyant each picked up individual ACC titles. The Cavaliers swept all five relays and did so by setting American, NCAA and US Open records in three of the five relay events. There was no doubt the Cavaliers were the favorite to win the 2022 NCAA Champion- ships, but they still had to go out and win it. DeSorbo often encourages UVA to re- member it's not just about winning the race but getting as many points for the team as possible. Having Douglass and the Walsh sisters already sets the Cavaliers apart from the rest of the field, but it is the entire team that steps up at each NCAA meet. Douglass and Alex Walsh did what elite swimmers do. They each won all three indi- vidual NCAA events and Gretchen won her first NCAA title in the 100-yard freestyle. Gretchen picked up two runner-up finishes, plus Weyant and Alexis Wenger also earned runner-up finishes, and Nelson posted a third-place finish. It was a true team performance and that was even more evident as UVA stepped its game up one more notch by winning four of the five NCAA relay titles. Not only did it win those four relays, but the Cavaliers improved their already record-setting times to set new American, NCAA and US Open records. Virginia won its second consecutive NCAA championship a full 145 points ahead of second-place Texas. "All week long, we've talked about mo- ments and trying to create fantastic mo- ments for the team and create a great environment for the team," DeSorbo said afterwards. "They just shocked me. Coming off the ACC Championships, I didn't neces- KATE DOUGLASS CAPS TREMENDOUS CAREER Kate Douglass set herself apart and became quite possibly the greatest collegiate swimmer with her performances in the 2022 and 2023 NCAA Championships. Douglass won all three individual events at both championships, and did so by setting NCAA, Amer- ican and US Open records in all three events both times. That alone would be enough to give Douglass the title of "Greatest of All Time," but she did it in three different strokes (50 free, 100 butterfly and 200 breast) in 2022, and added a new event to her arsenal in 2023 in winning the 200 individual medley along with the 100 fly and 200 breast. With her win in the 200 individual medley, she became the first woman to ever swim under 1:50 in the event and went a step further by going 1:48.37, nearly two seconds faster than any other swimmer in history. To keep improving her times over her four years at UVA was amazing to see and even a little shocking to Douglass. "I feel like I kind of left myself a little speechless," Douglass said. "I was very shocked with last year's performance, and coming into this season I had no idea how I could even be better than that. To see myself outdo my performance from last year, it was crazy, and I'm just speechless. "I've just worked really hard this year. I've seen a lot of improvement in a lot of areas. I'm stronger, I've worked harder in the weight room and I'm definitely a lot more confident in the pool than I was a year ago. I've been focusing on enjoying my last year on this team and enjoying my time with these girls." Douglass closed out her UVA career with 28 total All-America honors, all first team. She won seven NCAA individual titles and was part of eight relay wins at the national meet. Not only that, but she did so by improving her career records each season and swimming some of the fastest times in women's swimming history. — Kristin Thurman Douglass closed out her UVA career with three team national championships, 28 first-team All-America honors, seven NCAA individual titles and eight NCAA relay titles. (Photo by Matt Riley/courtesy UVA)