Dukes Maintain Lead at Sun Belt Championship on Day Three

Friday, February 21

Orlando, Fla.

All Day

James Madison University

Day Three

Dukes Maintain Lead at Sun Belt Championship on Day Three

2/21/2025 9:10:00 PM | Swimming & Diving

ORLANDO, Fla. – James Madison maintained its lead throughout day three of the 2025 Sun Belt Conference Swimming & Diving Championship on Friday at the Rosen Aquatic & Fitness Center.

The Dukes won three gold medals and three silver medals to take a 64.5-point lead with 712.5 points overall. Closing the gap on the third day was Marshall sitting with 648 points, with Georgia Southern (464.5) and Old Dominion (263) to round out the four-team field.

Prelims

JMU began the morning session of day three with three Dukes qualifying for the finals of the 100 Fly. Ann Chappell Ellington and Alli Straub qualified for the A finals, while Alex Volk headed to the B finals.
Last year's 400 IM champion Jess Pryne finished as the top qualifier with a time of 4:20.39. Joining Pryne in qualifying for the A finals were Maddy Coombs, and Riley Nugent, while Suzanne Earnshaw qualified for the B finals.
The Dukes placed five in the A finals of the 200 Free, including Grace Bousum (1:48.35) and Katelyn Fitzgerald (1:48.80) who finished with the top two prelim times. Jamie Cornwell, Madison Wimmer and Angela Ritchie all qualified for the top finals heat with the duo.
In the 100 Breast, Riley Bridgman finished with the top prelim time of 1:01.27 to move into third in program history and set a Sun Belt Championship record. Abby Zindler also qualified for the A finals in the event.
A pair of Dukes qualified for the finals of the 100 Back, as Sarah Pauley placed in the A finals while Maddie Lehman placed in the B finals.
Alexa Holloway was the top prelim scorer on the 1-meter board with a score of 288.55, being joined by Natalie Jones, Kate Vitolo and Maddie O'Mera in advancing to the championship meet.

Finals

Ann Chappell Ellington (55.34) and Alli Straub (56.46) finished fourth and seventh, respectively, in the A finals of the 100 Back.
Jess Pryne repeated as the Sun Belt 400 IM Champion with an NCAA "B" cut time of 4:14.25. It is the fourth consecutive season that Pryne has won the 400 IM at a conference championship meet.
For the second straight year, Grace Bousum won the 200 Free as she moved up to fifth in program history with a time of 1:47.54. Finishing a half second behind Bousum was teammate Katelyn Fitzgerald, claiming a silver medal with a time of 1:48.01 that put her seventh in program history.
After finishing second last year in the 100 Breast, Riley Bridgman won the gold medal this year as she improved her Sun Belt Championship record time with a finals time of 1:01.11. Her time was an NCAA "B" cut time as well.
In the 100 Back, Sarah Pauley finished sixth in the A finals with a time of 56.27.
On the 1-meter board, Alexa Holloway won the silver medal by recording an NCAA Zone qualifying score of 288.95.
Ending the night, the team of Pauley, Bridgman, Bousum and Cornwell won a silver medal in the 400 Free Relay. Their time of 3:39.78 was the second fastest in program history.

Program Top 10 Placements

Ann Chappell Ellington (ninth in the 100 Fly; 55.34)
Maddy Coombs (ninth in the 400 IM; 4:22.43)
Grace Bousum (fifth in the 200 Free; 1:47.54)
Katelyn Fitzgerald (seventh in the 200 Free; 1:48.01)
Riley Bridgman (third in the 100 Breast; 1:01.11)
Sarah Pauley, Riley Bridgman, Grace Bousum and Jamie Cornwell (second in the 400 Medley Relay; 3:39.78)

Up Next
The final day of the championship meet will once again feature seven events with prelims swimming beginning at 10 a.m., driving prelims and consolations at 1 p.m. and finals at 6 p.m. The day will consist of the 100 Free, 1650 Free, 200 Back, 200 Fly, 200 Breast, platform diving and 400 Free Relay.