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2026 NCAA Division II Championships: Day 5 Prelims Live Recap

2026 NCAA Division II Swimming & Diving Championships

The final day of the 2026 NCAA Division II Swimming & Diving Championships gets underway this morning with preliminary heats in the 100 freestyle, 200 backstroke, and 200 breaststroke.

The three-time defending national champions from Nova Southeastern hold a 65.5-point advantage over Tampa entering the day, while the Drury men sit a nail-biting 2.5 points clear of the Spartans.

Top 10 Women’s Teams After Day 4

  1. Nova S’Eastern — 374
  2. Tampa — 308.5
  3. Drury — 229
  4. Colorado Mesa — 224.5
  5. Indy — 220.5
  6. West Florida — 211.5
  7. Findlay — 197.5
  8. Grand Valley — 211.5
  9. Delta State — 149
  10. Wingate — 145

Top 10 Men’s Teams After Day 4

  1. Drury — 384
  2. Tampa — 381.5
  3. Colorado Mesa — 330
  4. Indy — 324
  5. McKendree — 198.5
  6. Lynn — 193
  7. Wingate — 135
  8. Grand Valley — 128
  9. Findlay — 125
  10. Florida Southern — 124

Stay tuned for live updates.

WOMEN’S 100 FREESTYLE – PRELIMS

‘A’ Final Qualifiers: 

  1. Kristina Orban (NSU) – 49.57
  2. Emily Mears-Bentley (UFIN) – 49.71
  3. Zsofia Kurdi (NSU) – 49.85
  4. Ada Qunell (MESA) – 49.99
  5. Lucy Hedley (GVSU) – 50.03
  6. Maxine Egner (NSU) – 50.06
  7. Luz Tapia Sahagun (LYNN) & Marit Reckmann (CATC) – 50.31

Nova Southeastern sophomore Kristina Orban, fresh off winning both the 100 fly and 200 free on Thursday, led four swimmers under the 50-second barrier in the women’s 100 free prelims.

Orban hit the wall in 49.57 to claim the top seed, though it is 0.67 off her season-best 48.90, which ranks her first in the division as the only swimmer to crack 49 seconds this season. Her best time remains the 48.63 she clocked to take second to the now-graduated Luna Mertins, who set the NCAA Record to win the title.

Findlay senior Emily Mears-Bentley (49.71) was next quickest, followed by Orban’s fifth-year teammate Zsofia Kurdi (49.85) and Colorado Mesa senior Ada Qunell (49.99), all of whom came in about half a second outside their entry times.

Nova Southeastern put three swimmers into the ‘A’ final, with sophomore Maxine Egner slicing just over two tenths off her lifetime best, which is great news for their title hopes as Tampa did not advance any swimmers into the top heat.

Kurdi finished seventh in that same final, and Grand Valley State senior Lucy Hedley is the only other returner from the 2025 final, qualifying fifth in 50.03, the exact position she touched in last season.

MEN’S 100 FREESTYLE – PRELIMS

‘A’ Final Qualifiers: 

  1. Camilo Marrugo Montano (UFIN) – 42.56
  2. Maurice Grabowski (LYNN) – 42.64
  3. Guillaume Guth (MESA) – 42.79
  4. Tibor Tistan (TAMP) – 42.86
  5. Volodymyr Gavrysh (MKU) – 43.04
  6. Yuri Cabral (DRUR) – 43.05
  7. Leo Nolles (NMU) – 43.15
  8. Maksymilian Minichowski (CATC) – 43.21

The men’s 100 free is set for a renewed battle from Thursday night’s 100 fly, where Lynn senior Maurice Grabowski upended Findlay fifth-year Camilo Marrugo Montano in a slight upset.

Marrugo Montano led the way this morning in 42.56, just eight hundredths ahead of Grabowski’s 42.64, a remarkable swim considering his previous best of 43.32 from December had him seeded eighth, and he hadn’t swum the event at NCAAs since placing 15th in 2022.

Grabowski was the runner-up in this event a year ago with a very similar time of 42.59 to the now-graduated Matthew Bosch, and his season-best 42.19 makes him the clear favorite on paper to grab gold #3 after already claiming the 50 free to open the meet.

Colorado Mesa junior Guillaume Guth (42.79) and Tampa senior Tibor Tistan (42.86) joined the two under 43 seconds to make it four under 43.

MKU’s Volodymyr Gavrysch (43.04), NMU’s Leo Nolles (43.15), and Catawba’s Maksymilian Minichowski (43.21) each return from last year, where they placed fourth, third, and fifth, respectively.

In terms of the team race, Drury and Tampa each advanced swimmers into the championship final.

Tampa junior Yuri Cabral qualified sixth in 43.05, and Drury put two swimmers into the ‘B’ heat compared to Tampa’s one, a crucial points opportunity in a team race currently separated by just 2.5 points.

WOMEN’S 200 BACKSTROKE – PRELIMS

‘A’ Final Qualifiers: 

  1. Agata Naskret (UWF) – 1:54.84
  2. Sidni Meister (TAMP) – 1:56.71
  3. Lindsey Louder (TAMP) – 1:57.35
  4. Megan Corcoran (CN) – 1:57.96
  5. Vittoria Proietti (GVSU) – 1:58.18
  6. Amelia Marsicek (LEWI) – 1:58.33
  7. Kasha Stokes (IUP) – 1:59.23
  8. Valentina Masella (INDY) – 1:59.31

Agata Naskret, a senior at West Florida and two-time defending champion in the 200 event, claimed the top seed in prelims with a time of 1:54.84. She looked fairly easy throughout, coming in just over half a second shy of her season-best 1:53.81, which itself is less than half a second off her Division II Record of 1:53.25.

Naskret has won ten NCAA Division II titles in her career, including three in the 100 back, the two in the 200 back, and five in relays.

A pair of Tampa swimmers checked in second and third, with juniors Sidni Meister (1:56.71) and Lindsey Loyder (1:57.35) dropping 0.92 and 0.53 off their entry times.

Meister is the only other returner from last year’s final outside of Naskret, having touched seventh in 1:59.86 a year ago.

MEN’S 200 BACKSTROKE – PRELIMS

  • NCAA DII Record: 1:40.34, Ben Sampson (Colorado Mesa) – 2024
  • Meet Record: 1:40.34, Ben Sampson (Colorado Mesa) – 2024

‘A’ Final Qualifiers: 

  1. Alvaro Zornova Quiros (DRUR) – 1:41.90
  2. Ivan Adamchuk (DRUR) – 1:42.28
  3. William Beckstead-Holman (TAMP) – 1:43.18
  4. Roland Nagy (NSU) – 1:43.76
  5. Nico Basten (INDY) – 1:43.83
  6. Evaldas Babakinas (DRUR) – 1:44.09
  7. Joshua Noll (TAMPA) – 1:44.25
  8. Richard Schmiedefeld (MESA) – 1:44.32

The Drury men came out in full force in the 200 back, with junior teammates Alvaro Zornoza Quiros (1:41.90) and defending champion Ivan Adamchuk (1:42.28) the only two men to crack 1:43, separated by just 0.38.

Zornoza Quiros sliced 0.47 off his best time from last year’s NCAAs, where he placed third, while Adamchuk’s best remains the 1:41.18 he produced to win the gold.

Tampa senior William Beckstead-Holman checked in third in 1:43.18, keeping the Panthers in the points conversation. Having placed second in the 100 back earlier in the meet, Beckstead-Holman had the swim of his life in prelims, dropping over a full second from the best time he had set just last month.

Nova Southeastern junior Roland Nagy is the only returning finalist outside of the Drury duo, touching fourth this morning in 1:43.76 and looking primed to upgrade from his seventh-place finish a year ago.

Both Drury and Tampa also advanced an additional swimmer into the ‘A’ final, with Drury freshman Evaldas Babakinas (1:44.09) seeded sixth and Tampa junior Joshua Noll (1:44.25) seventh. Neither team advanced swimmers into the ‘B’ final.

WOMEN’S 200 BREASTSTROKE – PRELIMS

‘A’ Final Qualifiers: 

  1. Melina Giraudeau (MESA) – 2:13.10
  2. Gwen Bergum (DRUR) – 2:13.41
  3. Celina Schmidt (INDY) – 2:14.80
  4. Chloe Skelt (DSU) – 2:15.29
  5. Gabriella Moll (CATC) – 2:15.40
  6. Catalina Acacio (EU) – 2:15.59
  7. Katie Susi (UFIN) – 2:15.60
  8. Alena Rozova (UWF) – 2:15.88

Colorado Mesa junior Melina Giraudeau (2:13.10) claimed the top seed in the women’s 200 breast ahead of Drury junior Gwen Bergum (2:13.41) by just over three tenths, with Indy fifth-year Celina Schmidt (2:14.80) the only other swimmer to break 2:15. All three enter with season bests in the 2:11-high range, setting up what could be the best women’s race of the night.

All three athletes were over a second shy of their season bests and appeared to be saving something for tonight. Schmidt, the top returner from last year’s final where she placed fourth, owns the fastest time in the division this season at 2:11.23 and enters as the favorite on paper.

Other returners from last year’s final include Bergum, who placed sixth, and Alena Rozova (2:15.88), who qualified eighth this morning after finishing seventh in 2025.

MEN’S 200 BREASTSTROKE – PRELIMS

‘A’ Final Qualifiers: 

  1. Jeremias Pock (INDY) – 1:53.06
  2. Joao Nogueira (DRUR) – 1:54.23
  3. Maxim Tsyfarov (LYNN) – 1:55.97
  4. Aron Jonsson (MESA) – 1:56.52
  5. Connor Bichsel (MS&T) – 1:57.29
  6. Britton Spann (TAMP) – 1:57.32
  7. Cody Ano (TAMP) – 1:57.45
  8. Nicolo Cariboni (WIN) – 1:57.83

If you broke 1:58, you earned a spot in the championship final of the men’s 200 breast.

Indy sophomore Jeremias Pock (1:53.06) was quickest this morning, leading the field by over a full second heading into tonight. Pock, who scorched the NCAA Record of 1:51.26 last month, has looked unstoppable this week in Evansville, having already claimed titles in both IMs and the 100 breast, with the 400 IM a title defense. It’s hard to look past him grabbing a fourth gold of the meet tonight.

Drury senior Joao Nogueira smashed his entry time by 1.91 seconds, clocking 1:54.23 and jumping from fourth seed to second heading into tonight. He dropped half a second from his best time at the 2024 NCAA meet, where he was runner-up by a painful six hundredths.

Lynn junior Maxim Tsyfarov clipped his best time by just over half a second to go under 1:56 for the first time, qualifying third in 1:55.97.

The only returner from last season, minus Pock, is MS&T senior Connor Bichsel (1:57.29); he touched fifth this morning, the exact placement he earned in the 2025 final.

Tampa put two swimmers into the ‘A’ final in junior Britton Spann (1:57.32) and freshman Cody Ano (1:57.45), a strong close to a session that saw Drury burst out of the gates with strong momentum in the first half of events. Neither team has any swimmers in either the ‘B’ final.

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