Seward swimmer Lydia Jacoby takes NCAA title in 100 breaststroke

Seward’s Lydia Jacoby has already earned an Olympic gold medal.

Now the 19-year-old freshman swimmer at the University of Texas has added the title of NCAA national champion to her growing resume.

Jacoby won the 100-yard breaststroke on Friday night at the Allan Jones Intercollegiate Aquatic Center in Knoxville, Tennessee, helping the Longhorns to a runner-up finish in the team competition.

Jacoby was third after 50 yards of the race but turned in a speedy second half to earn the win in a time of 57.03.

Jacoby’s mark was the seventh-fastest in NCAA history in the event.

Jacoby broke onto the world stage in 2021 when she won the 100-meter breaststroke at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.

[Seward erupts in joy as hometown swimmer Lydia Jacoby wins Olympic gold medal]

Texas finished with 414.5 points in the team competition, well behind NCAA champ Virginia, which posted 541.5 points.

For the win in the 100 breaststroke and her participation on the Longhorns’ 400-medley relay team, Jacoby earned All-American honors as a freshman.

Jacoby is the first University of Texas swimmer to take a title at the national meet since 2013, when Laura Sogar won the 200 breaststroke.

Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly reported that Jacoby won the title in the 100-meter breaststroke. It was the 100-yard breaststroke.