The Kenyon women capture their 25th NCAA Swimming & Diving Championship.
GREENSBORO, NC – The Kenyon women captured their 25th national title in program history, after the Owls accumulated 448 points over the course of the four days of action at the 2024 NCAA Division III Swimming & Diving Championships at the Greensboro Aquatic Center in Greensboro, North Carolina.
Defending champion Denison finished as the runner-up in the women’s standings with 430 points, while NYU claimed third with 374. Williams placed fourth with 360 points, MIT took fifth with 344.5 points and Emory rounded out the top six with 308 points.
In the men's final standings, Emory captured its third-consecutive and fourth overall national crown with 434 points, while 34-time national champion Kenyon placed second with 391 points. Chicago took third (309), NYU placed fourth (282), Williams earned fifth (269.5) and Denison rounded out the top six (200).
At the completion of the four days of action in Greensboro, NCAC student-athletes won 11 national titles and logged 114 All-American performances.
In addition, Kenyon senior Israel Zavaleta (Mexico City, Mexico/Universidad del Valle de Mexico) was named the 2024 Division III Men's National Diver of the Year for the third-consecutive season. Zavaleta defended his title for the third-consecutive season in both the one-meter (581.15) and three-meter (606.65) competitions. The senior is the first male diver in Division III to collect six championships combined on both boards. He is also the first diver in Division III to claim three-straight three-meter titles and only the second male diver to win at least three-consecutive titles in the one-meter event.
Men's 1,650 Free
Two Denison student-athletes posted Top-8 All-American times in the men's 1,650 free, led by junior Lucas Conrads (Naperville, IL/Waubonsie Valley), who finished third in 15:22.12. Senior teammate Luke Landis (Upper Arlington, OH/Upper Arlington) placed just behind Conrads in fourth in a time of 15:23.17. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps junior Lucas Lang claimed the national title with a winning time of 15:17.48. Emory continued to lead the men’s standings with 327 points, while Kenyon remained in second with 274 points and Denison jumped up to sixth with 175 points.
Women's 1,650 Free
The NCAC saw four student-athletes place in the top eight in the women's 1,650 free, led by Kenyon first-year Bengisu Caymaz (Istanbul, Turkey/Eyuboglu), who touched the wall first in 16:34.67 for her second individual national title of the meet. Denison senior Tara Witkowski (West Chester, OH/Lakota East) placed fifth in 16:46.62, while Kenyon junior Molly Haag (Andover, MN/Andover) took sixth in 16:47.24 and Big Red sophomore Quinn Brown (Portland, OR/Grant) earned eighth in 16:53.96. Kenyon picked up 34 points, while Denison collected 32 points in the event, as the Owls remained in first with 349 points and the Big Red sitting five points back in second with 344 points and NYU continuing to hold third with 315 points.
Men's 100 Free
Kenyon sophomore Djordje Dragojlovic (Begrade, Serbia/Nada Dimic) took home gold in the men's 100 free for the with a winning time of 43.26 for his second individual national title of the meet, while junior teammate Aleksa Dobric (Belgrade, Serbia/Sports Gymnasium Belgrade) placed sixth in a time of 43.84. With two other Kenyon swimmers in the consolation finals, the Owls picked up 49 points in the men’s team standings to close in on the leader Emory, as the Eagles hold 342 points overall and the Owls own 323 for second, while Denison remained in sixth 175 points.
Women's 100 Free
Kenyon sophomore Lisa Torrecillas-Jouault (Le Mans, France/CENS) placed seventh in a time of 50.53, while NYU sophomore Kaley McIntyre took gold in the women’s 100 free after touching the wall in a new NCAA record time of 48.79. The Owls collected 12 points in the event, extending their lead to 361 over second-place Denison (348) and third-place NYU (335).
Men's 200 Backstroke
Kenyon senior Yurii Kosian (Odesa, Ukraine/Odesa School 101) represented the NCAC in the "A" finals of the 200 backstroke and improved upon a fourth-place finish last season by touching the wall in second in a time of 1:43.92. Washington University in St. Louis senior Alexander McCormick took first in a time of 1:43.40. Emory remained in first with 370 points, followed by Kenyon in second with 347 points, while Denison remained in sixth with 175 points.
Women's 200 Backstroke
MIT junior Kate Augustyn claimed the national championship title in a time of 1:55.98, while Kenyon senior Caleigh Wukitch (Needham, MA/Ursuline Academy) claimed third, touching the wall in 1:58.98. The Owls maintained their lead in the women’s standings with 377 points, followed by Denison in second (355) and NYU in third (340).
Men's 200 Breaststroke
Denison junior Patrick Daly (New Albany, OH/New Albany) was the NCAC's lone representative in the men's 200 breaststroke championship finals, finishing in sixth in 1:59.27. NYU fifth-year Derek Maas took gold after touching the wall in 1:54.26. Emory extended its lead to 55 points in the men’s standings with 406 overall points, while Kenyon held second with 351 points and Denison remained in sixth with 200 points.
Women's 200 Breaststroke
After a seventh-place finish in 2023, Kenyon junior Gabrielle Wei (Hong Kong/Hong Kong International) took gold in the women's 200 breaststroke, finishing in a time of 2:11.70. Owl classmate Jennah Fadely (Siler City, NC/Jordan Matthews) touched in second in 2:12.71, while
Denison sophomore Drue Thielking (Brighton, MI/Brighton), who placed sixth last year, earned fourth in a time of 2:13.45. After earning 41 team points, Kenyon padded its lead to 48 points over Denison, 418-370, with NYU in third with 340 points.
Women's Three-Meter Diving
Ithaca junior Kailee Payne completed the sweep of the boards claiming the three-meter title with 509.50 points in the championship finals. Denison junior Kerstyn Johnson (Lawrenceville, NJ/Lawrence) placed fourth with 475.30 points and Big Red classmate Alexis Radhakrishnan (Lexington, KY/Paul Laurence Dunbar) took eighth with 452.85 points. With another diver in the consolation finals, the Big Red collected 32 points to cut the Kenyon team lead to 16 points. Kenyon sat with 418 points in first, while Denison totaled 402 points and NYU remained in third with 340 points.
Men's 400 Free Relay
In the final men's event of the evening, the Kenyon foursome of sophomore Djordje Dragojlovic (Begrade, Serbia/Nada Dimic), seniors Marko Krtinic (Bor, Serbia/Gimnazija Patrijarh Pavle) and Daniel Brooks (Arlington, VA/Yorktown) and junior Aleksa Dobric (Belgrade, Serbia/Sports Gymnasium Belgrade) took gold for the Owls for the second-consecutive season in the 400 free relay in a time of 2:54.52. Kenyon picked up 40 points with the win, but it was not enough to take over the lead from Emory, as the Eagles finished the meet with 434 points over Kenyon’s 391 points.
Women's 400 Free Relay
NCAC teams earned two top-five All-American times in the women's 400 free relay, led by the Kenyon quartet of junior Molly Haag (Andover, MN/Andover), sophomores Gwenyth Eisenbeis (Okemos, MI/Williamston) and Lisa Torrecillas-Jouault (Le Mans, France/CENS) and junior Sydney Geboy (Milwaukee, WI/Nicolet), who placed fourth in a time of 3:23.38. The Denison squad of sophomores Emily Harris (Castalian Springs, TN/Ensworth), Grace Kadlecik (Lansing, NY/Lansing) and Phoebe Ferguson (Columbus OH/Grandview Heights) and senior Esme Wright (Cincinnati, OH/Walnut Hills) finished in fifth in 3:24.11. Pomona-Pitzer’s Sabrina Wang, Alexandra Turvey, Katherine Gould and Valerie Mello clocked in with a winning time of 3:20.59 to earn the 2024 title. With the fourth-place finish the Owls earned the team title totaling 448 points over the four nights of action, while the Big Red came in second with 430 points and NYU held onto third with 374 points.