The University of South Carolina swim and dive team’s 2024-25 season showcased strong performances at both the Southeastern Conference (SEC) Championships and NCAA Championships. With a mix of veteran leadership and rising young talent, the Gamecocks delivered one of the most successful seasons in program history.
From dominating individual events to setting new program benchmarks, South Carolina showed growth from the previous season on the national stage. Under head coach Jeff Poppell's guidance, both the men's and women's found consistent momentum throughout the year.
The 2024-25 season was defined not just by the podium finishes but by the steady accumulation of milestone moments - races won by tenths of a second, records rewritten and confidence built with every meet.
SEC Championships highlights
At the SEC Championships in Athens, Georgia, the Gamecocks delivered record-breaking performances. The women's team placed fifth overall, its highest placement since 2004. The men's team placed 11th.
Junior freestyle/butterfly swimmer Breckin Gormley set a new program record in the 500-meter freestyle, becoming the first South Carolina woman to swim under 4:40 with a time of 4:39.03. Senior freestyle swimmer Peyton Curry broke the school's 50-meter freestyle record three times during the championships, ultimately achieving a time of 22:01 and securing fifth place.
Senior butterfly/individual medley (IM) swimmer Greta Pelzek broke the 100-meter butterfly record during the SEC championships with a time of 51.46, which was a goal of her's since the beginning of her senior season.
"I knew I had it in me just from the training we had done all year," Pelzek said. "As a senior I was really happy that I was able to do that."
Junior diver Sophie Verzyl clinched a gold medal in the 3-meter diving event with a score of 392.15. T he women's 200-meter freestyle relay team, comprising Curry, junior backstroke swimmer Dylan Scholes, sophomore butterfly/freestyle swimmer Aubrey Finn and freestyle/backstroke swimmer Amy Riordan, recorded the second-fastest time in program history at 1:28.59, finishing ninth.
NCAA Championships
Building on its SEC success, the women's team sent 12 athletes to the NCAA Championships in Federal Way, Washington.
Riordan broke the 100-meter backstroke school record at the NCAA championships.
"I always wanted to prove that I could do sprinter things...it was really special to get to do that in that meet especially when it's so stressful and really, really fast," Riordan said.
Pelzek qualified for the 100 and 200-meter butterfly events, ranking 17th and 10th nationally. Gormley earned her first NCAA appearance in 500-meter freestyle and 200-meter butterfly, holding the 31st and 35th fastest times in the nation.
Curry qualified individually in the 50-meter freestyle and tied for the 26th fastest time nationally. Verzyl competed in both springboard diving events, entering as the SEC Champion in the 3-meter and runner-up in the 1-meter.
Season highlights and records
Throughout the season, the Gamecocks consistently rewrote its record books. Most notably at the Gamecock Invitational held at the Carolina Natatorium in November 2024, both the men's and women's teams putting on a display of power, depth and school-record-breaking performances.
Madison Kolessar set a new school record in the 1650-meter freestyle with a time of 16:12.57, breaking the previous record by 0.01 seconds. Kaden Smesko achieved a school and pool record in the 200-meter backstroke, clocking at 1:41.55.
Riordan broke the pool record in the 200 backstroke with a time of 1:52.89, and Pelzek put on a clinic in the 200 butterfly, setting a new pool record of 1:54.75. Verzyl set pool records in the 3-meter diving event at both Duke and UNC Washington, with scores of 390.53 and 398.03.
South Carolina swimmers posted numerous NCAA "B" cut times across multiple events, with several athletes qualifying for their first NCAA Championship bids. "B" cut times are when a swimmer is ranked in the top 55% of swimmers in the same age group, sex, and in the same stroke and distance. Relay teams also showed cohesion and speed, setting season-best times in nearly every event.
Beyond individual wins, the Gamecock Invitational served as a benchmarks for its rising international competitiveness. The women's team maintained a presence in the Top 25 polls throughout the season, peaking at No. 17 in October and ending the year at No. 22 in December.
The swim and dive team has also had successes at the most recent go around of the Canadian Olympic and Paralympic trials. Scholes swam the 50-meter freestyle with a time of 25.89, and Gormley swam the 200-meter butterfly with a time of 2:11.94.
"We've got a number of athletes that come to South Carolina with those types of aspirations," head coach Jeff Poppell said. "So, obviously, we're trying to do everything we can, you know, as a coaching staff and as a program to try to help them realize that goal."