Utley’s Career Comes to a Close

FEDERAL WAY, Wash. — Kailia Utley concluded her Vanderbilt swimming career competing in a pair of events at the NCAA Championships, which ended Saturday at the Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatics Center.

The senior from Huntington Beach, California, swam the 100 butterfly on Friday and returned for the final day of the meet to take part in the 200 butterfly, breaking one school record and just missing another with her performances.

“What a great week for Kailia and our program, both races were well swum. We really couldn’t have asked more from her performances,” head coach Jeremy Organ said. “Kailia has raised the bar for our program, and now we have to get back to work to be sure we stay there with next year’s group. She is really going to be missed, but we are so grateful to have had the opportunity to coach her for the past four years.”

Meet Highlights
-In her first race of the meet, Utley placed 41st overall in prelims of the 100 fly.
-The senior tied for 26th in a field of 45 in 200 fly prelims on Saturday.

Notes
-Utley became the first Commodore to compete at the NCAA Championships on multiple occasions since Wendy Deacon qualified for the meet three seasons in a row from 1987-89.
-She recorded a 52.39 mark in the 100 fly, lowering her own school record in the event by .16 seconds.
-As part of that race, the senior also moved up to No. 2 on the program’s all-time performers list in the 50 fly with a time of 24.83.
-She touched the wall in 1:55.36 in the 200 fly, missing by .05 seconds bettering the school standard she set at last month’s SEC Championships.
-Utley ends her collegiate career with not only the program’s records in both events she swam this weekend but also the 200 individual medley.
-The Huntington Beach, California, native won 21 races during her four seasons as a Dore, including 13 in the 200 fly and another five in the 100 fly.