March 2, 2016

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – University of South Carolina swimmers Emma Barksdale and Taylor Worrell were selected to compete at the NCAA Division I Women’s Swimming & Diving Championships, it was announced today. Barksdale will swim the 400-yard IM at the season-ending national championships, while Worrell will take the pool in the 500-yard freestyle.

“It’s a great honor for our program to have two swimmers in the NCAA Women’s Championships, and our entire team is proud of Emma and Taylor for making it this far,” said Head Swimming Coach McGee Moody. “They’ve both trained exceptionally hard this year and deserve to swim on the biggest stage. I expect big things from both of them in Atlanta.”

Barksdale’s season-best 400 IM time of 4:10.21, set Feb. 18 at the SEC Championships, ranks 34th-best in the nation and is the second-fastest swim in Carolina history. The freshman from Davis, Calif., finished 11th in the event at the SEC Championships in addition to placing 19th in league in the 200 IM. She has notched 10 event victories across four events as a freshman and contributed to a school record performance in the 800-yard freestyle relay.

Worrell broke the Gamecock record in the 500 free at the SEC Championships, where she finished seventh, then a week later the sophomore set a new program-best mark with a swim of 4:41.67 on Feb. 27 at the Bulldog Last Chance Meet. Her time currently ranks 28th in the nation. The Westampton, N.J., native captured three event victories this year and cut over 20 seconds off her 500 free time during the 2015-16 season in addition to joining Barksdale on the record-setting 800 free relay squad.

Barksdale and Worrell are part of a Gamecock team that is ranked 24th in the final CSCAA top-25 of the season.

ESPN3.com will stream finals sessions from the NCAA Championships live on Friday and Saturday. Wednesday’s evening session, Thursday’s sessions, along with the morning sessions on Friday and Saturday, will be streamed live on NCAA.com. Additionally, ESPNU will air a two-hour broadcast via tape delay at 7 p.m. ET, Tuesday, March 29. Live results for the championships will be available on NCAA.com.

UP NEXT FOR CAROLINA

The Carolina divers will attempt to qualify for the NCAA Championships when they compete at the NCAA Zone B Diving Championships, which run March 7-9. The NCAA Division I Women’s Swimming & Diving Championships are scheduled for March 16-19, with the Men’s Championships booked one week later. All three events will take place at the McAuley Aquatic Center in Atlanta, Ga.