Swimming

Cal Women Win Last Pac-12 Title, First of Dave Durden Era

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By Riley Overend on SwimSwam

2024 WOMEN’S PAC-12 CHAMPIONSHIPS

The Cal women led from start to finish at the last-ever Women’s Pac-12 Championships this week, winning their sixth conference crown — and first since 2021 — by more than 100 points over USC and two-time defending champion Stanford.

Final Team Scores

  1. Cal – 1,397.5
  2. USC – 1,291
  3. Stanford – 1,283
  4. UCLA – 1,089
  5. Arizona State – 990.5
  6. Utah – 628.5
  7. Arizona – 514
  8. Washington State – 498.5

The Bears got off to a hot start by breaking the Pac-12 Championships record in the first race of the meet, the 200 medley relay (1:33.89), taking down their own six-year-old standard of 1:34.13 from 2018. Meanwhile, Stanford and USC both suffered costly disqualifications in the 200 medley and 800 freestyle relays, respectively.

Cal didn’t earn any wins on Thursday, but the program leaned on its depth to extend its lead heading into Friday’s action. Individually, the Bears got victories from senior Isabelle Stadden in the 100 back (50.39) and 200 back (1:50.16), junior Mia Kragh in the 100 fly (50.89), and fifth-year Rachel Klinker in the 200 fly (1:51.74) to power them past the Trojans and Cardinal.

Cal’s win marks the culmination of a surprisingly quick turnaround following the firing of longtime head coach Teri McKeever last January. Men’s head coach Dave Durden took over the women’s team during the summer of 2022, receiving a $110,000 raise for the extra work. He is in line for a $4,000 bonus for leading the Bears to the Pac-12 title this year, and he’ll likely add another $2,000 bonus for Pac-12 Coach of the Year honors as well. Last year, Durden led the men’s team to a second consecutive NCAA title.

Despite the 3rd-place finish this year, Stanford still boasts 21 more Pac-12 titles than Cal all-time. Only three other teams — Arizona (four), UCLA (two), and USC (one) have won conference crowns.

Most Pac-12 Team Titles

  1. Stanford – 25
  2. Cal – 6
  3. Arizona – 4
  4. UCLA – 2
  5. USC – 1

Next year, Cal and Stanford will leave to the ACC, USC and UCLA will bolt for the Big Ten, and Arizona, Arizona State, and Utah will join the Big 12. Washington State has a temporary home next season in the West Coast Conference, but they do not sponsor swimming and diving.

SwimSwam: Cal Women Win Last Pac-12 Title, First of Dave Durden Era

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