Season Recap: Younger swimmers excel for Chargers in 2025-26 marketing campaign

Youth was served for the Hillsdale College girls’s swimming and diving group, as a younger Chargers squad took a noticeable step ahead as a bunch within the 2025-26 marketing campaign in a number of methods.

Key to the season was the numerous impression a formidable freshman class had on the energy and achievements of the squad. When paired with one other highly-regarded class in Hillsdale’s sophomore group, the longer term is shiny certainly for the Chargers.

Freshmen Sasha Babenko and Avery May made the largest distinction for Hillsdale in 2025-26. Both swimmers earned first-team All-G-MAC honors and achieved NCAA B-cut marks of their debut seasons, whereas inserting their names throughout Hillsdale’s all-time listing of prime 10 instances. Babenko rewrote the Chargers’ backstroke data, setting a brand new prime mark within the 100 backstroke (56.07) and within the 200 backstroke (2:02.37), whereas additionally excelling as a dash freestyler, with prime 5 all-time Hillsdale marks within the 50, 100 and 200 freestyle, in addition to the 100 butterfly and 200 particular person medley.

May had an identical impression for the Chargers within the distance races, posting B-cut instances and the second quickest marks in Hillsdale historical past in each the 400 particular person medley and the five hundred freestyle, whereas additionally incomes a spot in Hillsdale’s all-time prime 10 within the 1,000 freestyle. Both Babenko and May earned G-MAC Women’s Swimmer of the Week honors and have been essential for the Chargers on the season-ending G-MAC/MEC Championships. Both May and Babenko additionally swam on a record-setting 400 freestyle relay for the Chargers together with Ella Malone and Ella Schafer, whereas Babenko additionally teamed with Schafer, Malone and Kate Potwardowski on a record-setting 200 medley relay as effectively. 

While Babenko and May have been the headliners, Hillsdale received robust contributions from others within the freshman class as effectively, together with Rylee Harris within the freestyle and backstroke occasions, and Kate Potwardowski within the breaststroke. 

Hillsdale’s newcomers added to a robust exhibiting by Hillsdale’s sophomore and junior lessons. Sophomores Ella Schafer and Matilyn Wilhelmsen continued to excel for the Chargers throughout quite a lot of occasions, with Schafer reaching a B-cut time within the 200 freestyle for the second-straight season, whereas fellow sophomore Ella Malone took a giant step ahead as effectively, creating into a serious point-scorer for Hillsdale on the G-MAC/MEC Championships. Among its juniors, Hillsdale received nice finishes from Isabel Ondracek within the distance freestyle occasions, Alyson Early within the freestyle and IM occasions, and Lauren Kamp within the breaststroke and IM occasions, amongst others.

The consequence was a fourth straight runner-up end within the G-MAC/MEC Championships, however Hillsdale closed the hole on champion Findlay by practically 140 factors, scoring 100 greater than in 2024-25 regardless of not fielding an 18th competitor within the occasion. The enchancment is particularly thrilling, given the youth of Hillsdale’s group. While the Chargers will miss their lone senior Rotem Andegeko, who performed a job in Hillsdale’s end on the convention championship, 16 of Hillsdale’s 17 swimmers are in line to return for the 2026-27 season. When paired with what’s shaping as much as be one other thrilling freshman class, the Chargers are hoping they’re going to have the firepower to place actual strain on the rival Oilers on the 2027 G-MAC/MEC Championships. Only time will inform, nevertheless, because the Chargers start their offseason coaching motivated to achieve their targets within the upcoming marketing campaign.