GREENSBORO, N.C. -- The postseason experience ended on a high note for swimmers Coralie Norenberg, Pia Davila, Maddy Gruender, and Tereza Shea.

On the last day of the 2024 NCAA Division III Championships, UC Santa Cruz competed in the women's 400 Freestyle Relay in a tough heat which included national contenders MIT, Kenyon, and defending champions Denison. The Banana Slugs placed sixth out of eight schools in 3:29.21. That put UC Santa Cruz in 17th place overall, just missing Saturday afternoon's finals and their best finish in the four relay events contested this week.

"I could not be more proud of Maddy, Pia, Coralie, and Tereza," said head coach Matthew Crawford. "They represented our school well at the national level, they competed fiercely, and they earned every bit of the success they've enjoyed this season."

Gruender also competed in the 200 Backstroke, her third individual event. She finished sixth in her heat in 2:03.84. That put Gruender 22nd in the nation, her third top-30 finish this week.

"Overall, it was a good week at NCAAs," said Crawford. "Getting a women's relay to the meet for the first time in almost 20 years is a huge accomplishment for our program. Maddy's individual selections are another huge accomplishment in her impressive career! Breaking the 200 and 400 medley relay records this week means we broke all five relay records on the women's side in one season, which is tremendously difficult and helps define this as what I believe is the fastest women's team in our program's history."