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The University of Georgia Women’s Swimming and Diving team has landed a big verbal commitment for the 2026-27 school year: #10 Virginia Hinds from Chevy Chase, Maryland.
“I’m super excited to announce my verbal commitment to continue to swim and study at the University of Georgia!!! I would like to thank my coaches, family, and friends who have all helped make this possible. Also, a big thank you to Coach Stef, Fernando, and Jerry for this opportunity!! GO DAWGS ❤️🐾”
Hinds is a junior at Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School. She swims year-round with All Star Aquatics and specializes in backstroke. An Olympic Trials qualifier in the 200 back, we ranked her #10 on our Way Too Early list of top recruits from the high school class of 2026.
Hinds is only the 2nd ranked commitment for the UGA women in the last five recruiting classes. After 43 seasons at the helm of the combined men’s and women’s program, Jack Bauerle retired in June 2021 and the Bulldogs hired Neil Versfeld and Stefanie Williams Moreno to head the men’s and women’s teams, respectively. There was a dearth of top-20 commits as the Bauerle era wound down and Georgia made the transition to the split program, but the momentum has picked up for 2025 and 2026.
The high school class of 2018 was the apex of recruiting for the Georgia women, with 4 top 20 commitments. They scored one each in 2019-2021 before being shut out from 2022-24. Now, the Bulldogs have commitments from #10 Kennedi Dobson and four more “Best of the Rest” recruits in the class of 2025 and they’ve kicked of 2026 with #10 Virginia Hinds.
| High school class | Top 20 Recruits |
| Class of 2026 | #10 Virginia Hinds |
| Class of 2025 | #10 Kennedi Dobson |
| Class of 2024 | no top 20 |
| Class of 2023 | no top 20 |
| Class of 2022 | no top 20 |
| Class of 2021 | #10 Rachel Stege |
| Class of 2020 | #20 Maxine Parker |
| Class of 2019 | #2 Zoie Hartman |
| Class of 2018 | #7 Eva Merrell, #9 Olivia Carter, #13 Dakota Luther, #18 Maddie Homovich |
| Class of 2017 | #1 Courtney Harnish |
| Class of 2016 | #7 Veronica Burchill |
As a sophomore in high school, Hinds won the 100 free (49.93) and 100 back (53.35) at the 2024 MPSSAA 4A3A State Championship last February. Two months earlier, she had notched PBs in the 100 back and 200 back at Winter Juniors East, placing 4th and 18th in the respective events.
Hinds swam at U.S. Olympic Team Trials in June and wrapped up her long course season a month later at Richmond Future. All told, she improved her LCM times this summer in the 50 free (26.77), 100 free (58.35), 200 free (2:03.80), 200 back (2:13.14), 100 fly (1:01.65), and 200 fly (2:22.63).
She is one of only two backstrokers in the cohort with a SCY 52/1:55 combination, and her 23.5/49.7/1:47.6 in the sprint free events give her the flexibility to contribute to a number of Georgia relays.
Best SCY times:
- 100 back – 52.87
- 200 back – 1:55.95
- 200 free – 1:47.61
- 100 free – 49.78
- 50 free – 23.50
If you have a commitment to report, please send an email with a photo (landscape, or horizontal, looks best) and a quote to [email protected].
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