Tensions were high in Koury Natatorium on Friday night as the North Carolina men and women's swimming and diving teams took on powerhouse Texas.
After narrowly falling to Georgia on Oct. 10, UNC's women entered Friday with back-to-back dual meet wins and another chance to beat one of the top programs in all of college swimming.
And behind seven individual season-best times, the No. 2 North Carolina women's team emerged on top with a 154-146 win over No. 6 Texas, while No. 1 Texas defeated No. 9 UNC 160-132 on the men's side.
“You never know how it’s going to turn out, but I figured the women’s meet would be pretty close,” Coach Rich DeSelm said. “(They have) a very talented women’s team, but an extremely talented women’s team. I don’t want to sell anyone short, but I knew it would be very, very competitive.”
First-year Robyn Dryer swam a season-best time of 10:01.52 in the 1,000-yard freestyle, and sophomore Caroline Baldwin took first place in the 50-yard freestyle with a season-best time of 22.63.
Diver Elissa Dawson placed first on the three-meter board with a season-best score of 381.00. She also won the one-meter diving event with a score of 306.83.
"We had some great performances, such as Elissa Dawson," said diving coach Abel Sanchez. "She definitely stepped up. She won both events, one-meter and three-meter, and almost set a (personal record) on the three-meter. She did extremely well and remained composed and dove against a tough team.”
According to DeSelm, one of his biggest concerns for the meet was keeping the score close until the final relay. The women's team managed to do so and pulled out a season-best time of 3:17.70 in the 400-yard freestyle relay to seize the win.
