Swimming & Diving
Sophie Sorenson - Swimming & Diving - University of Kentucky Athletics

SophieSorenson

  • position Backstroke/im
  • class Senior
  • Hometown Ames, Iowa
  • Major Marketing
  • High school Ames High School

Top Times (SCY):
100 Backstroke: 52.02 (2021 SEC Championships, 2/19/21)
200 Backstroke: 1:50.94 (2021 SEC Championships, 2/20/21)
200 IM: 1:56.15 (2022 NCAA Championships, 3/17/22)

Top Times (LCM):
100 Backstroke: 1:00.78 (2021 U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials, 6/15/21)
200 Backstroke: 2:10.83 (2021 U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials, 6/18/21)
200 IM: 2:14.49 (Greensboro Speedo Sectionals, 7/15/21)
 
Career Notes:

  • 2021 U.S. Olympic Trials qualifier
  • 2019, 2020*, 2021, 2022 NCAA qualifier
  • 2022 All-America in 200 back, 400 medley relay, 800 free relay
  • 2021 All-America in 200 back, 800 free relay; All-America Honorable Mention in 200 IM
  • ^2020 All-America in 200 back, 200 IM
  • 2021 NCAA silver medalist in 800 free relay
  • 2022 SEC silver medalist in 800 free relay; bronze medalist in 200 back, 400 medley relay
  • 2021 SEC champion in 800 free relay; silver medalist in 200 back
  • 2022 All-SEC Second Team
  • 2021 All-SEC First Team
  • 2019 SEC All-Freshman Team
  • 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 CSCAA Scholar All-America First Team
  • 2020, 2021, 2022 SEC Winter Academic Honor Roll
  • 2019 SEC First-Year Academic Honor Roll
  • 2019 silver medalist at Phillips 66 National Championships in 400 medley relay

In the Record Book:

  • No. 1 in 400 medley relay (2022)
  • No. 4 in 100 back (2021), 200 IM (2022)
  • No. 5 in 200 back (2021)

2021-22 (Senior): Named to the All-SEC Second Team … Earned bronze in the 200 back (1:52.22) at the SEC Championships, also placing fourth in the 200 IM (1:56.34) and eighth in the 100 back (52.65) … Split 1:44.41 on the silver-medal 800 free relay at SECs, also anchoring the 400 medley relay in 48.70 that secured bronze … Placed 11th in the 200 back (1:51.99), 18th in the 200 IM (1:56.15) and 22nd in the 100 back (52.11) at the NCAA Championships … Had a split of 1:45.09 on the 800 free relay that placed ninth at NCAAs, also anchoring the 13th-place 400 medley relay in 47.76 that broke the school record … Won the 200 back (1:52.18) at the midseason Ohio State Invitational in addition to taking fifth in the 200 IM (1:58.10) and seventh in the 100 back (53.31) … Posted 18 top-5 finishes throughout the dual meet season … Broke the UofL pool record in the 200 back (1:52.11) in the annual battle with Louisville, also winning the 200 IM (1:57.77) and taking second in the 100 back (52.58) … Won the 200 back (1:58.18) in the season opener with Indiana and Indiana State … Placed second in the 100 back (55.70) and third in the 200 back (1:56.66) in a tri-meet with Auburn and NC State … Raced to the top spot in the 200 back (1:55.75) with a pair of third-place finishes against Tennessee … Won the 50 free (23.86) and took second in the 200 free (1:50.62) versus Cincinnati on Senior Day … Took first in the 200 back (1:55.97) and second in the 100 back (54.62) in a tilt with Marshall … Named SEC Female Swimmer of the Week on Jan. 25, the first of her career … Won the Captain’s Award at the program’s annual award banquet.

2020-21 (Junior): Two-time U.S. Olympic Trials semifinalist, finishing 11th in the 200m back (2:10.83) and 14th in the 100m back (1:00.78) … Named to the All-SEC First Team … Earned silver in the 200 back at the 2021 SEC Championships with a time of 1:50.94, also taking fourth in the 100 back (52.02) and 11th in the 200 IM (1:57.00) … Anchored the 800 free relay in 1:45.78 that won the Wildcats’ first-ever SEC relay title, anchored the seventh-place 200 freestyle relay in 22.48, and split 48.96 on the 400 free relay that took 11th as UK won their first conference title in program history … Finished eighth in the 200 back (1:52.63) and 12th in the 200 IM (1:57.00) at the NCAA Championships, in addition to splitting 1:44.97 on the 800 free relay that was the national runner-up … Placed second in the 200 back (1:54.44) and third in both the 100 back (52.75) and 200 IM (1:58.43) at the Missouri Invitational … Won five individual events during the dual meet season against Louisville, Tennessee, and Vanderbilt … Earned the Captain’s Award and the Booster Club Award at the program’s annual awards banquet … Named to SEC Winter Academic Honor Roll … Named to the CSCAA Scholar All-America First Team.

2019-20 (Sophomore): Contributed 57 individual points at the 2020 SEC Championships … Finished in seventh place in the 200 backstroke in 1:52.90 at the SEC Championships, before earning a career-best 1:52.38 during preliminaries … Finished in 10th place in the 200 IM in 1:56.50, a career best, at the SEC Championships … Finished in 10th place in the 100 backstroke in 53.01 at the SEC Championships, before earning a career-best 52.80 during preliminaries … Qualified for the 2020 NCAA Championships in the 200 IM and the 200 backstroke … Qualified for the 2020 U.S. Olympic Trials in the 100 and 200 backstroke … Named to the CSCAA Scholar All-America First Team … Named to the 2020 SEC Winter Academic Honor Roll. 

2018-19 (Freshman): Named to the SEC All-Freshman Team … Scored points in two individual events and one relay at the SEC Championships … Placed sixth in the 200 back (1:52.92), finished 13th in the 100 back (53.47) and finished 11th as a part of the 200 free relay team (1:30.81) at the SEC Championships … Sorenson set career-best marks in each of her individual events at the SEC Championships in the 100 back (53.04), 200 back (1:52.92) and 200 IM (1:59.02) … Qualified for the NCAA Championships in the 100 and 200 back … Finished in 43rd in the 200 back (1:55.78) and finished in 53rd in the 100 back (54.40) at the NCAA Championships … Named to CSCAA Scholar All-America First Team … Named to SEC First-Year Academic Honor Roll.
 
Prior to UK: The 2015, 2016 and 2017 IGHSAU (Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union) State Champion and state record holder in the 100 back (54.60) …  Won the state title in the 200 IM in 2017 … Holds state records in the 200 medley relay and 400 free relay … Won three-straight team state championships with Ames High … 2017 U.S. Olympic Trials qualifier in the 200 back … Four-time Scholastic All-American … Two-time Des Moines Register All-Iowa High School Athlete of the Year.

Personal: Parents are Melissa and Allan Sorenson … Has one sister, Sydney, who was a swimmer at Towson.

*The NCAA Championships were canceled because of the COVID-19 public-health threat.
^The CSCAA board adjusted the All-America selection criteria to recognize a group of individuals who would have had the opportunity to compete for All-America status at the canceled 2020 NCAA Championships.

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