NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Vanderbilt’s Kailia Utley will compete in two events at the NCAA Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships it was announced on Wednesday.
The junior qualified for the event—which will be held at the Jack Bauerle Pool at the Gabrielsen Natatorium in Athens, Georgia, from March 20-23—in the 100 and 200 butterfly. With the invitation, she becomes the first Commodore to advance to the NCAA Division I Championships since Wendy Deacon competed three straight years from 1987-89.
Utley ranks among the top 40 in the country in the 200 fly after posting a 1:55.51 mark at the Bulldog NCAA Qualifying Meet in Athens on Sunday. She recorded her best time in the 100 fly this season at the SEC Championships last month after touching the wall in 52.92.
The school record holder in both events, Utley qualified for the Consolation Final in each at this season’s SEC Championships. The Huntington Beach, California, resident, has advanced to finals in the 200 fly at the SEC Championships each of her first three years as a Dore.
Utley has won the 200 fly at three different meets this season, including at the Bulldog NCAA Qualifying Meet last week, and has also finished first twice in the 100 fly.
