NCAC Teams Secure Three More Titles; Denison Men’s 800 Free Relay Shatters NCAA Record

INDIANAPOLIS, IN – A national record shattered by more than four seconds, three more national titles, and seven additional top-five finishes highlighted a dominant Friday night for North Coast Athletic Conference student-athletes at the 2026 NCAA Division III Swimming & Diving Championships at the IU Natatorium in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Through 29 total events, NCAC student-athletes have collected 10 national titles, combined for 35 top-five finishes and posted 72 All-American efforts.
 
After three nights of competition, Denison maintains its lead in the men's team standings with 313.5 points, as the Big Red hold a 30.5-point lead over NYU (283), while Chicago (265) sits in third, Emory (240) is in fourth and Kenyon (234) rounds out the top five.
 
NYU continues to hold the top spot in the women's team standings with 375 points. The Violets are followed by Emory (319.5) in second, while Kenyon (294) is in third, Denison (239) is in fourth, and Williams (190.5) rounds out the top five.

Men's 200 Medley Relay
After a disqualification of the top-finishing Bates team, the NYU team of Teddy McQuaid, Sean Li, Teddy Cross and Greg Wehbe collected the national title in a time of 1:26.18. The Kenyon quartet of juniors Peter Dunson (Durham, NC/Trinity School), Noel Tumbasz (Budapest, Hungary/ELTE Radnóti Miklós Gyakorló Gimnázium) and Roman Savage (Claremont, CA/Claremont) and senior Djordje Dragojlovic (Belgrade, Serbia/Nada Dimic) posted a third-place finish in 1:27.08. 

Women's 200 Medley Relay
Emory's squad of Penny Celtnieks, Katie Cohen, Allison Greeneway and Ava Kennedy touched the wall first to claim the 200 medley relay national title in 1:39.72. The Kenyon quartet senior Gwen Eisenbeis (Okemos, MI/Williamston), sophomore Kelsey Van Eldik (Newcastle, Australia/Merewether) and juniors Maggie Grespin (Huron, OH/Saint Ursula Academy) and Kate Bogan (Irmo, SC/Dutch Fork) captured second just 0.17 behind the Eagles (1:39.89), while the Denison team junior Jassy Park (Lakeway, TX/Hyde Park) and Riley Tofflemire (Oakville, ON/St. Mildred's-Lightbourn School), senior Phoebe Ferguson (Columbus, OH/Grandview Heights) and first-year Hailey Kaminski (Northfield, OH/Nordonia) claimed third in a time of 1:40.53.
 
Men's 200 Butterfly
Chicago junior Cooper Costello outpaced the field in the "A" finals of the 200 fly, touching the wall in 1:42.98. Kenyon senior Ethan Manske (Santa Fe, NM/St. Michaels) was the lone NCAC competitor in the finals of the event, touching the wall in 1:47.85 for fourth in the "B" finals.
 
Women's 200 Butterfly
In the championship heat of the women's 200 fly, NYU senior Nicole Ranile outpaced the field in the "A" finals for the second-consecutive time, touching the wall in 1:58.51. Denison senior Emily Harris (Nashville, TN/Ensworth) placed fifth in a time of 2:01.43, while Kenyon juniors Amelia Stevenson (Morrisville, PA/Pennington School) and Sofia Giordano (East Moriches, NY/Manhasset Senior) took seventh (2:01.99) and eighth (2:02.52), respectively.
 
Men's 100 Backstroke
Carnegie Mellon junior Brayden Morford defended his title in the 100 back, finishing in 46.29. Denison sophomore Ben Bevill (Chattanooga, TN/McCallie School) was the lone NCAC competitor in the "B" finals of the event, touching the wall in 48.07 for a third-place finish in the consolation finals.

Women's 100 Backstroke
NYU first-year Maeve O'Donnell claimed the national title in the women's 100 back, touching the wall in 54.28. Denison junior Jassy Park (Lakeway, TX/Hyde Park) placed sixth in 55.04, while Kenyon senior Gwen Eisenbeis (Okemos, MI/Williamston) tied for seventh in 55.12.

Men's 100 Breaststroke
Bates senior Marrich Somridhivej earned the national title in a time of 51.82. Denison junior Liam Nelson (Pakkret, Thailand/International School Bangkok) tied for sixth in a time of 53.81. Also noteworthy, John Carroll junior Bart Kubis (Park Ridge, IL/Maine South) finished second in the "B" finals in 54.25, just 0.02 seconds behind the consolation finals top finisher.
 
Women's 100 Breaststroke
Kenyon sophomore Kelsey Van Eldik (Newcastle, Australia/Merewether) earned the Owls their fourth-straight 100 breast title, touching the wall first in 1:00.10. Denison senior Drue Thielking (Brighton, MI/Brighton) tied for third in a time of 1:02.02, while Big Red junior Riley Tofflemire (Oakville, ON/St. Mildred's-Lightbourn School) finished in a time of 1:02.66 for seventh.

Men's One-Meter Diving
Denison senior Nick Fogle (Corcoran, MN/Orono) claimed the sweep in the diving events with the one-meter title after posting 548.80 points in the championship finals, while Kenyon first-year Chase Smith (West Bloomfield, MI/West Bloomfield) took sixth in the event with 474.45 points.
 
Men's 800 Free Relay
Denison junior Jack Hill (Leighton Buzzard, U.K./Cedars Upper) and the trio of sophomores, George Goins (Charlotte, NC/McCallie School), Harry Parsons (San Rafael, CA/Bay School) and Nick Hensel (Houston, TX/St. Johns), brought the men's 800 free relay title back to Granville, cutting more than four seconds off the national record after touching in 6:22.37. Kenyon's quartet of seniors Djordje Dragojlovic (Belgrade, Serbia/Nada Dimic) and Teo Jaworski (Ann Arbor, MI/Pioneer), junior Roman Savage (Claremont, CA/Claremont) and senior Ethan Manske (Santa Fe, NM/St. Michaels) earned third in a time of 6:27.66.
 
Women's 800 Free Relay
NYU collected the women's 800 free relay title for the third-straight season thanks to Emery Muller, Lian Jeong Engle, Nicole Ranile and Llew Ladomirak touching the wall in 7:17.27. The Denison team of senior Emily Harris (Nashville, TN/Ensworth), junior Ollie Morse (Granville, OH/Columbus School for Girls), first-year Reilly O'Hara (Winnetka, IL/Loyola Academy) and senior Quinn Brown (Portland, OR/Grant) collected bronze in a time of 7:19.14 and the Kenyon quartet of first-year Deniz Guvenc (Istanbul, Turkey/Ozel Sezin), senior Lisa Torrecillas-Jouault (Le Mans, France/CENS), sophomore Nora Lee Brown (St. Louis, MO/Kirkwood) and senior Molly Haag (Middleton, WI/Middleton) timed in at 7:22.19 for sixth.

The 2026 national meet continues through Saturday evening at the IU Natatorium in Indianapolis, Indiana, with prelim sessions beginning each morning at 10:00 a.m. and final sessions starting nightly at 6:00 p.m.

 

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