The Texas women’s swim and dive program is approaching its first meet of the spring season after finishing third at the 2025 NCAA Championships. The result marked the Longhorns’ fifth consecutive top-three national finish under head coach Carol Capitani.
However, the team has yet to achieve a first-place finish during the Capitani era.
This season, they hope to rally around a mix of experienced veterans and young talent to bring the title home to Austin for the first time since competing in the Southwestern Conference in the 1990s.
Off to a strong start, Texas enters the spring ranked No. 2 in the College Swimming & Diving Coaches Association of America dual meet poll.
Sophomore Jillian Cox returns to lead the freestyle group after earning Southeastern Conference Female Freshman Swimmer of the Year honors last season. Cox won NCAA titles in the 500 and 1,650-yard freestyle events and set multiple program records in her debut season, including in the 1,000-yard freestyle.
Cox, out of Cedar Park, Texas, is currently ranked 25th nationally in both the NCAA and SwimCloud polls and opened the season with first-place finishes in the 500 and 1,650-yard freestyle at the Texas Hall of Fame Invitational, posting times of 4:32.92 and 15:41.70.
Junior Campbell Stoll anchors the Longhorns in the backstroke, butterfly and breaststroke events. Stoll showed steady improvement throughout last season, setting personal bests in multiple events, including the 500-yard freestyle and 200-yard backstroke.
Stoll entered the spring ranked 26th in both the NCAA Division I and SwimCloud rankings. Stoll competed on Texas’ 2024 team that finished runner-up to Virginia at the NCAA Championships and will be counted on to build on that experience.
On the diving side, junior Bayleigh Cranford enters the spring with momentum. Cranford is ranked No. 15 in the USA Diving NCAA poll and has helped Texas climb into the national top three.
In her second season with the Longhorns after transferring from NC State, Cranford brings championship experience after winning a conference title in platform diving. She recently competed at the USA Diving Winter Nationals, earning gold and bronze medals, marking her third career medal at the event since 2023.
Alongside fellow juniors Amanda Stalfort and Caroline Kupka, Cranford leads an experienced diving group that sits just two points behind No. 2 Purdue and seven points behind No. 1 Miami in the national rankings.
With key contributors returning across swimming and diving, Texas aims to capture its second SEC championship and end a 35-year national title drought. That pursuit begins this weekend at the Eddie Reese Texas Showdown, where the Longhorns will host Ohio State and Louisville in Austin.
