University of Connecticut Athletics
University of Connecticut
Big East Championships
Huskies Secure 2nd Place Finish at BIG EAST Championships
3/4/2026 11:13:00 AM | Women's Swimming and Diving
OCALA, Florida – The UConn women's swim and dive wrapped up an impressive 2025-26 season with a second-place finish at the BIG EAST Championships in Ocala Florida. The Huskies set a school record for most points scored in a championship meet with 1520.
The Huskies set the tone early in Ocala as the 200 Medley Relay of Rhian Russell, Sydney Perkins, Maggie Rhodes and Jessica Sheng broke a school record with a time of 1:39.59 while also finishing in third place. Following that medley relay performance, the 800 free relay of Mia Hatzis, Bella Hoffman, Norah Rome and Claire Lippert secured a third-place finish of their own. To wrap up day one, Kate Cooper finished strong with a third-place finish in the 3-meter dive competition, putting the Huskies in position for a competitive weekend.
Day two began with UConn pushing 12 swimmers through to the finals that evening. The Huskies had four swimmers compete in the 500 free, four swimmers in the 200 IM and four swimmers in the 50 free final. The Huskies saw a second-place finish from Courtney Phillps in the 500 free, and another strong relay performance as the relay of Lexi Martino, Jessica Sheng, Mia Hatzis and Kiersten O'Connor finished 3rd and recorded the second fastest time in program history,
Day three was a strong day for the Huskies as 21 swimmers made finals that evening, along with four divers in the 1-meter dive final. The Huskies started the finals strong with a second-place finish by Jessica Sheng in the 100 back, followed by a second-place finish by Sydney Perkins in the 100 breaststroke and a second-place finish by Kate Cooper in the 1-meter dive. To end the night, the Huskies had two BIG EAST Champions as Rhian Russell won the 100 back and Liv Denery won the 1-meter dive.
The final day of competition arrived, and UConn looked to carry momentum from all previous days and finish strong. To end the night, the Huskies saw a third-place finish from Sydney Perkins in the 200 breaststroke, a third-place finish from Norah Rome in the 1650 free, a second-place finish in the 200 back by Bella Hoffman and a third-place finish in the 400 free relay by Mia Hatzis, Bella Hoffman, Kiersten O'Connor and Jessica Sheng. The Huskies didn't stop there as Jessica Sheng closed out the meet as a BIG EAST Champion in the 100 freestyle.
UP NEXT: The Huskies swim season has come to an end, but the UConn divers will turn their attention to NCAA Zones.
Players Mentioned
