2026 NCAA Division II Championships – Day 3 Ups/Downs: Nova Southeastern Shows Out In 200 Free

2026 NCAA Division II Swimming & Diving Championships

• March 10-14, 2026
• Deaconess Aquatic Center — Evansville, Indiana
• SCY (25 Yards)
• Defending Champions
  • Women: Nova Southeastern (3x)
  • Men: vacant
• Psych Sheets
  • Men
  • Women
• Live Video
• Live Results
• Live Recaps:
  • Prelims: Day 2 | Day 3
  • Finals: Day 1 | Day 2

For those unfamiliar with swimming terminology, the concept of “Ups” and “Downs” is a good way to track which teams performed best at prelims. In prelims, swimmers qualify for one of two finals heats: the top 8 finishers make the A final, places 9 through 16 the B final. In finals, swimmers are locked into their respective final, meaning a swimmer in the B heat (spots 9-16) can only place as high as 9th or as low as 16th, even if they put up the fastest or slowest time of any heat in the final.

With that in mind, we’ll be tracking “Ups” and “Downs” after each prelims session. “Up” refers to swimmers and divers in the A final, “Down” to B finalists.

These predictions do not include the 1000 free, diving, or relays

Women’s Meet

Overall Standings – Thru Day 2

1. Nova Southeastern — 163
2. Tampa — 129.5
3. Drury — 94
4. Indy — 87
5. West Florida — 81
6. Findlay — 72.5
7. Catawba — 59
8. Wingate — 55
9. Grand Valley/Colorado Mesa/Delta State — 53
10. —

Coming into the day with a 33.5-point buffer, Nova Southeastern had a strong morning by putting at least one athlete into each ‘A’ final, including going 2/2 in the 200 free.

Tampa and Drury both matched the Sharks by going 3/2 in the session, while Grand Valley also impressed by earning three ‘A’ finalists. All four teams are seeded to score more than 50 points tonight, but it’s Nova Southeastern leading the way as they look to extend their advantage with hopes of a fourth straight national title.

Drury looks locked into the #3 spot in the team race right now, while Grand Valley State is starting to give Indy a run for 4th.

Women’s Ups/Downs

Women’s Projected Points Per Event

Day 3 Prelims Projected Points – Top 10

1. Nova Southeastern – 66.0
2. Tampa – 56.0
3. Grand Valley – 54.0
4. Drury – 52.0
5. Colorado Mesa – 44.0
6. Findlay – 27.0
7. Lynn – 26.0
8. Indy – 23.0
9. CSU East Bay – 20.0
10. Wingate – 17.0

Projected Team Standings After Day 3 – Top 10

1. Nova Southeastern – 229.0
2. Tampa – 185.5
3. Drury – 146
4. Indy – 110
5. Grand Valley – 107
6. Findlay – 99.5
7. Colorado Mesa – 97
8. West Florida – 88
9. Wingate – 72
10. Catawba – 68

Men’s Meet

Overall Standings – Thru Day 2

1. Drury — 152
2. Tampa — 149
3. Colorado Mesa — 139
4. Indy — 120
5. McKendree — 86.5
6. Findlay — 66
7. Grand Valley — 64
8. Lynn — 61
9. Wingate — 58
10. Clarion — 54

Just three points separated Drury and Tampa in the team standings coming out of Wednesday night’s session, and there was not much between the two teams again this morning, both going 4/3.

The Spartans landed two ‘A’ finalists in both the 100 fly and 200 free, while the Panthers did the same in the 200 free and also went 2/1 in the 400 IM.

Lynn University notably put two up in the 100 fly, their only two swimmers making it back to tonight’s session.

In the scoring race, Drury projects to outscore Tampa by 3.5 points tonight, not factoring in the relay, which means the battle for the title will likely come down to the wire and still be incredibly close heading into Friday.

Colorado Mesa, Indy and McKendree look firmly entrenched in 3-4-5 positions for the time being.

Men’s Ups/Downs

Men’s Projected Points Per Event

Day 3 Prelims Projected Points – Top 10

1. Drury – 71.5
2. Tampa – 68.0
3. Colorado Mesa – 52.0
4. Indy – 51.0
5. McKendree – 43.0
6. Lynn – 31.0
7. Catawba – 27.0
8. Findlay – 20.0
9. Wingate – 20.0
10. Carson – 15.0

Projected Team Standings After Day 3 – Top 10

1. Drury – 223.5
2. Tampa – 217.0
3. Colorado Mesa – 191.0
4. Indy – 171.0
5. McKendree – 129.5
6. Lynn – 92.0
7. Findlay – 86.0
8. Wingate – 78.0
9. Grand Valley – 70.0
10. Florida Southern – 64.0