By Terin Frodyma on SwimSwam
It’s that time of the year again. SwimSwam will be previewing the top 12 men’s and women’s teams (and then some) from the 2026 NCAA Championships. Follow along with the College Swimming Preview Channel. Want to read even more? Check out the latest edition of the SwimSwam magazine.
Women’s #8: Louisville Cardinals
Key Losses: Julia Dennis (25 NCAA Points), Mia Cheatwood (10 NCAA Points), Ella Welch (2 NCAA Points), Kim Herkle (NCAA Qualifier)
Key Additions: Mary Clarke (Pitt Transfer – free/back)
Grading Criteria
Over the years, we’ve gone back and forth on how to project points, ranging from largely subjective rankings to more data-based grading criteria based on ‘projected returning points.’ We like being as objective as possible, but we’re going to stick with the approach we’ve adopted post-Covid. The “stars” will rely heavily on what swimmers actually did last year, but we’ll also give credit to returning swimmers or freshmen who have posted times that would have scored last year.
Since we only profile the top 12 teams in this format, our grades are designed with that range in mind. In the grand scheme of college swimming and compared to all other college programs, top 12 NCAA programs would pretty much all grade well across the board. But in the interest of making these previews informative, our grading scale is tough – designed to show the tiers between the good stroke groups, the great ones, and the 2015 Texas fly group types.
5 star (★★★★★) – a rare, elite NCAA group projected to score 25+ points per event 4 star (★★★★) – a very, very good NCAA group projected to score 15-24 points per event 3 star (★★★) – a good NCAA group projected to score 5-14 points per event 2 star (★★) – a solid NCAA group projected to score 1-4 points per event 1 star (★) – an NCAA group that is projected to score no points per event, though that doesn’t mean it’s without potential scorers – they’ll just need to leapfrog some swimmers ahead of them to do itWe’ll grade each event discipline: sprint free (which we define to include all the relay-distance freestyle events, so 50, 100 and 200), distance free, IM, breaststroke, backstroke, butterfly and diving. Use these grades as a jumping-off point for discussion, rather than a reason to be angry.
Also, keep in mind that we are publishing many of these previews before teams have posted finalized rosters. We’re making our assessments based on the best information we have available at the time of publication. Still, we reserve the right to make changes after publication based on any new information that may emerge regarding rosters. If that does happen, we’ll make certain to note the change.
The final note is that we are not including athletes who graduated last spring after exhausting their college eligibility despite ongoing lawsuits against the NCAA regarding the new “Five-for-Five” rule.
2025-26 Lookback
The Cardinal women can look back on the 2025-26 season with a smile, having finished 8th at the NCAA Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships with 201.5 points, 56.5 points behind the Indiana women, who finished 7th with 258.
All 201.5 points came from swimming events, with the leader of that scoring coming at the hands of then-frshman, now rising sophomore Anastasia Gorbenko with 45.5 points. She raced in three events last season (100 breast, 200 breast, 200 IM), all of which she finished inside the top five. Her best placing came in the 200 breast, finishing 3rd in 2:05.24.
Seniors Julia Dennis and Mia Cheatwood combined for 35 points individually, while Freshman-at-the-time Thilda Haell was the team’s 3rd highest individual scorer with 19 points for the Cardinals.
At the conference level, the Cardinals finished 4th in the ACC, behind fellow swimming powerhouses Virginia, Stanford, and California, but took down notable programs NC State, Pitt, and North Carolina in their 4th-place efforts.
With many of those top talents now gone from the program, the Louisville women will look to maintain their status as a serious threat at both the conference and national levels in 2026-27.
Sprint Free: ★★★½
Despite the loss of Julia Dennis, who was a double championship finalist at NCAAs last season (4th in the 50 free and 8th in the 100 free), the team still returns decent depth in the sprint free events.
Caroline Larsen comes into her senior season having raced both the 50 and 100 freestyles at NCAAs, finishing 10th in the 100 free (47.19) and 20th in the 50 free (21.77). She was faster in both disciplines at the ACC Championships last season, turning in times of 21.62 and 46.82, respectively. Both of which would have scored at NCAAs.
Another plus for this upcoming season is Pitt transfer Mary Clarke, who has NCAA relay experience, coming into the Cardinal program with best sprint free times of 23.08, 48.61, and 1:46.73. Though those times may be a bit outside the scoring range at NCAAs, her ability and solid times, along with her entering her junior season with Louisville, could make her a strong addition to the program this season.
Junior Daria Golovaty will also be making a return to the program, having clocked sprint free season bests of 22.61, 48.41, and 1:43.40, all of which may come into play both individually and on relays this season for the Cardinals.
Julie Mishler was another strong piece to the spring group last season, turning the 3rd fastest times in both the 50 free (21.76) and the 100 free (47.61). There are some strong possibilities that she will finish within scoring range this season, considering it took 21.75 and 47.46 to score at the NCAAs last season.
The 200 free last season was spearheaded by Anastasia Gorbenko, who was 1:42.96 at the Louisville Invite 1st Chance Meet, making her the only Louisville swimmer last season to crack 1:43.
Other returners in the 200 free include Golovaty, Summer Cardwell (1:433.72), Larsen (1:45.32), and Thilda Haell (1:45.85), which in total gives the Cardinals some strong flexibility and depth across the sprint free events, even without Julia Dennis.
Distance Free: ★★★★
Thilda Haell scored at NCAAs in the 1650 as a freshman, finishing 7th in 15:51.82, and cracked the top 10 in the 500 free, touching 10th in 4:37.70, making her a huge scoring threat as a sophomore.
Golovaty was 4:39.91 at ACCs, which puts her just outside of scoring range at NCAAs, with 16th place sitting at 4:39.19. If she can swim around her best of 4:38.79 and even surpass that at NCAAs, the Cardinals could have a legit two-headed monster in the 500.
Another strong name to keep an eye on is junior Leticia Fassina Romao, who clocked a 4:41.56 at the Ohio State Invite last season; she is yet another Louisville distance swimmer who could make some noise in February and March.
Haell and Fassina Romao were the clear 1st and 2nd options in the 1650 last season, and that does not look to be too different in 2026, with Haell’s 15:50.88 from ACC sitting as her fastest time from last season, which would have kept her at 7th at NCAAs, and Fassina Romao’s 15:56.88 at the Eddie Reese Texas Showdown, the Cardinals have a legit one-two-punch in the 1650, both of which should be able to score some big points on the national level.
Backstroke: ★
Camille Murray and Julie Mishler make up pretty much all of the key firepower for the 10 back for the Cardinals heading into the 2026 season, both having clocked sub-52-second performances (and the only 53-second performances on the team, for that matter); the spring backstroke will be largely put on their shoulders.
On the national scale, Murray’s 51.23 and Mishler’s 51.61 (both from ACCs) were semi-competitive, with the scoring cutoff at NCAAs sitting at 51.36. If Murray had swum her conference time, she would have finished 12th, rather than the 52.60 she did, finishing 43rd.
Mishler was 31st at NCAAs in 52.01, but again, would have been fighting a bit harder for some points had she gone at or faster than her ACC performance.
Anastasia Gorbenko was nearly a full second faster than the rest of the roster last season in the 200 back (1:52.53), though it is hard to imagine her straying from the 100/200 breast and 200 IM lineup she swam last season. Murray was also 1:53.30, while sophomore Xeniya Ignatova also threw down a 1:53.35 at ACCs, which offers a bit more depth in the likely chance that Gorbenko decides not to race this event nationally.
Mary Clarke could be a 100 back factor as well, coming in with a best time of 52.41, which would have been 3rd on last season’s Louisville roster.
Breaststroke: ★★★★
Gorbenko’s return is SEISMIC for Louisville in the breaststroke events. As mentioned, she isn’t just scoring at NCAAs; she’s also contending, which is different.
Still only a sophomore. Gorbenko will be a name mentioned when picking winners in the 100 and 200 breaststroke last season. However, she is going to have some steep competition around the country if she wants to move up.
Gorbenko was actually half a second slower at NCAAs than she was at NCAAs in the 100 breast (57.03 to 57.86; both would have had her finish 4th); she was also another two tenths faster at ACCs in the 200 breast than what she was when she tied for 3rd at NCAAs (2:05.02 to 2:05.24).
The three swimmers that were either tied or faster than her at NCAAs were all seniors, which makes Gorbenko a legit national title threat as a sophomore.
Behind her, however, the cupboard is a bit emptier, with Mia Cheatwood gone and Kim Herkle also finished; there will be a new number two option needing to step up for the Cardinals, even with the firepower that Gorbenko has, who could bring in over 30 points in these two events on her own.
Some possible options are sophomore Anna Inagaki (1:00.36, 2:11.05 last season) or Caroline Larsen (59.66 last season), though all eyes will be glued to Gorbenko’s breaststroke.
Butterfly: ★
No more Ella Welch means a new top butterflyer for the Cardinals, and that seems to be the spot where Caroline Larsen will fit best, having been 51.38 last season in the 100 fly, which was less than four tenths off of Welch’s 51.02 team-leading time from ACCs.
Welch was 15th in this event at NCAAs, but that 51.38 from Larsen would have been one spot outside of scoring at the national level. If she can get to somewhere in the 51.1 range, she should be in a strong spot to bring in some points at NCAAs.
Nobody else was quicker than 53.45 last season, which makes Larsen the likely fly leg for medley relays and will probably pull her away from some freestyle events this season, though come time for ACCs and NCAAs, that may not be as crucial.
On the bright side, Summer Cardwell returns as the team’s fastest 200 flyers from a season ago, touching in 1:57.60 at the ACC Championships.
Again, that time is considerably outside of what it took to finish 16th at NCAAs last season, as that 1-point performing time sat at 1:54.99, almost three seconds faster than Cardwell’s season-best time.
This is a group that will need some development to avoid taking a big step back this season, though with Cardwell and Larsen back, they do have a pair of strong performers to kickstart that project.
IM: ★★★
All signs in the 200 IM point to Gorbenko once again being a contender, after finishing 5th a season ago at NCAAs, and within a second of the winning time (which was swum by a senior), the door is wide open for a new top 200 IMer.
Only a sophomore, Gorbenko could be one of the top scorers at NCAAs this season, especially given her 200 breast standing and now a strong path to another potential top placing in the 200 IM.
Entering NCAAs, Gorbennko was the real favorite to win, having blasted a 1:51.30 at ACCs. If she can get back to that time, she may not only win, but run away with it big time.
The rest of the roster from last season did not shine like Gorbenko did, with the next-fastest returner being Summer Cardwell, who posted 1:57.12 at NCAAs, earning her a 20th-place finish. With this being her senior season, she will be looking to close it out in a big way, and that could include a few points on the side of the 200 IM.
Gorbenko’s name seems to be the most repeated on the team thus far, and that holds in the 400 IM, as she delivered the team’s fastest time last season at a dual meet against Indiana in 4:06.52. It seems pretty clear that she will be eyeing the previously discussed lineup, leaving another spot open for one of her Louisville teammates to step up and handle business.
Kim Herkle was the next closest to Gorbenko in 4:07.64, though the Cardinals will be without her services this season, leaving another open gap in the scoring.
Given the strength of the 200 IM (which includes the potential champion) and the relatively limited depth in the 400 IM, I’m rating it three stars.
Diving: ★
Diving was not a strong suit last season for Louisville, having not scored a single NCAA point in any diving event and only 58 points in diving at ACCs. This could be an area that really hurts the Cards.
Only two divers represented Louisville at the National Championships last season, both of whom will be back for the Cardinals in 2026.
Sophomore Samantha Keith and junior Sammantha Helmbolt both competed on platform for the Cardinals last season, with both finishing well outside the top 16, with Keith 35th and Helmbolt 35th.
Relays: ★★★
Note that the grading system doesn’t align perfectly for relays as double points.
Relay grading system:
5 star (★★★★★) – 31+ points per relay event 4 star (★★★★) – 22-30 relay points per event 3 star (★★★) – 12-21 relay points per event 2 star (★★) – 5-11 relay points per event 1 star (★) – 0-4 relay points per eventMishler, Gorbenko, and Larsen return from the 200 and 400 free relays, though they will be without Dennis, who was a big piece to both NCAA relays a year ago. It feels as though this will be a strong place for Golovaty or Clarke to step up in these roles, though it would not be too much of a surprise if it came in a meet-by-meet decision.
The medley relays seem to be pretty solid with Murray, Gorbenko, Larsen, and likely Mishler on the anchor legs. And the 800 free returns all of their members from their 10th-place-finishing NCAA relay: Golovaty, Gorbenko, Cardwell, and Ignatova.
Last season, Louisville picked up 201.5 points in the relays, making them one of only eight teams at NCAAs to reach 200 relay points in the meet. With those numbers and returning a bulk of your swimmers, it’s unlikely they’ll drop off too far, though Welch and Dennis will be tough to replace.
Total Stars: 20.5/40
2026-27 Outlook
Despite losing a few cornerstones of the women’s program at Louisville, the Cardinals are in a very strong position still to deliver a big-time season in 2026-2027.
It’s no surprise that Gorbenko will be the headliner, with some legitimate chances to pick up multiple individual national titles. She will also be well supported by Caroline Larsen, Julie Mishler, Camille Murray, Thilda Haell, Daria Golovaty, among several other strong contributors.
The ACC has proven to be an uphill battle for any team in it. Still, with the inclusion of the College Swimming League, Louisville will have great opportunities to race top competition outside the NCAAs or ACC, which usually helps a program move forward.
Another top-10 finish is not out of the picture this upcoming season; in fact, it will likely be a focal point, even without some of the team’s major scorers over the last few seasons.
WOMEN’S 2026-27 COLLEGE PREVIEW INDEX
RANK (2026) TEAM SPRINT FREE DISTANCE FREE BACK BREAST FLY IM DIVING RELAY TOTAL 1 Virginia Cavaliers 2 Stanford Cardinal 3 Texas Longhorns 4 California Golden Bears 5 Tennessee Volunteers 6 Michigan Wolverines 7 Indiana Hoosiers 8 Louisville Cardinals ★★★½ ★★★★ ★ ★★★★ ★ ★★★ ★ ★★★ 20.5/40 9 NC State Wolfpack ★★½ ★ ★★★★★ ★★★★½ ★★★½ ★★ ★ ★★★★ 23.5/40 10 Florida Gators ★ ★★½ ★★★ ★★½ ★ ★★ ★★★ ★½ 16.5/40 11 Alabama Crimson Tide ★★★ ★ ★★½ ★ ★★ ★ ★ ★★★ ½ 15/40 12 Ohio State Buckeyes ★★ ★★★ ½ ★ ★★★ ★ ½ ★ ★★ ½ ★★ 16.5/40Read the full story on SwimSwam: 2027 College Swimming Previews: #8 Louisville Women Aim High With National Contender Anastasia Gorbenko
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